Senior Supply Planner

Ruprecht-Company; Mundelein (IL); On-site; USD 95,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

Ruprecht-Company in Mundelein, IL is seeking a Senior Supply Planner to translate customer demand into agile supply plans for short-shelf-life protein products.

You will own mid-range planning, manage the 18-week horizon, and partner with Operations, Sales, Procurement, and Quality to optimize service while minimizing waste. Strong ERP/MRP and Excel skills are essential.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a related field.
• 5+ years of progressive supply planning experience.
• Experience in food manufacturing or short shelf-life products preferred.
• Experience with MPS, capacity planning, and inventory optimization.
• Experience supporting S&OP processes.

Responsibilities

• Own and maintain a rolling 18 Week supply and production plan for the protein plant, translating demand forecasts into executable production plans.
• Execute and maintain the Master Production Schedule (MPS) for all lines and products; translate the mid-range plan into a weekly schedule.
• Balance capacity, labor, lead times, material availability, and shelf-life constraints to optimize service and plant efficiency.
• Monitor demand, inventory, product age, and production performance to adjust schedules as needed.
• Identify constraints and supply gaps across the 18-week horizon; develop recovery or mitigation actions.
• Collaborate with Operations to ensure plan feasibility and clear communication of changes.

Skills

Analytical thinking

Cross-functional collaboration

Problem solving

Attention to detail

Communication

Forecasting understanding

Education

Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain, Business, Operations Management, Engineering

Minimum 5 years of progressive supply planning experience

Experience in food manufacturing or short shelf-life products

Experience with MPS, capacity planning, inventory optimization

Experience supporting S&OP

Tools

ERP/MRP systems

WMS

Syspro

Translution

Excel

Job description

Description

The Senior Supply Planner plays a critical role in translating customer demand into executable production and supply plans for Kilcoy's protein manufacturing operation. This role owns the mid-range supply plan and maintains a rolling 18 Week planning horizon, aligning forecasted demand, production capacity, raw material and packaging availability, shelf-life constraints, and inventory targets to support high service levels while minimizing product age, waste, and obsolescence. Working closely with Sales, Operations, Procurement, Warehouse, Quality, and other Supply Chain partners, the Senior Supply Planner leads end-to-end supply planning for short shelf-life protein products, including forecast review, master production scheduling, capacity planning, inventory management, and supply risk mitigation. The role supports the monthly S&OP process and provides clear, proactive recommendations when demand, capacity, materials, or shelf-life requirements are out of balance.

Role and Responsibilities:

Production & Supply Planning

• Own and maintain a rolling 18 Week supply and production plan for the protein plant, translating demand forecasts and customer requirements into executable production plans.
• Execute and maintain the Master Production Schedule (MPS) for all assigned lines and products; translate the mid-range plan into an optimized finite weekly schedule.
• Balance production capacity, labor and line constraints, lead times, material availability, changeovers, inventory targets, and short shelf-life requirements to maintain service while optimizing plant efficiency.
• Continuously monitor demand changes, inventory positions, product age, shelf life, and production performance to identify required schedule or supply-plan adjustments.
• Identify capacity constraints, material risks, and supply gaps across the 18-week horizon; develop scenarios and recommend recovery or mitigation actions.
• Partner with Operations to ensure the production plan is executable and that schedule changes, priorities, and constraints are clearly communicated.

Inventory & Shelf-Life Management

• Maintain appropriate finished-goods inventory levels to support customer service targets while minimizing aging, spoilage, waste, and obsolete inventory.
• Actively manage short shelf-life inventory by monitoring product age, expiration exposure, demand coverage, and production timing.
• Track inventory levels, service levels, forecast performance, surplus/obsolete inventory, waste, and other relevant planning KPIs; investigate variances and drive corrective actions.
• Provide Warehouse and Logistics teams with forward-looking inventory visibility and planning insights.

Cross-Functional Planning & S&OP

• Partner closely with Operations, Quality, Procurement, Warehouse, Logistics, Sales, and Demand Planning to resolve supply issues and align priorities.
• Provide clear communication on supply risks, customer impacts, constrained items, recovery plans, and decisions required from leadership.
• Support and contribute to the monthly S&OP process with capacity, inventory, service, and supply-risk analysis across the planning horizon.
• Lead planning activities for new product launches, product transitions, and new SKU introductions, ensuring items are properly integrated into planning systems and production plans.
• Coach and support planning best practices across cross-functional teams and serve as a subject-matter resource for supply planning decisions.

Planning Systems & Continuous Improvement

• Maintain accurate planning data in ERP/MRP systems, including forecasts, lead times, lot sizes, safety stocks, planning parameters, and item attributes.
• Use ERP/MRP tools and Excel to analyze demand, supply, capacity, inventory, and shelf-life risks across 18 week horizon.
• Track and report key planning metrics including forecast accuracy, service level, schedule attainment, inventory performance, waste/obsolescence, and product age.
• Identify and implement planning process improvements that strengthen schedule stability, inventory health, service, and plant efficiency.

Compliance & Food Safety

• Ensure all planning activities align with SQF, USDA, and company food safety and quality standards applicable to meat and protein manufacturing.
• Incorporate food safety, quality holds, shelf-life requirements, and regulatory constraints into supply and production planning decisions.
• Report food safety, quality, or regulatory concerns promptly to leadership.

Requirements

Required Qualifications and Education Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain, Business, Operations Management, Engineering, or a related field required.
• Minimum 5 years of progressive experience in supply planning, production planning, materials planning, or a closely related planning discipline.
• Experience planning in a food manufacturing environment required; experience with protein, meat, poultry, refrigerated, fresh, or other short shelf-life products strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated experience managing a multi-week planning horizon, including mid-range supply planning and production scheduling; experience planning 14+ weeks out strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated experience with MPS, capacity planning, inventory optimization, and supply-risk mitigation in a manufacturing environment.
• Experience supporting S&OP or an equivalent integrated demand/supply planning process.
• Proficiency in ERP/MRP and WMS systems; Syspro and Translution experience a plus.
• Advanced proficiency in Excel and strong analytical capability with large planning datasets.
• Strong communication, organizational, prioritization, and problem-solving skills.

Key Competencies

• Advanced analytical thinking and data-driven decision-making.
• Strong understanding of production planning, capacity constraints, inventory tradeoffs, and short shelf-life management.
• Ability to anticipate supply risks and make timely recommendations in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
• Strong attention to detail and planning-data accuracy.
• Ability to influence and collaborate effectively across Operations, Sales, Quality, Procurement, Warehouse, and Logistics.
• Ownership mindset, sound judgment, and continuous improvement orientation.

Work Environment and Physical Requirements

The work environment alternates between a cold production setting with concrete floors and an office. This position requires the team member to:

• Sit for an extended period at a computer.
• Stand and walk through the production floor and endure cold temperatures (38 degrees).
• Must occasionally lift/move up to 40 lbs.

Food Safety Kilcoy has adopted the SQF System for food safety management and is under continuous USDA meat & poultry jurisdiction. All Kilcoy team members are responsible for food safety and quality requirements. Team members will be regularly informed, trained, and held accountable for managing food safety and regulatory expectations within their work areas. Team members should notify their department management about any food safety issues or concerns to be adequately addressed. To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions.