Demand Planner

Founded in Japan in 1887, Kao is passionate about making a difference in people's lives with our high quality products and services to create a Kirei Life for all - a beautiful life that respects the needs of our consumers and customers as well as the planet. We never compromise on quality and craft our products with care for the consumer and the environment.

As a company driven by purpose and strong corporate values we pride ourselves to be listed among the World's Most Ethical Companies since 16 consecutive years. Our corporate philosophy, the Kao Way, guides us in everything we do - acting with integrity, courageously driving innovation and treating each other with trust and respect.

The Role:

This position is responsible for creating and maintaining a 12+ month Brand/Sku forecast for all products sold using a consensus approach with cross functional partners. Reporting to the Senior Demand Planning Lead, the Demand Planner tracks forecasting inputs and outputs and facilitates the forecasting process to minimize forecast error and ensure effective supply planning.

At Kao, we offer amazing benefits that are available to you on your first day of employment (healthcare, 401(k) plus company match, etc.), 36 total days off (vacation + holidays + sick) and a reasonable salary range of $60,000 - $75,000. We also offer a hybrid work schedule.

What you will do:

• Review drivers to determine appropriate forecast by Sales Organization/Brand/Sku or other hierarchical level. Variables may include POS (Point of Sale) data, Consumption (Nielsen) data, historical sales trends, statistical modeling, upcoming product launches and/or initiatives, advertising, media spend, competitive activity, promotional activity, new distribution and de-listings, and trade inventory.
• Facilitate the consensus forecast process amongst Demand Planning, Supply Planning, Marketing, Trade Marketing, Customer Business/Sales, and Finance functions. Ensure accurate assumptions and documents. Recommend forecast adjustments based on latest inputs and trends. Hold all departments accountable for their contributions to the forecasting process.
• Measure the pace or attainment at which the forecast is being consumed within the period. Make necessary adjustments to the forecast, and communicate short-term trends to supply planning and other relevant departments. Maintain forecasts within SAP or other forecasting tools timely and accurately.
• Organize and document forecast assumptions. Create and distribute necessary reports for forecasting reviews.
• Identify variances in the Consensus forecast versus Budget and Latest Estimates.
• Track performance against Key Performance Targets (KPTs) and other goals. This includes creating, updating, and distributing reports from SAP, Excel, PowerPoint, Word, and BI.

What you will need:

• Bachelor's degree required, preferably in Operations or Supply Chain Management concentrations.
• Knowledge of basic forecasting processes and methodologies. Recognize trends, and take action to resolve forecast variances at the sku level.
• 1+ years of experience in Supply Chain, Forecasting or Operations:

How we work: Having been selected among the World´s Most Ethical Companies for 18 consecutive years, we are a company with a purpose and strong corporate values. We never compromise on quality and create our products with care for the consumer and the environment. At Kao, each employee can actively shape their job and their career. We work collaboratively to achieve our common goals, always aiming to deliver the best for our customers.

What we offer: A friendly and flexible work environment with great compensation packages, benefits package, ongoing development and the opportunity to enhance your skills and deliver tangible results. At Kao your voice will be heard. Your opinion really counts. We believe that change comes from taking opportunities into your own hands, so we value and reward thinking and new ideas.

Hiring Process: Kao embraces the diversity and the individual personalities of its people because we believe it is diversity that makes us strong. This is why we welcome applications from all areas of the global community.

Want to learn more: If you feel you are as unique as our products and want to find out why 33,000 people across the globe opted for a career with us please visit our Americas website (https://www.kao.com/americas/en/).

Kao USA is an equal opportunity employer, including disability/vets.

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