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Capability Lead Planning & Inventory Management
Job Id: R0000479719
Job Summary
Capability Lead Planning & Inventory Management is responsible for shaping demand and inventory planning strategies across multiple business areas. The role translates financial objectives, merchandising strategies, consumer demand signals, and supply chain considerations into forward-looking plans that drive sales, profitability, product availability, and inventory productivity.
Capability Lead provides strategic direction on forecasting and inventory decisions across multiple planning horizons. This role identifies enterprise-level risks and opportunities, leads complex scenario planning, and influences senior partners across Merchandise Planning, Inventory Management, Buying, Supply Chain, Data Science, Technology, and other teams across Target India and Minneapolis.
As a subject matter expert, he/she leads in advancing forecasting methodologies, planning capabilities, operating models, and decision-making practices. The role drives high-impact initiatives and drives scalable improvements that strengthen Planning & Inventory Management capabilities and business performance.
Key Responsibilities
- Develop demand and inventory planning strategies across multiple categories or business segments.
- Establish performance expectations and improvement strategies for Forecast Value Add, wMAPE, Bias, and other relevant planning metrics.
- Operates independently with broad decision authority and high judgment
- Provide functional leadership for forecast development, measurement, and improvement across multiple planning horizons and levels of aggregation.
- Translate enterprise priorities, financial goals, merchandising strategies, and market signals into actionable planning directions.
- Provide a consolidated view of demand, inventory, and business performance to support strategic decisions across stores and digital channels.
- Incorporate early performance signals, short‑lifecycle indicators, trend shifts, weather, and promotional response into planning and inventory decisions.
- Lead scenario and sensitivity planning for significant demand shifts, constrained supply, promotions, seasonal events, assortment changes, and other critical business moments.
- Establish planning priorities and decision frameworks that balance sales growth, profitability, availability, inventory productivity, and business risk.
- Guide the integration of statistical forecasts with promotional, seasonal, product lifecycle, financial, market, and merchandising insights.
- Evaluate forecast performance across business areas and identify systemic trends, model limitations, process gaps, and improvement opportunities.
- Provide direction to the larger team on allocation, replenishment, inventory positioning, and availability decisions.
Business Analytics & Decision Support
- Lead advanced analysis of sales, demand, inventory, margin, availability, forecast performance, and other key business indicators.
- Synthesize complex data and business context into clear insights, strategic recommendations, and executive-level narratives.
- Identify systemic drivers of forecast misses, inventory imbalances, and performance gaps, and lead cross-functional resolution plans.
- Evaluate alternative business strategies using scenario analysis, financial impact assessment, and risk-based decision frameworks.
- Define analytical approaches and performance measures that improve planning visibility and support timely decisions.
- Ensure insights are translated into actions, with clear ownership, expected outcomes, and performance tracking.
Cross-Functional & Enterprise Influence
- Serve as a strategic planning advisor to senior leaders and cross-functional partners across India and Minneapolis.
- Lead senior-level planning reviews and decision forums, clearly articulating business drivers, assumptions, risks, opportunities, trade-offs, and recommendations.
- Influence alignment when financial objectives, merchandising strategies, supply chain constraints, and operational forecasts differ.
- Build strong partnerships across Planning, Inventory Management, Supply Chain, Data Science, Technology, and capability teams.
- Represent Planning & Inventory Management in enterprise initiatives and ensure planning perspectives are incorporated into broader business decisions.
- Navigate complex or ambiguous situations by establishing clarity, aligning stakeholders, and driving timely resolution.
Capability Development & Functional Leadership
- Serve as a subject matter expert in demand forecasting, inventory strategy, scenario planning, and planning performance management.
- Establish standards, frameworks, tools, and best practices that strengthen planning consistency and decision quality.
- Coach and develop Planners and Associate Planners through technical guidance, business context, and structured feedback.
- Build forecasting and analytical capabilities across the team through knowledge sharing, training, and practical application.
- Provide functional direction to project teams and planning partners, ensuring alignment with business priorities and expected outcomes.
