Associate Director, Merchandise Planning

Brilliant Earth

About The Position

Brilliant Earth is seeking an Associate Director, Merchandise Planning to lead its Inventory Planning function and team. Reporting to the Senior Director of Merchandising, this role owns forecasting, open-to-buy (OTB), and inventory strategy across all categories and functions, while developing the roadmap for evolving the company’s planning capabilities. The role partners with Technology and Merchandising to implement planning tools and improve analytical practices. The Associate Director develops planning approaches for attribute-based, specification-driven assortments, balancing inventory turns, in-stock levels, and margin. The position also supports Brilliant Earth’s social and environmental mission while delivering business results.

Requirements

10+ years of experience in merchandise planning, inventory planning, forecasting, or quantitative analysis within retail, product, or e-commerce.
Demonstrated success leading and developing a team.
Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in Business, Finance, Economics, or a related field.
Expert Excel skills, including complex formulas, pivot tables, financial modeling, and efficient handling of large datasets; strong retail math skills.
Hands-on experience with demand-planning software such as Blue Yonder, Logility, Demantra, o9, MI9, or similar, and reporting or BI tools such as Domo, Tableau, or Power BI.
Track record of leading system implementations and cross-functional programs end to end, including defining business requirements, guiding development, and driving adoption of forecasting tools, report automation, or process redesign.
Experience with AI-assisted tools to automate analysis and reduce manual effort.
Expert written and verbal communication skills, including clear, direct, concise presentations to broader teams and executive leadership.
Entrepreneurial, self-starter mindset; ability to think critically and adapt quickly in a fast-paced environment.
Commitment to respect and inclusion in the workplace.
Interest in socially and environmentally responsible organizations and products.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree or relevant certification.
Experience with attribute-based or commodity inventory planning, such as precious metals, gemstones, or other specification-driven categories.
Experience with NetSuite or a comparable ERP.
Familiarity with prompt engineering and connecting AI tools to live data sources such as data warehouses or ERP systems.

Responsibilities

Own sales and inventory forecasts across all categories and functions, and ensure the team delivers accurate, timely plans and achieves inventory KPIs.
Set inventory strategy for fine jewelry assortments, including diamond, gemstone, and precious metal commodities; establish weeks-of-supply, safety-stock, and reorder-point parameters.
Lead inventory planning for new showroom launches and growth initiatives, including scenario modeling and statistical analysis.
Own and evolve the open-to-buy alignment and consensus process, translating financial plans into actionable buying strategies with Merchandising and Finance.
Contribute the inventory perspective to annual bookings, average selling price, and margin budget-setting, and report consistently against inventory KPIs.
Create and drive the Inventory Planning roadmap; initiate, prioritize, and approve projects with leadership and manage program schedules through adoption.
Partner with Technology on planning-system implementation and maintenance, and lead team adoption of demand-planning and reporting tools.
Adapt planning tools and models to enterprise systems and reporting, identify gaps, develop workarounds, and replace them with durable solutions.
Use AI tools to automate recurring analysis and reporting, and identify and roll out AI-enabled planning workflows.
Manage, coach, and develop the planning team through hiring, feedback, and clear team objectives.
Mentor cross-functional Merchandising partners on forecasting and inventory principles, and represent Planning to executive leadership.

Benefits

Lifestyle Spending Account with reimbursements for eligible wellness expenses.
Company-sponsored continued education in leadership, professional skills, and diversity and inclusion; tuition reimbursement for role-specific training.
Employee jewelry discounts.
Access to mental health resources, self-care apps, seminars, and an Employee Assistance program with 24/7 counseling access.
Medical, dental, and vision insurance plans, including a $0 monthly premium employee health insurance option and employer HSA contributions.
401(k) match.
Paid time off.
Paid parental leave.
Employer-paid disability and life insurance.
Pre-tax commuter benefits.
Career growth support through regular one-on-ones, training opportunities, and an annual 360 review process.
Giving-back programs and volunteer opportunities.