Quality Planner

The businesses of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany•St. Louis, MO

20d

About The Position

Serving as a liaison between Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Quality, the Quality Planner synchronizes quality resources with production demand to facilitate the timely disposition of compliant products. This role ensures that quality requirements are seamlessly integrated into the production lifecycle—from initial material receipt to final release—by leveraging ERP data and inspection planning. By identifying potential bottlenecks and fostering cross-functional collaboration, the Quality Planner maintains high standards of traceability and compliance while driving operational efficiency.

Requirements

Bachelor’s Degree in a Scientific (Biology, Chemistry, etc.) or Engineering discipline (Chemical, Mechanical, etc.)

Nice To Haves

2+ year planning and/or quality scheduling experience.
Strong computer skills, including knowledge of SAP systems and Smartsheets.
Experience in quality control and quality management systems.
Highly developed interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills.
Ability to establish collaborative relationships with various departments.
Ability to work autonomously, effectively manage time and deliver results on time.
Strong problem-solving skills.

Responsibilities

Develop, maintain, and optimize site quality control department schedules aligned to production schedules.
Understand inspection characteristics, sampling procedures, and test plans for in‑process and final release, ensuring correct assignment to materials/routes in SAP.
Coordinate QC testing capacity and instrument availability for laboratory assays; align resources to meet throughput and customer need dates.
Build and maintain Smartsheet schedules, dashboards, and automated workflows to track readiness (materials, documentation, equipment, training) and highlight risks.
Ensure accuracy and completeness of SAP QM master data—inspection plans, MICs, sampling strategies, and inspection types—and confirm these elements are correctly linked to material masters, BOMs, and routings; monitor and manage inspection lots through the laboratory workflow.
Serve as the central point between Production Planning, QC, QA, and Supply Chain for quality readiness.
Communicate constraints and recovery plans; proactively escalate risks and propose mitigations.