Deployment Specialist

Fresh Del Monte Produce Company•Pittsburgh, PA

About The Position

Del Monte Foods is the Foods Division of Fresh Del Monte, a global grower, producer and marketer of fresh, value-added, and shelf-stable produce. Del Monte Foods has a powerful portfolio of brands, including the iconic Del Monte®, Contadina® and S&W®. We are currently seeking a Deployment Specialist. The Deployment Specialist is responsible for the strategic and tactical inventory planning of finished goods within a specific business segment. The Deployment Specialist ensures that finished goods are shipped to the right distribution center, in the right quantity, at the right time, via the most cost-effective method that will allow Del Monte to achieve customer service level and fill rate targets. Acting as an owner of finished goods inventories, the Deployment Specialist works to achieve both customer service and other Del Monte business objectives. This position interacts, leads discussion, and communicates as necessary with internal and external customers (including Customer Service, Sales, Demand Planning, Supply Planning, Transportation, Warehousing) to anticipate, identify, and resolve potential supply issues for products they manage.

Requirements

BA/BS in Supply Chain Management, Industrial Engineering, Business or Logistics Management (or other related discipline).
1-3 years of experience in Supply Chain, Deployment, Production Planning, or other related experience.
Ability to operate in a fast-paced and highly visible environment; demonstrated initiative and follow-up skills, capable of handling simultaneous responsibilities and deadlines with minimal guidance.
Aptitude for technology including ability to drive analytics and reporting via Microsoft Excel.
Experience using SAP ECC/APO or similar system a plus.
Sound understanding of Lean Principles.
Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and drive corrective actions and continuous improvement efforts.
Excellent interpersonal and teamwork skills, ability to establish and maintain professional relationships.
Strong verbal, written and comprehension communication skills.
Talent for data mining and analysis.
Demonstrated desire to learn and apply new concepts, software, etc.

Nice To Haves

APICS certification preferred.
Experience in a CPG food and beverage atmosphere preferred.

Responsibilities

Manage the deployment of Finished Goods from the Del Monte production facilities to the forward distribution centers, ensuring finished goods are available for customer sales.
Using SAP planning tool, execute distribution plan by creating “optimal mode” product transfers to maintain inventory levels required to support the forecast, allocation plan or customer orders. Manage to achieve annual budget goals.
Manage DC inventories to target WOS, mitigating inventory shortfalls and surpluses at the DCs (includes order tracing and management of expedited shipments).
Collaborate with cross-functional partners, Transportation, Warehousing, Plant Operations, etc., to ensure product transfers are executed as requested.
Maintain AOP planning parameters/master data to continuously improve and optimize planning system to ensure deployment plans meet customer requirements. Drive development, optimization, and implementation of advanced planning techniques within SAP APO.
Communicate recovery dates and availability to Sales, Customer Service, and other interested parties (includes management of allocated materials).
Identify instances when it may be necessary to utilize sub-optimal transportation modes and associated incremental costs.
Ensure timely and effective communication to management when delays or changes occur to align priorities.
Inventory Management and Analytics (maintaining appropriate inventory levels throughout the network).
Resolve potential shortage situations by proactively managing inventory levels at DC’s.
Identify and help to resolve customer satisfaction, production, and logistics issues by detecting root causes and utilizing appropriate problem-solving techniques.
Inventory target optimization.
Management of aged/stranded inventory in the DC network.
Aid in the management of discontinuation process with the plant and any associated run-out plans of component inventory.
Cross Functional Team Involvement (participating in various joint efforts to reach company objectives).
Examples are new product launches, special seasonal promotion initiatives, process improvement exercises, and label, packaging, and configuration changes.