Associate Director Global Vaccines Planning

Merck•Durham, NC

3h•$129,000 - $203,100•Hybrid

About The Position

This Associate Director (P4) role is an End to End Planner supporting Vaccines. It is responsible for supply planning to meet customer demand, achieve inventory targets, and partner with manufacturing sites and commercial teams to manage supply and demand issues. The Vaccine Planning team coordinates supply planning, sourcing, manufacturing, inventory management, packaging, and delivery, working across Marketing, Finance, and Manufacturing to build a robust demand and supply plan and deliver products to the right customers, locations, and times. The role routinely interacts with site planning and operations personnel and Commercial partners through the integrated business process. Depending on the assigned products, the planner may be the primary contact for Manufacturing Division and Commercial stakeholders or support part of a more complex product. The planner works with Operations leads, site and functional leads, site and regional planners, ExM operations and functional leads, Value Chain leaders, VCM Product leaders, and Centers of Excellence. The position is responsible for supply planning over a 0–36-month horizon and supports tactical escalations and strategic decision-making as needed.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Business, Supply Chain, Operations, Life Sciences, Chemistry, Biology, Engineering, or a related scientific discipline.
At least 7 years of experience in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, vaccine, or a related regulated industry.
Experience in Supply Chain Planning, Operations, Master Data Management, Inventory Planning, Demand Planning, Production Planning, or Value Chain Management.
Experience supporting end-to-end supply planning processes across a manufacturing network.
Experience with master data governance, ERP systems, and planning systems to support supply-chain execution.
Demonstrated experience coordinating with Manufacturing, Quality, Commercial, Finance, and Supply Chain stakeholders.
Experience managing supply interruptions, inventory risks, and supply-demand imbalances in a regulated environment.
Skills in driving continuous improvement, inventory logistics, logistics management, master data, MRP, order management, pharmaceutical industry practices, planning, risk management, SAP master data, strategic thinking, supply-chain processes, and supply planning.

Nice To Haves

MBA or advanced degree.
Pharmaceutical, biotech, or vaccine industry experience.
Proficiency with SAP, ERP/MRP, and planning systems.
MBA.

Responsibilities

Lead the End to End Product Supply Team for assigned products and develop and communicate supply plans and scenarios, including impacts on revenue, product cost, inventory, and transfers.
Understand production rhythms and shop-floor challenges, integrate and balance dependent demand across nodes and regions, and allocate supply to optimize business benefits such as inventory, tax, capacity, and P&L.
Address and mitigate supply issues and bottlenecks while enabling supply-chain resiliency and responsiveness; connect supply-chain nodes and engage sites and the DS/DP/packaging network in improvements.
Drive Product Inventory Plan performance.
Partner with Commercial and Value Chain Management teams to integrate Regional and Global Brand Strategies into supply plans within the 0–36-month planning horizon, as appropriate.
Lead the product Profit Plan and Inventory Plan, provide strategic guidance including flavor management strategy to sites, and approve end-to-end supply-chain targets from Drug Substance through Finished Goods.
Own supply execution strategies for global source changes, including regional allocations and transition timing, to ensure supply and minimize discards and inventory.
Follow established planning processes and create new processes when gaps exist.
Lead and participate in planning projects focused on continuous improvement.
Manage issues using strong communication and stakeholder-management skills.
Assemble and analyze data, identify problems, and develop recommendations to support supply-chain operations and planning.
Demonstrate urgency and ownership while working for the common good.
Collaborate to create a positive environment within the product planning team.