- Promote a culture of ownership, curiosity, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
- Define and lead the planning capability roadmap for assigned business areas or strategic priorities.
- Lead enterprise initiatives that improve forecasting methodologies, inventory planning processes, operating models, data, and technology.
- Partner with Data Science, Product, Technology, and capability teams to define and translate business requirements into scalable planning solutions.
- Sponsor pilots and oversee testing, implementation, adoption, and measurement of new planning capabilities.
- Identify opportunities to automate repetitive activities, simplify workflows, and increase planner capacity for strategic decision-making.
- Establish change management and governance approaches that support sustained adoption of new tools and processes.
- Measure the business impact of transformation initiatives and ensure improvements are scalable, sustainable, and aligned with enterprise priorities.
Required Qualifications
Education
- Required: Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Supply Chain Management, Operations Management, Statistics, Economics, Business Administration, Data Science/Data Analytics, Commerce, or a related quantitative discipline.
- Preferred: MBA or postgraduate qualification in Supply Chain, Operations, Analytics, or Finance; or a relevant professional certification such as ASCM CPIM/CSCP.
Experience
- 8 to 12 years of experience in demand planning, forecasting, inventory management, merchandise planning, supply chain, or a related discipline, preferably within retail, FMCG, or consumer goods.
- Demonstrated experience leading planning strategies across multiple categories, portfolios, channels, or complex business areas.
- Advanced expertise in demand forecasting, inventory strategy, scenario planning, and business performance analysis.
- Proven ability to influence senior stakeholders, lead complex cross-functional initiatives, and drive decisions in ambiguous business environments.
- Experience developing team capabilities, coaching planning professionals, and establishing functional standards or best practices.
- Demonstrated success delivering measurable improvements in forecast performance, inventory productivity, product availability, or planning efficiency.
Reporting, Analytics & Planning Tools
- Advanced experience with demand planning, forecasting, inventory management, or merchandise planning systems such as o9 Solutions, Blue Yonder (JDA), Kinaxis, SAP IBP, Oracle Demand Planning, or similar tools.
- Strong proficiency in Microsoft Excel and experience working with large and complex datasets.
- Experience with SQL and data visualization platforms such as Power BI or similar tools.
- Working knowledge of statistical forecasting methodologies, model evaluation, and demand-sensing approaches.
- Exposure to Python, R, cloud-based analytics, machine learning, or optimization tools is beneficial.
- Ability to translate technical and analytical findings into clear business recommendations for senior stakeholders.
Key Competencies
- Functional Competencies: Demand Planning, Advanced & Statistical Forecasting, Forecast Performance Management, Inventory Planning & Strategy, Promotional & Seasonal Planning, Product Lifecycle Planning, Allocation & Replenishment, Scenario Planning, Retail Planning, Supply Chain Management.
- Analytical Competencies: Advanced Data Analysis, Forecast Model Evaluation, Root Cause Analysis, Scenario & Sensitivity Analysis, Trend & Pattern Analysis, Strategic Problem Solving, Business Insights and Data-Driven Decision Making.
- Leadership Competencies: Strategic Leadership, Enterprise Mindset, Ownership & Accountability, Influence without Authority, Executive Communication, Cross-Functional Leadership, Decision-Making in Ambiguity, Change Leadership, Innovation & Continuous Improvement
Success Profile
A successful Capability Lead combines advanced planning expertise, strategic thinking, and enterprise leadership to improve demand and inventory outcomes across multiple business areas. The individual anticipates emerging risks and opportunities, connects operational decisions with financial and merchandising objectives, and influences senior stakeholders toward aligned and timely action.
He/She operates with a high degree of independence and provides functional direction in complex or ambiguous situations. They develop planning talent, establish scalable standards, and lead transformation initiatives that improve forecast quality, product availability, inventory productivity, and organizational effectiveness. Success in this role is demonstrated through sustained business impact, stronger planning capabilities, improved cross-functional decision-making, and the ability to shape the future of Planning & Inventory Management.
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