Interim Head of Materials Planning & Logistics

What\’s on offer: £100,000 + Package FTC PAYE £500 P/D Temporary to Contract Role ParkinsionLee Executive Search are partnering with a privately owned, heritage manufacturing business, recognised as a market leader within its sector. Operating from a state-of-the-art manufacturing headquarters, the business has built a reputation for innovation, quality, and operational excellence. As part of its ongoing transformation, the business is now seeking to appoint an Interim Head of Materials Planning & Logistics to lead a strategic review and transformation of its Materials Control and Logistics function. This is a high-impact leadership role, accountable for ensuring the end-to-end supply chain is fit for purpose, risk-mitigated, and fully aligned to operational and strategic goals. Working closely with the senior leadership team, the successful candidate will lead the development and implementation of best-in-class materials planning, inventory management, logistics, and supplier relationship processes. They will also play a key role in supporting the ongoing rollout ensuring the ERP system drives real-time visibility, control, and efficiency across the supply chain. Key Responsibilities: Lead a strategic review and transformation of the Materials Control function, embedding processes that support cost efficiency, operational performance, and long-term resilience. Support the implementation of a new ERP system, ensuring the system delivers robust supply chain planning, materials visibility, and cost control. Develop and implement a comprehensive improvement programme across Materials Planning, Logistics, and Inventory Control, embedding ownership, process control, and continuous improvement behaviours within the team. Embed robust governance around material receipts, stock accuracy, and inventory reconciliation, driving behavioural change and process compliance. Collaborate closely with Production, Engineering, Quality, and Procurement teams to improve material flow, BoM accuracy, and system routings within the ERP. Ensure effective material staging, kitting, and availability in line with production schedules. Embed inventory assurance processes, ensuring accurate stock data, effective stock rotation, and elimination of obsolete inventory. Drive improvements in material quality controls, working with suppliers and internal teams to reduce defects, handling damage, and waste. Lead initiatives to improve batch-sizing, order frequency, and supply synchronisation, enhancing operational efficiency. Contribute to S&OP processes, ensuring materials strategies align with short-term production needs and long-term strategic goals. Foster a culture of collaborative problem-solving, proactively identifying and resolving supply chain bottlenecks and process weaknesses. Champion safety-first behaviours across all logistics and materials handling processes. Build performance-driven supplier relationships, ensuring high standards of material quality, service, and delivery performance. Provide inspirational leadership to the Supply Chain, Logistics, and Materials teams, driving engagement, accountability, and innovation. Candidate Profile: Degree qualified in Supply Chain, Logistics, Business, or Engineering (MBA advantageous). Significant experience in senior supply chain leadership roles within large-scale, complex manufacturing environments. Expertise across Materials Control, Inventory Management, Logistics Operations, and Supplier Performance Management. Hands-on experience of ERP systems (Microsoft Dynamics 365 experience is highly desirable). Demonstrated ability to optimise supply chain efficiency, drive cost reduction, and embed best practice governance. Strong understanding of S&OP processes, demand planning, and capacity management. Proven leadership skills, with experience driving engagement, accountability, and performance across large teams. Excellent understanding of supplier risk management, ensuring supply chain resilience and risk mitigation. Commercially astute, with the ability to balance strategic initiatives with daily operational execution. The ideal candidate will be a strategic thinker and hands-on leader, capable of delivering both immediate operational improvements and long-term transformational change. Personal Attributes: Strategic thinker with a hands-on, problem-solving approach. Passionate about process efficiency and continuous improvement. Strong leadership skills, able to engage and inspire teams. Excellent communication and relationship-building abilities. Commercially astute, with a keen focus on cost efficiency and performance improvement. Comfortable working in a fast-paced, innovation-led environment. Have you led a full review and redesign of Materials Control processes to improve cost, service, and risk management? Have you implemented a new ERP system (or significantly improved an existing one) to enhance materials visibility, planning accuracy, and inventory control? Have you led supply chain or materials planning teams in a high-volume, multi-product manufacturing environment with multiple production lines and complex bill of materials? #J-18808-Ljbffr