Product Manager III/Demand Planner

Aston Carter•Seattle, WA

16d•$65 - $69•Onsite

About The Position

This role combines advanced demand planning and program management to build accurate, data-driven forecasts and guide strategic decisions for retail channels. You will own end-to-end forecast management, including promotional scenarios, and lead cross-functional partners through structured planning cycles. The position requires a balance of analytical rigor and business acumen, acting both as a strategic advisor and a hands-on modeler at a detailed product and daily level.

Requirements

5–7 years of relevant experience working with complex product or portfolio environments, with a minimum of 5 years required.
Proven experience in demand planning and forecasting, including responsibility for forecast inputs and accuracy.
Demonstrated ability to forecast promotional impacts, including calculating lifts and understanding price elasticities.
Experience in B2C, finance, or traditional retail industries with the ability to connect forecasting work directly to business strategy.
Strong Excel skills, including building and maintaining complex models and performing detailed data analysis.
Experience balancing responsibilities across demand planning (approximately 60%) and program management (approximately 40%).
Ability to design and interpret scenario models for different promotional strategies (such as varying discount levels) and translate these into actionable forecasts.
Strong analytical skills with the ability to work at a granular level, including daily and product-level forecasting.
Ability to clearly communicate forecast narratives, explain variances, and influence stakeholders to adopt standardized methodologies.
Self-motivated and able to work under strict deadlines while managing multiple forecasting cycles and stakeholder expectations.

Nice To Haves

Experience in B2C, finance, and traditional retail environments is highly desirable.
Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage complex timelines and multiple stakeholders.
Experience working effectively in a global, cross-collaborative team environment.
Motivated, proactive, and comfortable operating in both advisory and hands-on analytical capacities.
Familiarity with Anaplan or similar planning tools is a plus.
A 4-year college degree is preferred but not required.
Interest in or experience with cross-functional collaboration, including sales, finance, and strategy teams.
Ability to translate data-driven insights into clear, business-oriented recommendations.

Responsibilities

Own and manage all forecast inputs, including sales curves, baselines, and promotional lifts, to build forward-looking forecasts based on historical trends and channel-specific adjustments.
Create comprehensive promotional forecasts, including scenario models, to support channel owners in making strategic decisions on promotions and pricing.
Oversee and conduct deep-dive analyses on product performance, including year-over-year comparisons, attainment tracking, and mix shift assessments.
Provide day-to-day and week-to-week forecasting and sales reporting support to retail sales channel owners, ensuring they have timely and accurate insights.
Develop and maintain net-short analyses and manage inventory allocation during end-of-sale planning to limit overhang risk and optimize sell-through.
Manage and update all forecasting systems to ensure data accuracy, integrity, and alignment with business needs.
Create and manage detailed workback schedules for each forecasting cycle, holding channel owners accountable for delivering inputs and meeting deadlines.
Meet regularly with channel owners to review baselines, gather feedback, and incorporate changes, while documenting assumptions for bridging and assumption tracking.
Lead recurring forecast inspection meetings with channel owners to review performance against forecast, identify variances, and align on corrective actions.
Standardize assumptions and forecasting methodologies across marketplaces, influencing channel owners to adopt consistent processes for both emerging and established businesses.
Own the forecast narrative and final documentation, clearly explaining changes between forecast cycles and articulating drivers of variances.
Lead global retail demand reviews, synthesizing complex portfolio insights into clear recommendations for stakeholders.
Act as both a strategic advisor and a hands-on modeler by helping channel leaders evaluate different promotional approaches and translating historical data into future forecasts at daily, product-level specificity.