Inventory Planning Manager

The successful candidate will be responsible for ensuring the correct inventory is available at the correct time, in the correct quantities, while balancing customer service requirements, lead times, warehouse capacity, and inventory investment. This role is critical in supporting contractual service level agreements, minimising stock-outs, reducing expedited freight costs, and improving overall supply chain efficiency.

This is a strategic role requiring strong commercial understanding, advanced inventory planning capability, and close collaboration with sales, procurement, finance, and warehouse operations.

Key Responsibilities

Inventory Planning & Replenishment

• Develop and maintain minimum, maximum and safety stock levels.
• Analyse historical consumption trends and forecast future demand.
• Establish reorder points and replenishment parameters.
• Ensure optimal inventory levels are maintained to support customer demand and contractual obligations.
• Monitor stock availability and proactively prevent stock-outs.
• Identify excess, obsolete and slow-moving inventory and recommend corrective actions.
• Drive continuous improvement in inventory turnover and working capital utilisation.

Supply Chain & Supplier Management

• Maintain and continuously review supplier lead times.
• Develop replenishment plans based on demand forecasts and supplier performance.
• Coordinate international procurement requirements with procurement teams and suppliers.
• Consolidate orders and shipments where practical to reduce freight costs.
• Minimise emergency airfreight and expediting costs while maintaining required service levels.
• Monitor supplier performance, on-time delivery and order fulfilment.

Contract & Strategic Stock Management

• Ensure strategic inventory requirements are maintained for key customer contracts.
• Support contractual stock holding requirements and agreed service levels.
• Develop inventory strategies to support long-lead imported products.
• Evaluate future project requirements and anticipated demand.

Warehouse Optimisation

• Review warehouse capacity and shelving requirements.
• Optimise bin locations, stock placement and warehouse utilisation.
• Work closely with warehouse/operations personnel to improve inventory accuracy and accessibility.
• Assist in maintaining effective inventory control procedures and cycle count programmes.

Data Analysis & Reporting

• Develop and maintain inventory dashboards and KPI reporting.
• Monitor inventory turnover, stock availability, stock-outs, supplier performance, obsolete inventory and inventory value.
• Prepare reports and recommendations for management regar

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