Demand Planning Director

Scandinavian Tobacco Group•Richmond, MI

63d

About The Position

The Demand Planning Director is a senior strategic leader responsible for shaping and executing the global demand planning agenda. Reporting to the SVP Planning & Fulfillment, this role ensures the development of robust, data-driven demand plans that align with commercial strategies and financial objectives with a clear consumer and customer focus. The Director leads a high-performing international team of demand planners and portfolio planners and plays a pivotal role in the company's Demand Planning process, driving forecast accuracy, process maturity, and cross-functional alignment. This role requires a strategic leader with exceptional stakeholder management skills-particularly with senior Commercial leadership-and a proven ability to influence across functions to deliver business-critical outcomes. As a member of the Global Planning & Fulfillment Leadership Team, the Director contributes to the broader transformation of our end-to-end planning capabilities.

Requirements

Master's degree in Supply Chain, Business, or a related field with strong analytical foundations (e.g., Statistics, Econometrics, Operations Research)
10+ years of progressive experience in demand planning or supply chain, with at least 3 years in a senior leadership role managing global teams
Deep expertise in demand planning systems and tools (preferably o9), ERP (SAP), and advanced Excel
Demonstrated success in leading cross-functional planning initiatives and improving forecast accuracy in complex, matrixed environments
Exceptional leadership presence with the ability to influence at all levels
Strong business acumen with a strategic mindset and financial fluency
Excellent communication, facilitation, and interpersonal skills
Analytical rigor and a data-driven decision-making approach
Resilient, proactive, and adaptable in a fast-paced, global environment
Proven ability to lead remote, multicultural teams across time zones assuring a high people engagement
Ability to travel up to 30% internationally

Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership: Own and evolve the global demand and portfolio planning strategy, ensuring alignment with commercial, financial, and operational goals.
Global Team Leadership: Lead, coach, and develop a diverse international team of demand and portfolio planners across all commercial categories, fostering a high-performance culture and cross-regional collaboration.
Stakeholder Engagement: Act as the primary planning interface with senior Commercial stakeholders, ensuring demand plans reflect market dynamics, promotional strategies, and growth ambitions.
S&OP Excellence: Lead demand planning inputs into the S&OP process, ensuring seamless integration with supply planning and financial forecasting.
Forecast Accuracy: Champion continuous improvement in forecast accuracy through advanced analytics, scenario planning, and collaborative forecasting techniques.
Innovation & Capability Building: Drive the maturity of demand planning processes, tools, and talent. Lead the adoption of digital planning solutions (e.g., o9) and embed best practices across regions.
Governance & Performance: Establish and monitor KPIs, health checks, and compliance metrics to ensure process discipline and performance transparency.