Supply Chain Planning Manager

Caterpillar Inc.•Decatur, IL

1d•$97,530 - $146,290•Onsite

About The Position

The Supply Chain Planning Manager leads a local team responsible for moving engineering changes from release through material and production implementation. The role oversees the execution of engineering changes into production, coordinating BOM effectivity and material requirements across multiple product groups while supporting impactful changes. Working with Engineering, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Materials, and Logistics, the manager ensures engineering changes are accurately planned and implemented, material availability supports production requirements, and the organization maintains a Plan for Every Part. The role also develops and improves Product Change Control processes, tools, metrics, and standard work. The manager leads and develops a team of seven professionals, supports approximately 7,000 engineering changes annually, and has broad visibility across product groups. The position is based onsite in Decatur, Illinois, five days per week, with occasional travel of less than 10%. Domestic relocation assistance is available.

Requirements

Working knowledge of supply chain functions, principles, techniques, systems, and processes used to control logistical activities.
Working knowledge of methods for completing detailed work accurately, identifying the impact of errors or omissions, and using checks and controls to validate outputs.
Working knowledge of effective communication concepts and techniques, including clearly transmitting, receiving, and interpreting information and providing constructive feedback.
Working knowledge of inventory-management processes for raw materials, work-in-progress, and finished goods, including tracking inventory information and resolving discrepancies.
Basic understanding of data-gathering and analysis techniques, including identifying objectives, gathering relevant information, and using data to support conclusions.
Basic understanding of planning and organizing work, priorities, schedules, process steps, and resources; ability to recognize dependencies and critical-path activities.
Working knowledge of supplier-management processes, systems, issue resolution or escalation, and coordination of delivery and quality requirements.
Basic understanding of distribution requirements planning, inventory distribution, material movement, operational distribution measures, and common supply-chain bottlenecks or delays.

Nice To Haves

Previous supervisory or people-leadership experience, particularly in technical, supply chain, manufacturing, or engineering-facing teams.
Knowledge of engineering change control, product release, or Product Change Control processes.
Familiarity with manufacturing change control and product-release processes and systems, including Caterpillar tools such as MCS and MAMM or comparable systems.
Knowledge of New Product Introduction (NPI) and implementing product changes into manufacturing.
Working knowledge of Bills of Material (BOMs), BOM effectivity, and engineering change processes, including ECNs, ECOs, and ECRs.
Understanding of Manufacturing Requirements Planning (MRP) and the impact of engineering changes on material, inventory, and production requirements.
Ability to establish and improve processes, tools, operational metrics, and standard work.
Engineering knowledge or a strong technical background supporting engineering, manufacturing, and supply chain activities.

Responsibilities

Lead, coach, and develop a team of seven professionals responsible for engineering change control and supply chain execution.
Manage manufacturing change control and product-release activities to ensure engineering changes are accurately released and implemented into production.
Oversee Bills of Material (BOM) effectivity and related material changes across Decatur product groups.
Lead escalations involving late engineering changes, working with stakeholders to identify constraints, set priorities, and drive timely resolution.
Oversee engineering change and release activities supporting approximately 7,000 engineering changes annually.
Ensure product and engineering changes are translated accurately into material requirements and manufacturing implementation.
Monitor operational reports, performance metrics, and key indicators to identify trends, risks, discrepancies, and improvement opportunities.
Establish and improve processes, tools, metrics, and standard work to strengthen team effectiveness, accuracy, and productivity.
Partner with Engineering, Supply Chain, Manufacturing, Materials, and Logistics to coordinate engineering changes and minimize production disruption.
Support Plan for Every Part (PFEP) processes and appropriate material and inventory availability for manufacturing requirements.
Coordinate planning dependencies and material requirements for effective engineering-change implementation.
Use structured problem solving and data analysis to identify root causes and resolve supply chain and manufacturing execution issues.
Promote Lean principles and continuous improvement across team processes.
Align team priorities and resources with business and operational requirements.