Demand Planning Manager

Location: On site / Mullingar, Co. Westmeath, Ireland
job type: Permanent / Full-time
Sector and subsector: FMCG Supply Chain
Salary: Competitive salary

C&D Foods and its affiliates are one of the largest pet food manufacturers in Europe, offering specially formulated cat and dog food for the private label market. Founded in 1969, C&D Foods and its affiliates have grown to become one of the industry's leading pet food producers with eight manufacturing sites across Europe supplying quality products to customers around the world. We provide a one-stop-shop for all our customer's wet and dry pet food needs, from large-scale, low-cost highly automated facilities to multi-purpose, smaller volume flexible sites. Through our dedicated Nutrition & Research Centre and focus on continuous improvement, we've developed a reputation for innovation, collaboration, quality and market expertise.

We are now searching for a Demand Planning Managerto join our Supply Chain team.

ROLE OVERVIEW

The Demand Planning Manager is responsible for leading the demand planning process to ensure the development of accurate demand forecasts that support business objectives, customer service targets, inventory optimisation, and operational efficiency. The role acts as the key link between Commercial, Finance, Operations, Procurement, and Supply Chain teams to drive a collaborative demand planning process and enable effective decision-making across the business.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead the monthly demand planning cycle and consensus forecasting process
• Develop and maintain accurate short, medium, and long-term demand forecasts
• Analyse historical sales trends, market intelligence, promotional activities, new product launches, and customer demand patterns
• Monitor forecast accuracy and bias, implementing corrective actions where required
• Establish forecasting methodologies and continuously improve planning processes
• Lead the demand review process within the monthly Demand Planning cycle
• Collaborate with Commercial, Marketing, Finance, Customer Service, Operations, and Procurement teams to align forecasts with business objectives
• Present demand plans and key assumptions to senior leadership
• Support inventory reduction initiatives while maintaining customer service levels.
• Develop and maintain demand planning KPIs and dashboards
• Analyse forecast accuracy, service levels, inventory performance, and demand variability
• Provide actionable insights to stakeholders through regular reporting
• Ensure integrity and consistency of master data supporting forecasting activities

PERSONAL COMPETENCIES AND QUALIFICATIONS

• Data analysis and numeric skills with the ability to evaluate, analyse and present data
• Practical and proactive approach to problem solving and process improvement
• Solution oriented analytical planning skills
• Strong work ethic, perseverance and flexibility
• Organised and able to react to the challenges of a fast moving environment
• Excellent communication, interpersonal and negotiation skills, both written and verbal
• Ability to build effective relationships in a cross-functional team environment
• The ability to deliver quality work to tight deadlines