Deployment Planner

Lactalis USA; Hopkins (MN); On-site; USD 65,000 - 85,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid Time Off

Education Reimbursement

Comprehensive insurance coverage

Job summary

Lactalis USA is seeking a Deployment Planner responsible for managing internal finished goods deployments to meet customer service and inventory targets. The role requires collaboration with various teams to optimize shipping efficiency and troubleshoot any service disruptions.

Candidates should have 4+ years of experience in Supply Chain Planning and proficiency in Excel and SAP. Lactalis offers generous benefits and career growth opportunities from day one.

Qualifications

• 4+ years Supply Chain Planning/forecasting experience required.
• Experience in warehousing, transportation planning, and/or customer service preferred.
• Proficiency in Excel is required for the role.

Responsibilities

• Create and manage internal finished goods deployments.
• Build truckloads of finished goods product effectively.
• Generate plans for new orders and forecasts.
• Coordinate with warehousing and transportation teams.
• Drive continuous improvement and enhance communication.

Skills

Supply Chain Planning

Forecasting

Proficiency in Excel

SAP

Logistics

Education

Associate’s degree or equivalent experience

Bachelor’s Degree in Supply Chain, Engineering, Business, Logistics

Tools

MS Office

SAP

Job description

Ready for more than just a job? Build a career with purpose.

At Lactalis in the USA, we’re committed to providing meaningful opportunities for our people to learn, grow, and thrive—whether you’re just starting your journey with us or looking to take the next step in your career. From day one, we offer the tools and support to help you succeed.

As the world leader in dairy, Lactalis is a family‑owned company with over 85,000 pragmatic and ambitious professionals across the globe. Each day, we’re proud to produce award‑winning dairy products that bring people together.

In the U.S., we proudly offer an unrivaled house of beloved brands, including Galbani® Italian cheeses and ricotta, Président® specialty cheeses and butters, Kraft® natural and grated cheeses, Breakstone’s® cottage cheese, Cracker Barrel®, Black Diamond® cheddar, and Parmalat® milk. Our yogurt portfolio includes siggi’s®, Stonyfield Organic®, Brown Cow™, Oui®, Yoplait®, Go‑Gurt®, :ratio®, Green Mountain Creamery®, and Mountain High®, along with a growing family of ethnic favorites like Karoun®, Gopi®, and Arz®.

At Lactalis, we live by our core values—Ambition, Engagement, and Simplicity. We foster a workplace where innovation thrives, diverse perspectives are celebrated, and everyone’s unique background and ideas are valued.

Even if you don’t meet every qualification, we encourage you to apply. We want to hear about your PASSION, your STORY, and how your EXPERTISE can help us shape the future of dairy.

Deployment Planner

The Deployment Planner will create and manage internal finished goods deployments in order to satisfy regional inventory targets and service our customers. The planner works closely with production planners, transport and warehouse teams, customer service, and demand planning to determine optimal quantities to ship in order to achieve service and spoil targets. The role involves leveraging tools and resources to efficiently create shipments while minimizing rework and shipping inefficiencies and serves as the go‑to for troubleshooting service disruptions or shipping inefficiencies. The planner reports to the Deployment Manager.

Responsibilities

• Build truckloads of finished goods product effectively to maintain inventory targets and maximize service to customers while avoiding overstock and finished goods spoils.
• Generate plans that account daily for new orders, netted forecasts, and updated network inventory.
• Plan for constraints in the network, including warehouse space, drop lot capacity, trailer pools, dock schedules, and distribution center operating hours.
• Coordinate with warehousing and transportation teams to ensure ample space and carrier capacity for shipping requirements throughout the year, including for seasonality or volume spikes.
• Collaborate and build strong working relationships with various logistics and supply chain departments to effectively communicate, troubleshoot and drive results, including supply planning, industrial planning, transportation, and warehousing.
• Communicate expected service levels at distribution centers based on inbound flow of goods, outbound customer orders, and warehouse throughput constraints.
• Utilize technology, tools and services to optimize workflow and results.
• Respond to variances to plan and perform root cause analysis to advise on variances and disruptions, communicating findings and opportunities clearly and actionably.
• Drive continuous improvement by proactively identifying and driving changes to improve KPIs, enhance communication and visibility and drive process efficiency.

Requirements

Education

• Associate’s degree or equivalent experience required. Bachelor’s Degree preferred.
• Major in Supply Chain, Engineering, Business, Logistics, or a related field required.

Experience

• 4+ years Supply Chain Planning/forecasting experience required.
• Additional cross‑functional experience in warehousing, transportation planning, and/or customer service preferred.

Certifications and specific knowledge

• Proficiency in Excel and general knowledge of other MS Office applications required.
• Proficiency in SAP required.
• Experience in the CPG industry preferred.

Benefits

At Lactalis, we offer a comprehensive Total Rewards Program with a variety of affordable benefits and coverage options. We support insurance costs significantly, contribute generously to retirement plans, and offer Paid Time Off from day one. We are committed to your professional growth, providing training and development opportunities, including Education Reimbursement. Join us and grow your career.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Lactalis is an equal employment opportunity employer. We will not discriminate against applicants with regard to any legally‑recognized basis including, but not limited to: veteran status, race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, sexual orientation, and physical or mental disabilities. Further, any division of the Company that is an affirmative action employer will comply with all related legal obligations.