Demand Strategy Lead, Cloud Infrastructure Business Operations

Apple Inc.; Cupertino (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a Demand Strategy Lead to enhance their Cloud Infrastructure Business Operations. This role involves collaborating with cross-functional teams to forecast and manage long-term infrastructure demand across cloud resources and data centers. You will utilize your strategic mindset and technical expertise to optimize resource planning and influence key stakeholders. If you have a strong background in demand planning and cloud operations, and thrive in a fast-paced environment, this is an exciting opportunity to make a significant impact in a dynamic team focused on innovation and excellence.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in demand planning and cloud operations.
• Strong skills in Excel, data analysis, and forecasting tools.
• Experience presenting data insights to executive leadership.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to align demand forecasts.
• Optimize cloud and datacenter resource planning strategies.
• Influence technical and non-technical stakeholders effectively.

Skills

Demand Planning

Cloud Operations

Supply Chain Management

Excel (Advanced)

Data Analysis

Forecasting

Problem-Solving

Influencing Stakeholders

Education

MBA

MS in Operations Research

MS in Supply Chain

Tools

Python

SQL

R

Power BI

Tableau

Job description

Demand Strategy Lead, Cloud Infrastructure Business Operations

Cupertino, California, United States Software and Services

Description

As part of a team dedicated to building the Cloud Infrastructure Demand Planning function, we work with cross-functional business partners to forecast and aggregate long-term infrastructure demand across cloud resources, data centers, and hardware. With this data, we propose and implement strategies for optimizing cloud and datacenter resource planning, including buffer assessments, inventory management, financial liability management, and supply chain risk mitigation. This role requires a strategic attitude, technical expertise in cloud infrastructure, and strong problem-solving capabilities to optimize prioritization. We partner with engineering, finance, and supply chain teams to align demand forecasts with procurement and deployment strategies. Your ability to work with senior leadership to review long-term infrastructure capacity plans and secure approvals for resource acquisition and deployment will be essential to your success in this role.

Minimum Qualifications

• Minimum of 7 years of experience in demand planning, infrastructure planning, cloud operations, supply chain, or a related field.
• Familiarity with hardware lifecycle management, including procurement, lead times, and supply chain constraints for servers, networking equipment, and storage.
• Strong experience with infrastructure financial modeling, TCO analysis, and cost optimization strategies for cloud and on-prem resources.
• Strong skills in Excel, including advanced modeling, VBA, and automation. Proficiency in data analysis and forecasting tools (e.g., Python, SQL, R, Power BI, Tableau).
• Experience with capacity modeling, demand forecasting, and scenario planning for large-scale infrastructure.
• Experience in long-range planning for infrastructure growth, including multi-year capacity projections and investment strategy.
• Shown ability to influence technical and non-technical customers, including engineering, finance, supply chain, and executive teams.
• Experience leading cross-functional planning processes, aligning partners on demand signals and infrastructure roadmaps.
• Prior experience presenting complex data and planning insights to executive leadership (VP-level and above) with clear, actionable recommendations.

Preferred Qualifications

• MBA or MS in Operations Research, Supply Chain, Data Science, Engineering or a related field.
• Deep understanding of cloud and datacenter infrastructure, including compute, storage, networking, virtualization, and hyperscale/cloud provider ecosystems.
• Experience with cloud capacity planning and forecasting methodologies for AWS, Azure, GCP, or private cloud environments.
• Experience with Cloud FinOps (financial operations), particularly cost forecasting and chargeback models.
• Familiarity with AI/ML-driven capacity planning and predictive analytics tools.
• Prior experience in a hyperscale cloud provider, data center operator, or large enterprise infrastructure planning team.
• Knowledge of operations research, statistical forecasting, or machine learning techniques for infrastructure planning.

Apple is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to inclusion and diversity. We take affirmative action to ensure equal opportunity for all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, Veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. Learn more about your EEO rights as an applicant.