Sr. Planner, Customer Forecasting
About The Position
The Sr. Planner, Customer Forecasting will report directly to the Director, Supply Chain Forecasting and will be the primary owner of all external forecasts and customer-facing supply chain data for Markwins’ retail partners. This role ensures customer forecasts, replenishment signals, and inventory positions are translated into clear, accurate, and actionable inputs for the Demand Planning team. The Sr. Planner will support high SKU count cosmetics assortments of 2,500+ SKUs, requiring strong forecasting capabilities and the ability to navigate the complexities associated with large product portfolios. This is a highly analytical, customer-facing role that serves as the voice of the customer internally. The Sr. Planner will build and maintain collaborative relationships with retailer replenishment teams, Sales, and Demand Planning to proactively manage in-stock performance, mitigate risk, and unlock growth opportunities. This position works closely and in tandem with the Demand Planning team to ensure external forecasts and internal demand plans stay in sync, especially for replenishment, prepacks, promotions, new product launches, and allocation events.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree in supply chain, Business, Economics, Data Analytics, or a related field required
- 3–5 years in customer supply chain, forecasting, replenishment, or planning (CPG or beauty experience preferred)
- Experience working directly with major retailer supply chain teams (Walmart Retail Link, Target Partners Online, Amazon Vendor Central) strongly preferred
- Experience forecasting and supporting large SKU assortments, with 500+ SKU experience required
- Analytical thinker with strong attention to detail
- Excellent communicator able to simplify complex data and drive consensus
- Proficiency in Microsoft Excel (pivot tables, VLOOKUPs, data modeling) and ERP/forecasting systems
- Experience with POS data platforms (Circana, NielsenIQ, Retail Link) and customer forecasting portals
- Familiarity with collaborative forecasting processes (CPFR/IBP)
- Strong communicator with the ability to simplify data and present actionable insights to internal and external partners
- Detail oriented, organized, and able to manage multiple customer inputs simultaneously
- Problem solver with a proactive approach to risk identification and resolution
- Collaborative, organized, and able to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment
Responsibilities
- Own Customer Forecasting: Collect, validate, and manage customer team forecasts, replenishment data, and inventory positions across Walmart, Target, Walgreens, Amazon, and other key accounts
- Collaborate with Demand Planning: Provide accurate, timely customer inputs (POS trends, promotional lifts, event calendars) to feed the internal demand plan and S&OP process
- Retailer Interface: Lead regular meetings with customer replenishment teams to review forecasts, in-stock performance, promotional readiness, and service risks
- Prepack & Promo Planning: Partner with Demand Planning and Commercial teams to align customer specific prepack and promotional forecasts with production capacity and allocation strategy
- Inventory & Service Monitoring: Track key metrics (in-stocks, OTIF, customer fill rates) and escalate risks to Demand Planning and Supply Planning with recommended actions
- Scenario Planning: Build and present what if analyses for promotions, seasonality, or new item launches to help stakeholders make fast, informed decisions
- Reporting & Analytics: Maintain clear dashboards and scorecards on customer forecast accuracy, bias, and event performance; share insights with Commercial leadership and cross-functional teams
- Continuous Improvement: Drive process standardization for customer data integration, forecast collaboration, and KPI tracking; identify opportunities to reduce latency and increase forecast precision
- Cross-Functional Alignment: Act as the key liaison between Sales, Customer Service, Demand Planning, and Operations to ensure timely communication of changes impacting supply
- Special Projects: Support initiatives related to allocation strategy, CPFR (Collaborative Planning, Forecasting, and Replenishment), and retailer specific supply chain improvements
- Perform other duties as needed and directed by management
Benefits
- Comprehensive benefits package includes employer paid health benefits and 401k match.
- Benefits typically offered only to full-time employees.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Senior
