Africa Pre-Commercial Seeds Supply Planner

Bayer; Brits; On-site; ZAR 600,000 - 800,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in the agriculture sector seeks a Planning Manager to oversee crop planning and inventory management for foundation seeds across Africa. Candidates should hold a BA/MA degree and possess 5+ years of relevant experience in Planning and Supply Chain, with a focus on driving decision-making across teams.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in Planning, Quality, Supply Chain, Manufacturing and/or Finance.
• Knowledge of Seeds business and Agriculture industry.

Responsibilities

• In charge of End-to-End crop plan and inventory planning.
• Drive and manage foundation, experimental, TELA, and licensing Crop Plans.
• Collaborate on production planning operations and inventory management.

Skills

Analytical mindset

Planning skills

Organizational skills

Decision making

Initiative

Improvement mindset

Proficiency in English

Education

BA/MA degree or equivalent

Job description

Main Purpose:

• In charge of End-to-End crop plan and inventory planning for Africa Foundation Seeds incl. Licensing, Experimental and TELA
• Strives for visibility on future and actual foundation seed availability starting from crop plan building and validation to availability monitoring, including in-season supervision of quantity and quality of batches used for Foundation Seed
• Liaise with Africa Product Mission Teams, Commercial Planners and Global Parent Seed team to ensure the required volumes of Foundation seed is produced for all relevant parties
• Brits preferred location; Waterfall an alternative one with a regular travel to Brits
  
  

Key Working Relations:

Reports to EMEA Supply Planning Lead

Works closely with:

• Foundation Seed Leads, Pre-Foundation Manager, Africa Product Portfolio Managers
• Supply and Product Mission Teams
• Breeding, Quality, R&D, Regulatory, Commercial, SCM functions
  
  

Key Tasks & Responsibilities:

• Foundation, Experimental & Licensing Planning
• Responsible for driving and managing foundation, experimental, TELA and licensing Crop Plans in line with Africa demands and inventories to ensure a reliable production. Support Breeding with pre-foundational crop planning
• Collaborate with Foundation Seed Lead, Field Operations Manager & Warehouse Manager to define production planning operations, planting plan scheduling and allocation to the appropriate areas for accurate and on-time availability
• Provide feedback to all relevant stakeholders with queries related to the stock volumes, availability timelines and shipment of Foundation Seed and Experimental hybrids
• Coordinate sourcing (imports & exports) of foundation seed to/from global partners and customers.
• Maintain export production file (flow file) and communicate latest updates.
• Inventory management / Deterioration & Obsolescence
• Assist with control and steering of Foundation seed inventory and D&O reporting (periodic D&O forecast, inventory and D&O optimization ideas to optimize inventory levels and reduce costs)
• Facilitate decision taking in Product advancement (Pre-PMT & PMT) processes by supporting with inputs on Pre-Foundation and Foundation availabilities in Africa. Work with Master Data to facilitate material creation for new varieties.
• Monitor levels of seed availability, and liaise with Pre-FND to keep seed stocks of each generation at adequate levels
• Process improvement and Operational Excellence
• Contribute to process improvements and/or new tools implementation in the planning team
• Support reaching overall goals for the region by driving operational excellence in planning
• Support business with requests to AG - Excellence and maintain data for varieties, inbreds, pedigree and yields in enterprise systems & databases
• Maintain updated ISO9001 documents and processes and ensure that compliance status is maintained
  
  

Skills & Qualifications (education, skills, experience):

• BA/MA degree or equivalent, preferably with focus in Supply; alternatively equivalent working experience
• 5+ years of experience in Planning, Quality, Supply Chain, Manufacturing and/or Finance
• Knowledge of Seeds business and Agriculture industry
  
  

Key Competencies:

• Analytical mindset with a commitment to accuracy and precision
• Strong planning and organizational skills. Can deal with complexity
• Ability to drive decision making in cross-functional teams
• Ability to work autonomously and take initiative
• Continuous improvement mindset
• Proficiency in English
  
  

Application Period: 24 June 2025 - 15 July 2025 Reference Code: 848404

Division: Crop Science Location: South Africa : North West : Brits || South Africa : Gauteng : Midrand

Functional Area: Production&Manufacturing Position Grade: VS 1.2

Employment Type: Regular Work Time: Standard

Contact Us

Address Telephone E-Mail

9 Country Estate Drive, Waterfall City, Johannesburg, 2090.

P O Box 143

Isando, 1600, South Africa

[e-mail]

Bayer welcomes applications from all individuals, regardless of race, national origin, gender, age, physical characteristics, social origin, disability, union membership, religion, family status, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression or any unlawful criterion under applicable law. We are committed to treating all applicants fairly and avoiding discrimination.