Sr. Manager Production Planning & Materials

Lightera•Carrollton, GA

About The Position

The Senior Manager, Production Planning & Materials provides strategic and operational leadership for production planning, master scheduling, material requirements planning, inventory management, and manufacturing readiness in a complex manufacturing environment. The role connects customer demand, material availability, production capacity, and factory execution so the organization can manufacture the right products at the right time with the right materials and resources. The position partners with Operations, Procurement, Supply Chain, Engineering, Quality, Logistics, Customer Service, and Commercial teams to identify constraints, resolve shortages, improve schedule performance, optimize inventory, and strengthen planning discipline. The role requires substantial experience in manufacturing and an understanding of how ERP/MRP systems and planning decisions affect day-to-day factory performance. The leader owns or oversees production plans and master schedules, MPS, MRP, capacity planning, production scheduling, and short- and mid-range manufacturing plans. They lead and develop planning and materials teams, establish planning standards and operating rhythms, drive continuous improvement, and communicate actionable reporting on production status, material constraints, inventory exposure, service risk, and key planning metrics. Success is measured through schedule adherence, customer service, material availability, inventory performance, production lead time, capacity utilization, planning accuracy, and team capability.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Operations, Engineering, Business, Manufacturing, Logistics, or a related field; equivalent relevant experience may be considered.
5–7+ years of progressive experience in production planning, production control, materials management, materials planning, manufacturing planning, supply planning, or a closely related function.
Significant experience working directly within a manufacturing or factory environment.
Demonstrated ownership of production planning and/or production scheduling within a complex manufacturing operation.
Strong experience with MRP, material availability, inventory planning, and production materials management.
Experience using an enterprise ERP/MRP platform such as SAP, Oracle, JD Edwards, Infor, QAD, Epicor, Plex, Microsoft Dynamics, or a comparable manufacturing system.
Experience working cross-functionally with Manufacturing/Operations, Procurement, Supply Chain, Engineering, Quality, Logistics, and other business stakeholders.
Prior leadership experience managing or developing planning, scheduling, production control, materials, inventory, or related teams.
Demonstrated ability to diagnose complex production or material constraints and drive cross-functional resolution.
Strong analytical, communication, prioritization, and decision-making skills.

Nice To Haves

Experience with SAP in a manufacturing planning/materials environment.
Experience in a complex, multi-stage, high-mix, engineered, process, discrete, or material-intensive manufacturing environment.
Experience supporting multiple production lines, product families, plants, or global operations.
Experience with S&OP, IBP, demand planning, supply planning, or integrated planning processes.
APICS/ASCM certification such as CPIM or CSCP, Lean/Six Sigma certification, or related credentials.
Experience with make-to-order, make-to-stock, configure-to-order, and/or engineer-to-order manufacturing models.
Experience improving planning processes, ERP discipline, schedule attainment, inventory performance, or material availability.

Responsibilities

Lead the end-to-end production planning and materials management function for an assigned manufacturing operation, site, business unit, or network.
Develop and govern production plans and master schedules that balance customer demand, plant capacity, labor, equipment, material availability, and inventory objectives.
Own or oversee master production scheduling (MPS), material requirements planning (MRP), capacity planning, production scheduling, and short- and mid-range manufacturing plans.
Ensure raw materials, components, and other production inputs are available for scheduled manufacturing requirements.
Identify and resolve material shortages, capacity constraints, schedule conflicts, and other risks that could disrupt production or customer commitments.
Partner with Operations leadership to translate planning priorities into executable factory schedules and drive schedule adherence.
Monitor inventory levels and develop strategies to improve inventory turns, reduce excess and obsolete inventory, and protect production continuity.
Use ERP/MRP systems and planning data to improve material signals, production priorities, inventory accuracy, and decision quality.
Lead cross-functional responses to changes in demand, supply disruptions, equipment constraints, material shortages, and customer priority shifts.
Partner with Procurement and supplier-facing teams to align material availability with production requirements and escalation needs.
Participate in or lead elements of S&OP, IBP, demand/supply alignment, or related planning processes.
Build planning standards, operating rhythms, escalation processes, and performance management practices that improve manufacturing predictability.
Lead, coach, and develop planners, schedulers, materials professionals, and/or production control team members.
Drive continuous improvement across planning, materials flow, inventory, scheduling, and manufacturing execution processes.
Develop and communicate actionable reporting on production status, material constraints, inventory exposure, service risk, and key planning metrics.
Partner with business and plant leadership on strategic capacity, materials, and operational planning decisions.