Director, Inventory Planning

Grocery Outlet Career•Emeryville, CA

1d•$145,000 - $165,000

About The Position

The Director of Inventory Planning, Grocery is responsible for managing inventory for the Grocery department across the entire supply chain to maximize sales and profit. This person leads our Grocery inventory planning team, which works in close collaboration with purchasing across all product categories. Primary day-to-day responsibilities of the team include: managing open-to-buy, maintaining stock levels in the warehouse and stores, allocating product to warehouse and stores, managing promotional inventory, warehouse inventory balancing, forecasting and financial planning, and general category/item analysis. This role oversees all planning team responsibilities and provides strong leadership and mentorship to the Grocery team. This position also is responsible for planning and executing the future strategy of inventory planning in Grocery. This may include changes to processes, structure, systems, and capabilities needed to evolve current practices to support growth of the business. This person will be a thought-leader and strong partner with Purchasing, Strategy, Logistics, Sales and Merchandising, and Marketing to help move the business forward. This person must be very strong analytically, have deep inventory management experience, and be a strategic thinker. This position reports to the Vice President of Planning.

Requirements

Minimum of 10+ years of relevant experience in areas including but not limited to the following – Merchandise Planning, Demand Forecasting, Inventory Allocation, Financial Planning, Data Analytics.
Strong analytical skills with attention to detail – able to analyze and identify insights from large amounts of data.
Strong management and mentorship skills with the ability to set clear objectives for a team.
Creative and strategic thinker that is always pushing status quo in an effort to improve.
Excellent logical thinking and problem solving skills; can easily diagnose and solve an ambiguous situation or problem.
Able to build constructive and effective relations ships with a broad, diverse group of business partners.
Strong understanding of general business financial metrics as well as retail specific metrics and math (e.g., discounts, margin).
Strong communication skills, customer service, organization and attention to detail.
Expert knowledge and use of Excel and BI platforms; proficient in other MS Office applications and AS400.
Possesses the “roll-up-your sleeves” attitude and strong personal ownership of work needed to be successful in a flat, entrepreneurial organization.
Able to write and present information effectively.
Bachelor’s Degree.

Responsibilities

Lead team in decision making for all day-to-day activities including: purchasing quantity decisions, distributions and allocations, inbound warehouse appointments, demand forecasting, replenishment, and reporting and analysis.
Oversee department sales, profit, and inventory forecasting in collaboration with purchasing and logistics.
Review regular projections/analysis with team for consistency, strategic alignment and thought process.
Advise on optimal pricing decisions to support purchasing, distribution and selling strategies.
Manage inventory at a more specific and tactical level for certain departments as needed.
Execute the allocation of products to stores to maximize sales and profit.
Manage and maintain department financial forecasts in conjunction with the open to buy.
Conduct ad hoc analysis to understand business opportunities and develop plans to address.
Analyze and identify opportunities to improve forecasting, purchasing and allocation methods.
Constantly re-adjust key parameters that drive replenishment to improve inventory position and flow.
Partner with planning, purchasing, and IT to develop and enhance tools and processes.
Respond to store comments and questions and use feedback constructively to improve practices.
Develop annual inventory plans from department to warehouse to store levels by closely working with business leaders/cross-functional partners in accordance to financial objectives.
Develop and fosters a cohesive team environment with immediate team and cross-functional partners alike.
Manage team members by providing guidance, objectives, and support as needed.
Oversee training and development of employees directly and indirectly managed and makes effective staffing decisions.
Present analytics and reports to various stakeholders to identify and capture business opportunities.
Be a strong partner to Store Operators, Sales & Merchandising, Suppliers and Distribution Centers; communicate clearly and effectively to inform various stakeholders of status and future changes.
Visit stores and warehouses as necessary to maintain strong communication and stay on top of opportunities.