Head of Demand Planning in Blackburn

Head of Demand Planning

Blackburn, Lancashire

Director, Global Business Planning

• Lead the development, implementation and improvement of the business demand forecasting process and strategy, including input into the S&OP process.
• Develop and lead the monthly Demand Planning process acting as the bridge between commercial teams, finance, and supply chain.
• Direct the generation and implementation of consensus demand planning at PPE, using demand planning as a key decision‑making strategy tool.
• Assess, recommend and implement demand planning software, ensuring robust data‑management processes and best practices to optimise supply‑chain performance and maximise customer service.
• Mentor, manage and scale the demand planning team while establishing and driving performance metrics, including forecast accuracy, bias, and value add.
• Partner with internal and external stakeholders to validate customer demand, forecasts and market changes, and drive knowledge improvement.
• Lead ongoing assessment, recommendation and implementation of forecasting best practice, process adherence, tools and reporting software platforms, and best‑in‑class processes.
• Support demand planning, demand consensus management and communicate plans to stakeholders, identifying and resolving plan variances, risks, and opportunities.
• Contribute to the success of SIOP and S&OE processes and special supply‑chain and business strategy initiatives.
• Contribute to annual and strategic planning and direction setting for the planning teams.
• Travel to the US facility in Brenham, Texas, and other locations as required.

• 5–10 years of experience in demand planning, strategic demand planning and demand‑planning change management.
• Exceptional understanding of technology tools that enable demand planning and reporting, and experience using IDEX standard procedures and corporate compliance.
• Strong numeracy and analytical skills, with the ability to translate data into high‑level analysis.
• Experience with integrated business planning, best‑practice implementation, and use of SAP ERP, PowerBI, MicrosoftSuite and reporting tools.
• Proven people and line‑management experience, and ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
• Knowledge of sales, marketing, finance, manufacturing and procurement functions, with a track record of achieving KPIs such as plan accuracy, process adherence, stock turns and ROI.

• Effective communication skills and ability to tailor messages to different organisational levels.
• Ability to build collaborative relationships across the end‑to‑end supply chain.
• Ability to analyse data, tell a compelling story, and translate business goals into process outcomes.
• Experience refining and training algorithms for scenario planning.
• Experience in training and mentoring teams and stakeholders toward desired business outcomes.

PPE is a member of the IDEX corporation, an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to workforce diversity.