Demand Planner in Scotland

About The Role

Job Purpose: The Demand Planner is responsible for creating and maintaining accurate demand forecasts by using historical data, market insights, and input from sales, marketing, finance, key customers, and certain channels. This role is a key link between the commercial and sales teams, leading monthly planning discussions and collaborating closely with customers on forecasts, promotions, events, and range reviews. A strong focus is placed on building lasting customer relationships and delivering key KPIs, always keeping customers and consumers at the heart of what we do.

Key Result Area / Principal Duties And Responsibilities

• Create forecasts at customer and product level, based on available historic and future data, as well as collaborating with sales leads and key customer contacts.
• Challenge validity of forecasts constructively with sales teams and customers.
• Conduct seasonality and trend analysis to drive improvement in forecasts and actions within the business.
• Build relationships with customers and communicate on short term performance as well as host quarterly reviews.
• Drive continuous improvement in your own area, focussing on data, tools, processes and customer plans to improve ways of working and forecast accuracy.
• Work closely with Sales teams to identify risks & opportunities within product forecasts.
• Ensure forecasts for New Product Introduction are regularly reviewed and maintained.
• Ensure planning parameters in all relevant systems are maintained accurately & in line with agreed service level agreements with customers or external warehouses.
• Deliver product forecast to Supply Planner as required for Supply/Production Planning activities.
• Measure & monitor demand forecasting KPIs and work with Sales teams to drive improvements in accuracy, bias, working capital and customer service.
• Host weekly sales meetings focusing on demand planning, communicating issues with supply, planning of key events / accounts, and generally establishing & maintaining effective and efficient communication between planning & sales.
• Present and deliver relevant areas of the demand review sessions with the wider demand, sales and finance teams to drive critical actions that will improve our forecast accuracy and what we provide to the business.
• Manage new product launches with your customers to ensure they are hit on time and in full, with all your own tasks to be completed on time and risks flagged appropriately.
• Support the business with preparation of key reporting either daily, weekly or monthly e.g. consumption reports, WoW changes etc.

Key Relationships - Internal And External

• Key stakeholders within the wider supply chain team are the S&S team, supply planning, and the operational supply manager.
• Other key internal stakeholders include NPD, sales teams, finance and marketing.
• Principal external relations are customers you will have accountability for.

Health & Safety

• Ensure that Health and Safety guidelines and fire regulations are strictly adhered to at all times.
• Comply with safe working practices as defined by BrewDog.
• Complete online or face to face training as and when required.
• Take reasonable care for your own health and safety and that of others who may be affected by acts or omissions at work.
• Report any accidents, incidents or near misses as soon as reasonably practicable.

General

• Be aware of and adhere to BrewDog policies and the Workplace Code at all times.
• Take part in crew reviews throughout the year.
• Cooperate with other BrewDog departments to achieve a great experience for our customers, applicants, colleagues, and contractors.
• Attend training courses and complete online training modules as required to meet the requirements of the role.
• Take responsibility for own personal development, seeking out opportunities to learn new skills.
• Undertake any other duties as requested which are reasonably deemed to be within the scope of the role or necessary for the smooth running of the business.
• Apply the BrewDog charter and behaviours to every aspect of the role at all times.
• Protect and enhance the interests and reputation of BrewDog internally and externally.

About You

Qualifications & Specific Training

• Training in demand planning techniques is desirable.

Experience

• Significant experience as a demand planner or relatable role, and ideally in an FMCG environment.

Knowledge

• Understanding of demand planning techniques, including seasonality, statistics and forecasting models.
• As well as an understanding of S&OP, and how the role as a demand planner contributes to this process.
• An understanding of customer systems and processes would be desirable.

Skills

• Advanced Excel skills and ability to manipulate and analyse complex data, to help drive forecasts is required.
• Developed customer service and collaboration skills.
• Developed stakeholder management and engagement skills, including negotiation.
• Advanced organisational skills and ability to prioritise and adapt to changing needs.
• Highly developed skills on forecasting systems is required.

Personal Attributes

• Strong ability to influence stakeholders and customers.
• Driven and enthusiastic.
• Able to explain complex data, simply.
• Well organised and methodical.
• Eye for the detail.
• Ability to cope well under pressure.

Additional Requirements

• Ideally central belt/Eurocentral based, with a hybrid working of 3 days in/2 at home.
• Travel to customers once / quarter - UK wide and potentially international dependent on area of responsibility.
• Travel to Ellon to work collaboratively with other key stakeholders.