Stock Allocations Planner - Rainbow

Trending Talent Solutions; Durban; On-site; ZAR 300,000 - 450,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in Durban is seeking an Outbound Supply Chain Planner to optimize customer service through effective stock allocation and operational planning. You will collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure timely delivery and manage stock efficiently while addressing customer inquiries. Ideal candidates will possess a tertiary qualification in Supply Chain Management and have 2-3 years of relevant experience.

Qualifications

• 2 - 3 years operational experience within Outbound Supply Chain Planning, Call Center or Distribution.
• Tertiary qualification in Commerce/Supply Chain/Logistics Management.

Responsibilities

• Execute 2 weeks forward planning based on the forecast.
• Coordinate and drive the outbound supply chain planning projects.
• Monitor transport budget for inter-regional movements.

Skills

Verbal and written communication

Computer literacy (MS Office and particularly Excel)

Negotiation & Problem Solving

Logical & Analytical thinking

Attention to detail

Education

Grade 12

Tertiary qualification in Commerce/Supply Chain/Logistics Management

Tools

SAP

Job description

Role Purpose:

• To maximize customer service by allocating stock fairly across all orders received from direct customers and distribution requirements planning, as well as planning stock to storage, while constantly considering the opportunities for cost saving within the distribution network.

Key Responsibilities:

Operational Planning

• Execute 2 weeks forward planning based on the forecast.

Functional Strategy into Action Operationalization

• Work in conjunction with the Managers in the Outbound Supply Chain team to deliver the functions strategy into action.
• Facilitate integrated supply chain delivery by managing relationships and interaction with cross functional regional teams.
• Ensure the agreed SIA is implemented through delivery of own and team targets.
• Coordinate and drive the outbound supply chain planning projects when applicable.

Allocation of Stock (Frozen only)

• Weekly, on Wednesdays, agree with the team what inter-regional stock movement is required for the next week, considering associated costs and customer service.
• Weekly, on Wednesdays, review the direct customer and replenishment orders for the following week to determine whether they can be fulfilled and from where, ensuring that stock is allocated within a region before being allocated to another region to reduce costs.
• On a daily basis, review the ad hoc direct customer and branch orders to determine whether they can be fulfilled and from where, ensuring that stock is allocated within a region before being allocated to another region to reduce costs.
• Where direct orders cannot be fulfilled due to stock shortages, revert back to the call center or relevant sales manager for assistance on gaining a directive for a replacement product in order to secure a full direct order (14 or 28 pallets).
• Where the customer does not want a replacement/filler, escalate to the sales manager for assistance.
• On acceptance of the order, allocate the stock to the order in SAP, including which warehouse the stock will be dispatched from.
• Before allocating stock to customer orders, ensure they are not on credit block. Where customers are on credit block, coordinate and drive the overall process of releasing the affected customer.
• Allocate stock to orders using input from the sales team, national planning and taking into account the planned forward stock holding (days cover) so as to maximize customer service.
• Where possible, pull orders of 10 pallets or more into the direct network as opposed to branch deliveries.

Days Cover Maintenance for weeks 1-2

• Maximize customer service by maintaining days cover at the targeted levels.
• Where days cover is below target within weeks 1 - 2, work closely with the production planners to either realign priorities or determine whether there is stock available from another region that can be brought in (without negatively impacting that region’s forward days cover requirements) and create the necessary SAP documents.
• Work closely with the site based planning teams to maximize customer service at a national level, while minimizing transport costs associated with inter-regional stock movement.
• Monitor the transport budget for inter-regional movements to ensure these costs do not exceed the plan.

Contractual Customer Management (Food Solutions)

• Review and manage the stock holding requirements for contractual customers to ensure appropriate stock holding in their warehouses.
• Create orders to meet their demand needs and ensure appropriate action is taken to meet the contract stock holding.
• Closely liaise with the regional customer team leaders both within Rainbow and the external customer to ensure that appropriate plans are activated and the orders are delivered according to the plan.
• Get daily confirmation from the primary transport team on execution.
• Get customer service level feedback on at least a weekly basis, to ensure that KPI's are met.
• Closely manage the SKU's that are on short supply to ensure no service level problems are experienced.
• Generate customer service level reports and issue as required.
• Investigate all customer service failures and put corrective actions in place.
• Handle daily queries from customers and Rainbow on stock issues.
• Provide weekly stock holding and orders vs deliveries reports.

