Senior Demand Planner - Merrell

Wolverine Worldwide•Rockford, MI

20d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Senior Demand Planner plays a critical role in the Integrated Business Planning cycle, leading development and execution of demand forecasts across product categories and distribution channels. The role owns material-level forecasting and drives alignment between demand plans and brand financial targets. Working closely with Sales, Marketing, Finance, Supply Chain, Operations, technology, and planning teams, the Senior Demand Planner leads forecasting processes and supports S&OP and IBP. The position develops and improves statistical forecasting models, analyzes forecast performance, incorporates market and product inputs, and provides actionable insights and scenario analysis to support operational planning and business decisions. It also drives continuous improvement in forecast accuracy, model robustness, planning efficiency, and forecast governance, and serves as a technical thought partner and mentor to other planners and analysts. The role is based in a normal office environment with a flexible hybrid schedule of three days in the office and two days remote. Some travel may be required. The successful candidate will have a bachelor's degree in a quantitative or related field, 2–4 years of relevant experience, strong statistical forecasting knowledge, advanced Excel skills, and experience with demand planning or forecasting platforms.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain, Operations Research, Statistics, Economics, Data Science, Engineering, or a related quantitative field.
2–4 years of experience in demand planning, forecasting, or advanced supply chain analytics roles.
Strong understanding of statistical forecasting methods, including time-series analysis and regression-based approaches.
Advanced Excel skills for large datasets, modeling, and validation.
Experience using demand planning or forecasting platforms, such as SAP IBP, Blue Yonder/JDA, Oracle Demantra, Kinaxis, or similar.
Demonstrated ability to analyze forecast performance, diagnose issues, and improve results over time.

Responsibilities

Partner with Sales, Marketing, Finance, Supply Chain, and Operations to align on demand assumptions and forecast outcomes.
Support S&OP and IBP processes by communicating forecast changes, risks, and drivers.
Present demand insights and recommendations clearly, structurally, and using data.
Develop and maintain demand forecasts across multiple time horizons using statistical methods, market inputs, historical sales data, and order book analysis.
Design, test, and refine forecasting approaches, including baseline demand modeling, seasonality analysis, and trend adjustment.
Monitor forecast accuracy and bias, investigate root causes of forecast error, and implement corrective actions.
Apply forecasting methodologies appropriate to product, customer, channel, or segment demand behavior.
Build, maintain, and enhance forecasting models within demand planning systems and analytical tools.
Translate statistical model outputs into operational forecasts aligned with planning and supply processes.
Define and document assumptions, methodologies, and limitations to support forecast transparency and repeatability.
Partner with technology and planning teams to improve forecasting tools, system parameters, and automation.
Incorporate promotions, pricing actions, market dynamics, and product lifecycle events into forecasts.
Evaluate the impact of demand drivers and external signals on forecast performance and planning risk.
Provide scenario analysis and sensitivity views to support decision-making under uncertainty.
Improve forecast accuracy, model robustness, and planning efficiency through ongoing analysis and learning.
Identify opportunities to standardize best practices, improve forecast governance, and reduce manual effort.
Serve as a technical thought partner and mentor to other planners and analysts.
Perform duties consistent with the Company’s AAP/EEO goals and policies.
Perform other duties as required or assigned by the manager.