Demand Planner

Apria Healthcare; United States; Remote; USD 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a skilled Demand Planner to enhance forecasting accuracy and drive business decisions. In this pivotal role, you will collaborate with cross-functional teams to develop demand planning models, analyze key performance indicators, and implement process improvements using Lean Six Sigma principles. Your expertise in demand planning systems and strong analytical skills will be vital in aligning customer demand with business objectives. Join a dynamic team dedicated to empowering healthcare solutions and making a significant impact in the industry.

Benefits

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

401(k) eligibility after one year

Employee stock purchase plan

Tuition reimbursement

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in Demand Planning, preferably in Medical Products.
• Strong analytical skills and ability to manipulate large datasets.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain demand planning models to improve forecast accuracy.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to align on demand forecasts.

Skills

Demand Planning

Statistical Analysis

Forecasting

Lean Six Sigma Principles

Communication Skills

Collaboration

Analytical Skills

Problem Solving

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering

Master’s degree (preferred)

Tools

SAP IBP

Demand Planning Systems

Job description

At Owens & Minor, we are a critical part of the healthcare process. As a Fortune 500 company with 350+ facilities across the US and 22,000 teammates in over 90 countries, we provide integrated technologies, products and services across the full continuum of care. Customers—and their patients—are at the heart of what we do.

Our mission is to empower our customers to advance healthcare, and our success starts with our teammates.

Owens & Minor teammate benefits include:

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance, available on first working day
• 401(k), eligibility after one year of service
• Employee stock purchase plan
• Tuition reimbursement

Job Description: Executes the Owens & Minor Product & Healthcare Services (P&HS) Demand Planning processes and Customer Collaboration. Works closely with cross-functional teams, including sales, finance, operations, supply chain, procurement, and marketing to generate demand plans with high forecast accuracy and low bias. Responsible for generating statistical baseline and connecting the commercial and financial forecasts to the Demand Plan, Marketing and Sales. Individual Contributor that assists with driving business decisions including informing forecasting, assumptions, risks and opportunities, and New Product Launches. This role is instrumental in improving forecast accuracy to enhance customer satisfaction and improve cash flow by minimizing the creation of inventory excess. This position will interact with external customers to build collaboration to create aligned demand plans.

Core Responsibilities:

• Develop and maintain demand planning models and tools to improve forecast accuracy and reliability North America.
• Support Planning System Master Data maintenance (Parameter tuning, Planning Object creation, Demand forecasting Unit Creation).
• Monitor, audit automated Market Insight (Add to Stock Process) to properly capture Sales and marketing Opportunities.
• Utilize historical sales data, market trends, and other relevant information to forecast customer demand for products.
• Collaborate with sales, marketing, and operations teams to gather insights and align on demand forecasts.
• Support New Customer Onboarding Process and Customer Exists.
• Monitor and analyze key performance indicators (KPIs) such as forecast Accuracy, WMAPE, MAPE, Forecast Bias, Forecast Value Add for improvement.
• Leads and supports sustainable process improvement by diagnosing complex business problems and providing recommended plans to deliver process improvements through the implementation of Lean Six Sigma Principles.
• Proactively identify potential risks and opportunities in the demand planning process and develop strategies to mitigate risks and capitalize on opportunities.
• Continuously evaluate and improve demand planning processes and methodologies to enhance efficiency and effectiveness.
• Support Next Gen Digital Supply chain projects with user Acceptance Testing and providing Business requirements.

Qualifying Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, Industrial Engineering, Business, Supply Chain Management, Operations Management, Supply Chain Analytics, or related field. Master’s degree is a plus.
• 7 or more years in Demand Planning. Medical Products is a plus.
• Being able to lead, sell, influence, and get support and adherence to the process. Creating a multi-functional environment to create one demand plan for the company/business.
• Experience and ability to communicate clear messages to different levels in the organization, through strong presentation skills, including verbal, written and electronic presentations.
• Demonstrated experience collaborating and working with external customers to align on demand plans, track performance and hold them accountable.
• Extensive experience in Demand Planning systems. SAP IBP preferred.
• Strong Analytical Skills, Statistical and Forecasting and being able to explain Assumptions, Variations, Gaps to Plan.
• Ability to Set Parameter and Stat Models at the appropriate Product/Customer Hierarchy levels using Next Generation Planning Tools.
• Ability to manipulate large datasets, perform complex calculations, and interpret numerical information to make informed decisions.
• Ability to work effectively with many and varied functions.
• Ability to identify emerging technologies and successfully apply them to critical business problems.
• Self-starter, ability to work independently and in a team setting involving multiple departments, partners, and business processes.