The Senior Materials Planner plays a critical role in ensuring the continuous availability of direct materials required to support finished goods production across manufacturing operations. This role independently manages end-to-end materials planning for assigned material portfolios, translating planning signals and operational requirements into replenishment decisions that balance service levels, inventory health, and cost efficiency.
The Senior Materials Planner analyzes MRP outputs, consumption trends, supplier constraints, and inventory dynamics to proactively identify supply risks and implement mitigation strategies before production is impacted. A strong focus on shortage prevention is essential, with responsibility for independently resolving most material supply issues and escalating systemic or cross-site risks when broader coordination is required.
In addition to managing daily planning activities, this role drives continuous improvement within its scope by refining planning parameters, strengthening inventory strategies, and improving ERP/MRP data integrity to enhance planning accuracy and supply reliability. The Senior Materials Planner works closely with sourcing, manufacturing, logistics, and quality teams to stabilize material flow, support new product introductions, and align planning decisions with operational priorities.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. Other duties may be assigned.
Planning and Scheduling- Independently manage end-to-end planning for defined material portfolios across multiple plants, balancing service, inventory, and cost objectives.
- Analyze MRP outputs, identify systemic demand/supply risks, and make independent adjustments to ordering logic, timing, and quantities.
- Manage the full lifecycle of POs and material replenishment decisions, adjusting order timing, quantities, and sourcing logic to optimize supply continuity.
- Proactively anticipate shortages and lead mitigation planning with suppliers, sourcing, logistics, and manufacturing teams.
- Manage materials planning readiness for new product launches, identifying constraints and coordinating supply readiness with sourcing operations.
- Own KPI performance for assigned material portfolios, driving measurable improvements in service levels, inventory turns, and shortage prevention.
Inventory Health- Actively optimize inventory performance by evaluating consumption trends, safety stock levels, and replenishment frequency.
- Lead resolution of inventory risks by analyzing root causes and implementing corrective planning adjustments.
- Provide insights into forecast variability, supplier constraints, and material risks to improve planning accuracy.
- Recommend improvements to MOQ alignment, safety stock logic, and replenishment cadence within assigned scope.
Supplier Relationship Management:- Independently manage supplier coordination for assigned materials and resolve supply disruptions.
- Analyze supplier service trends and collaborate with procurement to improve supplier reliability.
- Ensure purchasing execution aligns with supplier capacity constraints, contractual commitments, and production priorities.
- Provide planning insights into supplier scorecards and participate in operational performance reviews.
Planning Systems & Data Integrity- Act as an advanced user of ERP/MRP systems, troubleshooting planning data issues and improving reporting visibility.
- Identify master data inaccuracies impacting planning performance and coordinate corrective updates.
- Support planning configuration reviews and system enhancements with IT and continuous improvement teams.
- Develop reporting tools to improve visibility into planning KPIs and inventory health.
Cross-Functional Collaboration & Communication- Communicate risks, mitigation plans, and planning insights to cross-functional to enable operational decision making.
- Represent planning in operational planning forums and collaborate with partners to resolve supply risks.
- Lead resolution of moderate-complexity planning issues using structured root cause analysis, identifying systemic drivers and recommending process improvements.
- Mentor junior planners on planning processes, troubleshooting methods, documentation standards, and backup discipline to improve capability across the team.
Process Improvement - Lead process improvements within assigned scope to improve planning accuracy and efficiency.
- Contribute to process documentation and promote consistent planning practices.
- Lead Kaizen or structured improvement efforts within the planning function.
QUALIFICATIONS: To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
EDUCATION: Bachelor's degree required, preferably in Supply chain, Business, Finance, Operations, Engineering, or equivalent combination of education and experience
EXPERIENCE: - 4-6 years' experience working in Materials Planning, Supply Planning, or Purchasing, and inventory management
- 3-5 years of hands-on experience with ERP/MRP systems, including configuration and optimization of planning parameters.
- Experienced using data visualization tools such as Power BI is preferred.
SKILLS: - Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to independently communicate supply risks, mitigation plans, and planning insights to cross-functional stakeholders including sourcing, logistics, and operations.
- Demonstrated ability to manage competing priorities across multiple materials and plants while balancing service levels, cost, and inventory exposure. Operates independently with minimal supervision.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to evaluate planning data, identify root causes of supply disruptions, and implement corrective actions that improve planning outcomes.
- Strong attention to detail combined with analytical judgment to ensure planning parameters, order quantities, and inventory strategies align with operational realities.
- Solid understanding of supply chain planning principles including inventory management, supplier constraints, replenishment strategies, and production scheduling impacts.
- Advanced user of ERP/MRP systems with the ability to troubleshoot planning exceptions, analyze system outputs, and recommend improvements to planning parameters and system usage.
- Strong Excel and planning analytics capability; able to build structured analysis and leverage tools such as Power BI or similar reporting platforms to improve planning visibility and decision-making.
- Strong cross-functional collaborator able to influence operational decisions and coordinate effectively with procurement, manufacturing, logistics, and quality teams.
- Identifies opportunities to improve planning workflows, data accuracy, and inventory performance; supports or leads improvement efforts within assigned scope.
- Mentors junior planners, shares best practices, and contributes to strengthening planning discipline across the team.
CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS: APICS coursework or certifications (e.g., CPIM), familiarity with Lean concepts, or Lean Six Sigma training are a plus.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS: The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions
WORK ENVIRONMENT: The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
TRAVEL: Up to 20% travel may be required.
This role is not eligible for sponsorship.
