Material Planner
Location: Edinburgh, Glasgow, Shieldhall or Leven
Permanent
Join Our Supply Team
As the home of iconic brands such as Baileys, Guinness, Smirnoff, and Johnnie Walker, at Diageo we source, produce and deliver 6.5 billion litres of world-leading products every year across 180 markets globally. Because of this huge undertaking, we rely on highly advanced systems as well as the very best talent to make sure our businesses continue to run smoothly.
To give you some idea of the scale of our operation, over half of our 30,000 employees work in our supply chains. We have teams in over 100 sites across more than 30 countries, but what matters is that wherever you work, you're part of a diverse, inclusive team where there are opportunities for everyone. Whether you work in planning, logistics, technical teams or manufacturing, you'll be part of an innovative, dynamic organisation. We set ourselves the highest standards, and our practices have earned us international recognition. And it's people with energy, dedication and problem-solving skills who'll help us get even better. In return, we offer a world of opportunities for you to explore, to shape and progress your career.
Want more jobs like this?
Get jobs delivered to your inbox every week.
Purpose of the Role
The Material Planner is responsible for collaborating with cross-functional teams including operations, procurement, suppliers, and brand change teams to ensure timely availability of components based on demand forecasts. The role focuses on optimising end-to-end inventory management, including maintaining optimal safety stock levels to support seamless production and supply chain efficiency.
The Material Planning Scotch & European Spirits Category team is pivotal in managing a highly complex ISC supply chain network, which services 180 countries. The team ensures smooth flow of over 11,000 components across more than 150 suppliers and 6 bottling sites, driving efficiency and collaboration to support global operations.
Accountabilities and Responsibilities
- Support the development and renewal of the Category Operating Strategy (COS) and contribute to the Sales & Operating (S&OP) process.
- Drive long-term material capacity decisions and manage Category Business Continuity Plans (BCP), ensuring alignment with future business needs.
- Own and manage overall material inventory, including reducing slow-moving and obsolete stock (SLOB's).
- Maintain optimal stock levels and safety stock models to balance availability and cost and prepare action plans to address excess inventory.
- Create and execute optimal material replenishment requirements and resolve exceptions.
- Collaborate with schedulers, production, procurement, and brand analyst teams to ensure material availability for both routine operations and innovation projects and to ensure allocated capacity and safety stocks are in place.
- Ensure clear visibility of material requirements to suppliers and procurement teams for tactical planning horizons.
- Oversee SKU productivity and gate control for new SKU/format creation, working with brand change and innovation teams to ensure smooth launches.
- Support brand change planning and innovation activities, ensuring material planning aligns with project timelines.
- Improve end-to-end supply chain value by optimising material flow and addressing any supply disruptions or conflicts.
- Lead resolution efforts for quality incidents, internal control issues, operational disruptions, and BCP activation.
- Lead and embed continuous improvement initiatives.
- Track and course-correct maturity improvement plans to achieve projected benefits.
- Deliver a balanced critical metric suite for material planning and ensuring ongoing coaching and development of material planning and scheduling teams.
- Provide proactive visibility into material requirements, trends, inventory projections, and risk mitigation plans.
- Represent the supply function in Rough Cut Capacity Planning (RCCP) and balance demand and supply signals to meet strategic and annual targets.
Skills and Experience Required
- Bachelor's degree in supply chain management, Operations, or a related field (or equivalent experience).
- Several years Supply Chain Planning experience
- Wider cross planning experience preferable including strong understanding of supply operational processes e.g. I&BC, RCCP, Segmentation, DRP, MPS, MRP or MSM.
- Systems experience within supply planning & optimisation platforms (ERP / master data, time-phased replenishment planning systems).
- Experience in S&OP with exposure to senior leadership teams.
- Leadership influencing and stakeholder engagement skills, including ability to challenge senior stakeholders and manage tension in demand/supply conversations.
- Exceptional communication skills - verbal, written and presentation.
- Strong statistical and analytical skills and attention to detail
- High capability to simplify and prioritise what is complicated and/or complex.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office, especially Excel.
- Proficiency in analytical tools including Power BI & Tableau
- Proficiency in planning tools including SAP APO, Robot & OMP or similar planning tools.
- Knowledge of supply chain management principles, including demand and inventory control.
Working with Us
Flexibility is key to success in our business and many of our people work flexibly in many different ways, including part-time, compressed hours, flexible location. Please talk to us about what flexibility means to you and don't let anything stop you from applying.
We offer a highly competitive rewards and benefits package including:
- Contemporary work life balance policies and wellbeing activities
- Contributary pension scheme
- Comprehensive health insurance
- Annual bonus
- Share options
Our purpose is to celebrate life, every day, everywhere. And creating an inclusive culture, where everyone feels valued and listened to, is a crucial part of this.
We believe the most diverse and inclusive culture makes for a better business and a better world.
We know that for our business to thrive and for Diageo to realise its ambition, we depend on having diverse talent with a range of backgrounds, skills and capabilities in each of the countries in which we operate and to reflect our broad consumer base.
Around the world we have a number of inclusive Business and Employee Resource Groups known as BRGs and ERGs. These influential groups, made up of our people, represent various viewpoints, experiences and communities who generate thought-provoking work to enhance our business and workplace, creating a sense of belonging and opportunities for all.
Join us, and you'll be part of an organisation that embraces diversity in the broadest possible sense. This means that you'll be welcomed and celebrated for who you are just by being you. You'll be part of - and help build - an inclusive culture that celebrates people of different gender, ethnicity, ability, age, sexual orientation, social class, educational backgrounds, experiences, approaches and more. And you'll help us champion inclusion and diversity across our entire business: with our employees, our suppliers, across our brands, and within the communities in which we operate.
About Us
With over 200 brands sold in nearly 180 countries, we're the world's leading premium drinks company. Every day, over 30,000 dedicated people come together at Diageo to create the magic behind our much-loved brands.
Join us and you'll collaborate, explore, and innovate. Challenge and be challenged. Together with passionate people from all over the world, you'll build brands consumers love.
We value each other and celebrate different perspectives. In our inclusive culture, you'll have the backing you need to test new ideas and learn from them. Harness your passion and desire to grow as you make your mark. Let's unlock a brighter, more exciting future together.
Our ambition is to create the best performing, most trusted and respected consumer products companies in the world. To achieve this, we need the world's very best people. We're looking for people with curiosity, creativity, boldness and a sense of purpose to take Diageo and our timeless, pioneering brands to the next level.
Feel inspired? Then this may be the opportunity for you.