Customer Service Communication

• Ensure the call center or sales managers are always aware of any changes or anomalies that may occur with recommendations on how to resolve them.
• Confirm the final stock that will be delivered at least 48 hours in advance of the delivery to prevent changes thereafter.
• Work closely with the call center team to ensure they are fully briefed on all stock shortages or over stocks to better enable them to assist the supply chain on receipt of customer orders.
• Address all customer service related questions with the appropriate team or person.
• Raise on-going problems that are experienced in either the warehouses or transport environment that have an impact on customers with the distribution planner.

Customer Service Excellence

• Work closely with the sales and distribution team to assist them to understand reasons for customer service failure, making recommendations for improvement.
• Coordinate the release of future orders to meet current requirements after liaising with the planning team and confirming future production to refill the future order.

Inventory Management and Reporting

• Monitor the days cover by SKU and action plans when stock is either below target (raise with the production planner to determine if stock is scheduled for production or determine if it can be brought in from another region) or in excess of target, raise awareness with the sales team.
• Where days cover target seems inappropriate (either too high or low), raise this distribution manager and the planning manager to determine if the stock target should be reviewed based on changed business circumstances.
• Use the “Available to Promise” report daily to allocate stock and review forward days cover, ensuring that you have sufficient stock and/or warehouse space to accommodate the requirements.
• Monitor and follow up on open deliveries not picked and blocked stock.

SAP Maintenance

• Ensure all open direct orders and branch stock transfer orders are cleaned weekly.
• Ensure all incomplete orders are actioned and/or closed.
• Extract orders on SAP daily to ensure that no orders are missed out and inadvertently not actioned.
• Ensure all orders canceled by customers or deferred to another week are rejected by the Friday of the current week.

Information and Data Management (where applicable)

• Ensure team members accurately and regularly capture data into the information system to enable access to reliable data and reporting for trend analysis and decision making.
• Share with and report relevant data and information to management teams to enable reliable business decision making.
• Work with the SAP team to analyze and augment the daily reports to best fit the evolving needs of the team.

Team Coordination

• Take ownership and accountability for tasks and activities and demonstrates effective self management in terms of planning and prioritizing, and self development.
• Follow through to ensure that quality and productivity standards of work are consistently and accurately maintained.
• Inform relevant parties in the event of tasks or deadlines not met, the potential risks thereof and provide appropriate resolution.
• Support and drive the business core values.
• Manage colleagues and client's expectations and communicate appropriately.
• Demonstrate willingness to help others and "go the extra mile" to meet team targets and objectives.
• Champions training and development of self and others through utilizing available training opportunities or contributing to the development of new training solutions relating to product costing in collaboration with national training specialists.
• Participate in regular performance appraisals and ensure that own targets and goals are clear and achievable.

Administration

• Oversee filing and safeguarding of records within area of responsibility.
• Compile ad hoc spreadsheets when required.
• Process documents for inter-company charge outs.

KPI’s

• Days cover target attainment.
• Demand service level and customer service level.
• On time delivery (to customers, branches and warehouses).
• Distribution budget for inter-region movements.
• Branch vs direct splits.

Knowledge/Competence:

Behavior Standards

• Be brilliant at the basics.
• Face the brutal facts.
• Smash the silos.
• Lead with integrity, respect and energy.
• Be curious and challenge change .
• Take accountability for results and people

Knowledge

• Warehousing principles and practices .
• SAP
• Logistics and distribution principles and practices.
• Rainbow business processes and products.
• Supply chain principles and practices.
• Multiple key performance indicators, inter-relationships and bottom line sensitivity.

Skills & Attributes:

• Verbal and written communication.
• Computer literacy (MS Office and particularly Excel).
• Report writing & Presentation.
• Relationship management.
• Negotiation & Problem Solving
• Logical & Analytical thinking.
• Numeracy.
• Organizational awareness
• Initiative and assertive.
• Tolerant of stress and pressure.
• Proactive & Deadline Driven.
• Attention to detail
• Able to interact at all levels of the organization
• Able to plan ahead and manage time and prioritize

Experience:

• 2 - 3 years operational experience within Outbound Supply Chain Planning (demand and supply), Call Center or Distribution.

Qualifications:

• Grade 12
• Tertiary qualification in Commerce/Supply Chain/Logistics Management

Durban, Hammarsdale

Published Date: 11 June 2025

Closing Date: 23 June 2025