The Demand Planner is responsible for turning the sales forecast into an accurate, regularly updated buying plan. This role owns the intake template that Sales' forecast flows into, provides independent analysis to validate and challenge those inputs where the data warrants it, merges the forecast with current inventory position, open purchase orders, and lead times to produce purchasing recommendations, and reports on performance against plan on an ongoing basis.

This role reports directly to the COO and works closely with Sales, Marketing, Supply Chain & Production to keep purchasing decisions grounded in current, accurate, and independently validated data.

Sales Forecast Intake & Independent Analysis (30%)

• Own and maintain the standard template Sales uses to submit their forecast
•  Receive, validate, and organize forecast inputs from Sales on a regular cadence
• Provide independent analysis of forecast inputs, flagging where the underlying data and the sales narrative diverge
• Raise respectful, data-grounded challenges to forecast inputs when the numbers don't support them

Buy Plan Production (30%)

• Merge the sales forecast with current inventory position, open purchase orders, and lead times to produce purchasing recommendations
• Update purchasing needs on a regular cadence (at minimum monthly, more frequently as needed)
• Identify basic timing gaps, such as potential stockouts or excess inventory, based on the merged data
• Deliver buy recommendations for approval, noting any material disagreement between the forecast and independent analysis
  

Performance to Plan Reporting (30%)

• Track actual sales performance against forecast on an ongoing basis
• Report out on performance to plan by title, retailer, and channel on a regular cadence
• Maintain a working record of forecast accuracy over time, and use it to sharpen future challenges to forecast inputs
• Translate data into clear, executive-ready insights
  

Planning Systems & Process Improvement (10%)

• Own and simplify forecasting and planning tools to improve clarity and usability
• Reduce complexity behind the scenes while increasing transparency for stakeholders
• Document and standardize forecasting and buy planning processes
• Continuously improve planning efficiency, responsiveness, and decision confidence

Success Metrics

• Timely, accurate buy recommendations delivered on a consistent cadence
• Forecast-to-actual reporting delivered reliably and on schedule
• Instances where independent analysis caught a material gap between forecast and data before it affected a buy decision
• Purchasing recommendations grounded in current, validated, and independently reviewed inputs

Qualifications & Skills

• 2+ years experience in demand planning, inventory analysis, or related analytical role
• Strong Excel/Google Sheets skills
• Comfortable analyzing data independently and raising a differing point of view to Sales when warranted
• High attention to detail and comfort working with recurring, cadence-driven deliverables
• Organized, process-oriented, comfortable owning a repeatable workflow