Specialist, Planning & Scheduling (Onsite)

msd; West Point (PA); On-site; USD 87,000 - 137,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical

Dental

Vision healthcare

Other insurance benefits (for employee

family)

Retirement benefits, including 401(k)

Paid holidays

Vacation

Compassionate and sick days

Job summary

Merck in the United States seeks a Specialist, Operations Planning to execute assigned planning tasks within larger programs, adhering to SOP and GMP expectations. The role operates independently on standard assignments and escalates issues with guidance as needed.

The candidate will work with cross-functional teams to track inputs, priorities and risks, maintain accurate records, and communicate status clearly while supporting continuous improvement initiatives in a regulated environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in supply chain, business, engineering, or life sciences.
• English proficiency with clear written and spoken communication.
• Experience in supply chain, operations planning, clinical supply, manufacturing or logistics.
• Experience with planning processes, data tracking and cross-functional coordination.

Responsibilities

• Deliver planning tasks and portions of larger programs per priorities, timelines and SOP/GMP expectations.
• Apply standard planning processes and tools to routine to moderately complex assignments.
• Organize activities and inform manager of progress and constraints.
• Escalate conflicts or decisions early when guidance is needed.
• Support planning execution for programs and track inputs, dependencies and open items.
• Communicate progress, missing information, and potential continuity risks early.
• Monitor tasks for schedule, quality and data issues; flag blockers with facts for resolution.
• Escalate risks or decisions outside own responsibility promptly and follow guidance.
• Communicate status and constraints within assigned scope; gather inputs from partners.
• Contribute to meetings with accurate updates and factual input.
• Share learnings and support documentation or onboarding as requested.
• Identify practical improvement ideas and support standardization or digitalization efforts.

Skills

Cross-Functional Communications

Cross-Functional Project Management

Deliverables Management

Delivery Management

Inventory Control Management

MRP Systems

Production Planning

Progress Monitoring

Stakeholder Management

Supply Chain Metrics

Education

Bachelor's degree in supply chain, Business Administration, Engineering, Life Sciences or a related field

Tools

SAP

Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, Outlook, Teams)

Job description

Job Description

Job Summary

The Specialist, Operations Planning role is a P2 individual contributor role focused on reliable execution of assigned activities, support for larger programs or workstreams, clear communication of status and issues, and timely escalation with appropriate guidance.

The role works independently on standard assignments and seeks guidance from the manager or senior colleagues for non-routine issues, conflicting priorities, or decisions outside assigned responsi

Key Responsibilities

Assigned scope delivery and priority execution

• Deliver assigned planning tasks and portions of larger programs, projects or workstreams in line with agreed priorities, timelines and procedures.
• Apply standard planning processes, tools, systems and Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) and Good Manufacturing Process (GMP) expectations to complete routine to moderately complex assignments.
• Organize own activities, follow agreed priorities and keep manager or senior colleagues informed on progress, constraints and support needs.
• Escalate conflicts, decisions, or trade-offs early when guidance or alignment is required.

Planning execution and business continuity support

• Support planning execution for assigned portions of programs, processes or workstreams.
• Track required inputs, dependencies, constraints and open items related to own tasks.
• Communicate progress, missing information, workload concerns or potential continuity risks early.

Performance, risk and escalation management

• Monitor assigned tasks for schedule, quality, compliance, capacity or data-related issues.
• Flag conflicts, deviations from agreed plans, missing inputs or blockers and provide relevant facts to support resolution.
• Escalate risks or decisions outside own responsibility promptly and follow guidance on next actions.

Stakeholder engagement and communication

• Communicates status, open items, constraints and support needs within assigned scope.
• Collect and clarify required inputs from business and functional partners.
• Provide accurate updates and contribute factual input to meetings or discussions when requested.

Knowledge sharing and team contribution

• Share practical learnings, process updates and useful information with colleagues.
• Support documentation, knowledge transfer or onboarding activities when requested and within own experience.
• Apply team expectations, collaborate constructively, seek feedback and elevate questions early.

Continuous improvement and transformation

• Identify practical improvement ideas in own tasks, processes, documentation or tools and share them with manager or senior colleagues.
• Complete assigned actions that support approved standardization, digitalization or transformation activities.
• Apply new ways of working within own responsibilities and provide feedback on implementation challenges.

Preferred Education, Experience and Skills

• Bachelor's degree in supply chain, Business Administration, Engineering, Life Sciences or a related field.
• Proven English proficiency is required, with the ability to communicate clearly in written and spoken English.
• Initial relevant professional experience in supply chain, operations planning, clinical supply, manufacturing, packaging, logistics or a related business environment.
• Experience working with planning processes, business systems, data tracking, documentation or cross-functional coordination is preferred.
• Basic understanding of GMP, SOP, quality or regulated business requirements is an advantage.
• Experience using SAP or other ERP systems and Microsoft Office applications, particularly Excel, Word, Outlook and Teams.
• Ability to manage assigned deliverables, track priorities and maintain accurate records and documentation.
• Ability to work effectively in a cross-functional and international team environment.
• Strong attention to detail, reliability and ability to follow defined processes and procedures.
• Interests in continuous improvement, standardization, digitalization or process optimization activities.
• Familiarity with clinical supply chain operations, packaging activities, labeling processes or related regulated operations is an advantage.

#eligibleforERP

#GCScareer

Required Skills

Cross-Functional Communications, Cross-Functional Project Management, Deliverables Management, Delivery Management, Inventory Control Management, MRP Systems, Production Planning, Progress Monitoring, Stakeholder Management, Supply Chain Metrics

Preferred Skills

Communication, Planning, Supply Chain

US and Puerto Rico Residents Only

Our company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.

As an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. As a federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities. For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:

EEOC Know Your Rights

EEOC GINA Supplement

We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another's thinking and approach problems collectively.

Learn more about your rights, including under California, Colorado and other US State Acts

Salary

The salary range for this role is

$87,300.00 - $137,400.00

This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee's position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs.

The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.

Benefits

• medical
• dental
• vision healthcare
• other insurance benefits (for employee and family)
• retirement benefits, including 401(k)
• paid holidays
• vacation
• compassionate and sick days

More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits.

San Francisco Residents Only

We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Los Angeles Residents Only

We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles' Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance

Employee Status

Regular

Relocation

No relocation

VISA Sponsorship

No

Travel Requirements

No Travel Required

Flexible Work Arrangements

Not Applicable

Shift

Not Indicated

Valid Driving License

No

Hazardous Material(s)

n/a

Job Posting End Date

10/9/2026

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.