Operations Planning Manager

freudenberg; Belvidere (IL); On-site; USD 85,000 - 115,000; Full time

Job summary

Freudenberg Group in Belvidere, IL seeks a Production Scheduling & Planning professional to create detailed daily, weekly, and monthly schedules for a high-volume operation. You balance demand, forecast requirements, inventory targets, capacity, labor, and material constraints across multiple SKUs to meet customer commitments.

The role requires hands-on ERP/MRP experience (SAP, Oracle, JD Edwards, or Microsoft Dynamics), strong cross-functional collaboration with procurement, sales, and

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in a related field.
• 3–7 years in production scheduling/planning or supply chain.
• Experience with high-SKU manufacturing environments and ERP/MRP systems.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain detailed daily, weekly, and monthly production schedules.
• Balance demand, forecast requirements, inventory targets, capacity, and materials.
• Sequence orders to minimize changeovers, downtime, and waste.
• Monitor schedule adherence and adjust for issues in real time.
• Release and manage work orders through ERP/MRP systems.

Skills

Production scheduling

Inventory management

Cross-functional coordination

Data analysis

S&OP support

Education

Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Operations Management, Business, Industrial Engineering, or related field

Tools

SAP

Oracle

JD Edwards

Microsoft Dynamics

Job description

Working at Freudenberg: We will wow your world!

Responsibilities

Production Scheduling & Planning

• Develop and maintain detailed daily, weekly, and monthly production schedules for a high-volume manufacturing operation with thousands of SKUs.


• Balance customer demand, forecast requirements, inventory targets, production capacity, labor availability, and material constraints.


• Sequence production orders to minimize changeovers, downtime, scrap, and production inefficiencies.


• Monitor schedule adherence and make real-time adjustments to address equipment issues, material shortages, labor constraints, and priority changes.


• Release and manage work orders through ERP/MRP systems.

Inventory Management

• Ensure appropriate inventory levels are maintained for finished goods and critical components.


• Analyze inventory trends and take action to prevent stockouts, excess inventory, and obsolete inventory.


• Collaborate with procurement to ensure timely material availability for production schedules.


• Support inventory reduction initiatives while maintaining target customer service levels.

Cross-Functional Coordination

• Coordinate daily with Production Supervisors regarding schedule attainment and manufacturing constraints.


• Work closely with Customer Service and Sales to understand customer requirements and delivery expectations.


• Partner with Procurement to identify and resolve material shortages.


• Communicate changes to production priorities effectively across the organization.

Data Analysis & Continuous Improvement

• Analyze demand patterns, production performance, and capacity utilization to improve planning accuracy.


• Develop and maintain KPIs related to schedule attainment, service levels, inventory performance, and manufacturing efficiency.


• Identify opportunities to improve scheduling processes and system utilization.


• Support S&OP (Sales and Operations Planning) and supply planning activities.

Reporting

• Prepare production schedules and planning reports for management review.


• Track and report schedule compliance, production output, backlog, capacity constraints, and inventory metrics.


• Maintain accurate planning data within ERP Microsoft Dynamcis/Great Plains/SAP and scheduling systems.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Operations Management, Business, Industrial Engineering, or related field preferred.


• Equivalent combination of education and experience may be considered.

Experience

• 3-7 years of production scheduling, production planning, supply chain, or manufacturing operations experience.


• Experience in high-SKU manufacturing environments required.


• Experience serving retail, consumer products, packaging, filtration, food, household goods, or similar industries preferred.


• Experience with ERP/MRP systems such as SAP, Oracle, JD Edwards, Microsoft Dynamics, or similar.

The Freudenberg Group is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to diversity and inclusion. Employment opportunities are available to all applicants and associates without regard to race, color, religion, creed, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions), gender identity or expression, national origin, ancestry, age, mental or physical disability, genetic information, marital status, familial status, sexual orientation, protected military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

Freudenberg Residential Filtration Technologies Inc.