Supply & Demand Inventory Planner

EDUCATORS RESOURCE INC•Semmes, AL

1d•Onsite

About The Position

Educators Resource is a leading national wholesale distributor of educational, office, and fine art supplies serving schools, retailers, and institutions across the United States. For nearly 50 years, we have built our reputation on exceptional service, operational excellence, and strong relationships with our customers and vendor partners. We are looking for a Supply & Demand Inventory Planner to help ensure we have the right products, in the right quantities, at the right time. This role combines inventory planning, forecasting, purchasing, and vendor management to support product availability while maintaining healthy inventory levels. The ideal candidate enjoys working with data, solving problems, collaborating across teams, and making decisions that have a direct impact on customers and the business.

Requirements

Analytical, organized, dependable, and comfortable making decisions using data.
Ability to manage multiple priorities.
Effective communication with vendors and coworkers.
Ability to follow through on details in a fast-paced environment.
Proficient in Microsoft Office, particularly Excel.
Comfortable working with ERP, inventory, purchasing, or materials management systems.

Nice To Haves

Associate’s degree in business, Supply Chain Management, Logistics, or a related field (relevant experience may be substituted).
Three or more years of experience in inventory planning, purchasing, supply chain, or a related field.
Experience in wholesale distribution, manufacturing, retail, or another inventory-driven environment.
Familiarity with inventory planning concepts such as lead times, reorder points, safety stock, minimums, and maximums.
Good judgment.
Willingness to learn.
Strong attention to detail.
Collaborative approach to getting things done.

Responsibilities

Manage inventory for assigned product lines.
Work closely with vendors and internal teams to anticipate demand, maintain appropriate stock levels, and address potential supply issues before they impact our customers.
Determine inventory needs and place purchase orders accordingly using sales history, inventory levels, lead times, seasonal trends, and other planning data.
Monitor product performance and supplier activity.
Adjust inventory plans as conditions change.
Balance product availability with responsible inventory investment.
Partner with Sales, Customer Service, Operations, Finance, Distribution, and Purchasing to share information, solve supply challenges, and continuously improve how we plan and manage inventory.
Forecast inventory requirements.
Place and manage purchase orders.
Monitor inventory across multiple warehouse locations.
Maintain planning parameters such as reorder points, lead times, safety stock, minimums, and maximums.
Develop strong vendor relationships and monitor supplier performance.
Follow up on open orders and resolve shortages, back-orders, shipping delays, and other supply issues.
Analyze sales, demand, and inventory trends.
Evaluate new product performance and recommend adjustments when needed.
Communicate potential supply concerns to the appropriate teams and work collaboratively to find solutions that support our customers and business objectives.