Category Planner

FleetPride; Irving (IA); On-site; USD 85,000 - 115,000; Full time

Job summary

FleetPride is seeking a Category Planner to forecast customer demand and align product availability with needs across our supply chain and sales teams.

The role combines data analytics with market intelligence to drive inventory decisions, optimize stock levels, and support FleetPride's financial performance. You will work with Category Management, Sales, Marketing, and Operations to balance demand and supply in a dynamic market.

Responsibilities

• Forecast and monitor POS demand data to identify patterns, trends, and variability, including weather, competitor activity, and customer inventory strategies.
• Create and maintain forecast profiles at SKU, location, and monthly levels for accuracy.
• Analyze forecast metrics and adjust forecasts to minimize bias and inaccuracy.
• Capture risks and opportunities in the demand plan and communicate with key partners.
• Collaborate with sales partners and category managers to enhance models with business intelligence (account-specific, promotions, inventory levels).
• Manage system alerts identifying trends and forecast bias for proactive actions.
• Input into financial planning with demand insights and analysis.
• Cross-functional coordination with Category Management, Sales, Marketing, Supply Chain, Operations, and Customer Service to balance demand and supply.
• Analyze inventory investment to meet customer service targets at lowest cost.
• Develop and maintain inventory targets and monitor performance against goals.
• Align demand plans with inventory management and distribution strategies with supply chain and operations.
• Prioritize multiple tasks to ensure timely completion in a fluid environment.

Job description

FleetPride is the largest after-market distributor of heavy-duty truck and trailer parts in the U.S. with some of the best and brightest people in the business!

Summary:

This is a strategic role that sits at the intersection of supply chain management, sales, category management, and business analytics. This role is tasked with forecasting customer demand and aligning product availability with customer needs. This role supports Fleetpride’s operational efficiency and financial performance by using a blend of quantitative data analysis and market intelligence to predict sales trends and make informed inventory decisions. Through insight, the Category Planner enables Fleetpride to optimize stock levels, minimize costs, and navigate the complexities of supply and demand dynamics in a constantly evolving marketplace.

Essential Responsibilities:

Forecast and Inventory Planning (85%):

• Monitor POS demand data to determine patterns, trends, variability to include but not limited to deviations in demand due to weather, competitive situations and customer's inventory strategies.
• Create and maintain forecast profiles best suited to provide the highest level of accuracy at the SKU, location, monthly level.
• Analyze and report forecast metric results. Make forecast adjustments and take corrective action in forecast process to minimize error in bias and accuracy.
• Capture risks and opportunities to the demand plan to communicate to key business partners.
• Regular collaboration with commercial sales partners and category managers to enhance statistical models with account specific business intelligence including, but not limited to, category strategies, new items, new item cannibalization, promotion plans, customer inventory levels, historical and current POS and shipment trends.
• Manage system generated alerts identifying trends and forecast bias for proactive actions.
• Provide input into the financial planning process through accurate demand insights and analysis.
• Frequent cross functional interaction with Category Management, Sales, Marketing, Supply Chain, Operations, and Customer Service to balance demand and supply.
• Perform analysis to determine the inventory investment required to ensure a high level of customer service at the lowest cost.
• Develop and maintain inventory targets and monitor performance against these goals.
• Work closely with supply chain, category management, and operations to align demand plans with inventory management and distribution strategies.
• Manage and prioritize multiple tasks to ensure timely completion in a fluid environment.

Assortment Planning & Management (15%):

• Implement product assortment plans that align with overall portfolio strategy, business goals and market trends.
• Implement tactical plans to facilitate product lifecycle changes, such as the introduction of new products and the phasing out of underperforming ones.

FleetPride is the leader in the industry comprised of retail, service, distribution and wholesale divisions.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.