Senior Supply Chain Planner
A Senior Supply Chain Planner forecasts demand and builds purchasing, production and inventory plans for nutra products, so that the product is in stock and working capital is not tied up.
What a Senior Supply Chain Planner does
The Senior Supply Chain Planner balances supply and demand: how much product to sell, how much to produce or purchase, where to hold it and when to ship it. In the nutra vertical this task is harder than in ordinary retail. Demand shifts sharply with the launch of ad campaigns, batches are limited by shelf life and regulatory requirements, and suppliers often work through long chains of several countries and subcontractors.
Companies in high-risk verticals hire for this role because a planning mistake hits money immediately. An over-purchase becomes slow-moving stock with an expiring shelf life, while a shortage at the peak of traffic means lost sales and idle ad budget. The planner connects marketing and affiliate data with the operational capacity of warehouses and suppliers, so their decisions affect margin and the stability of the business.
Within the company, the role usually sits in the operations block or the supply chain function. A senior planner reports to the head of supply chain or the head of operations and works closely with purchasing, the warehouse, finance and the marketing team. At the senior level they may also manage one or two junior planners or analysts.
Responsibilities
- Build sales forecasts by SKU and channel, taking into account planned ad campaigns, seasonality and promotional activity
- Prepare purchasing and production order plans, considering supplier lead times and minimum order quantities
- Manage inventory levels: safety stock, turnover and stockout risk for each SKU
- Monitor shelf life and product batches, and plan sell-through or write-off of slow-moving stock
- Align the plan with marketing and affiliates, synchronizing traffic launches with stock availability in the warehouse
- Work with suppliers and logistics providers on shipment dates, order confirmation and delivery times
- Plan the distribution of goods between warehouses and delivery regions
- Run regular S&OP meetings, prepare scenarios and explain deviations to management
- Train and supervise junior planners, and review their calculations and models
- Coordinate with lawyers and compliance on documents related to product labeling and batch traceability under regulatory requirements
Skills
- Demand forecasting based on historical data and external factors
- Understanding of production, logistics and customs clearance lead times
- Working with large spreadsheets and models, and quickly running scenarios
- Calculating safety stock, reorder points and inventory turnover
- Negotiating lead times and terms with suppliers and logistics providers
- Managing conflicting priorities between marketing, finance and the warehouse
- Prioritization: knowing which SKUs matter most for revenue and traffic
- Working within regulatory restrictions on advertising and labeling of health products
- Communicating with management: clearly explaining risks and alternatives
- Mentoring and assigning tasks to junior colleagues
Tools
- Excel and Google Sheets for models and scenarios
- SQL for extracting sales, stock and order data
- ERP system for purchasing and inventory accounting
- WMS for tracking warehouse batches and expiry dates
- Order tracking systems and logistics provider portals
- Jira or a similar tracker for tasks and approvals
- BI tools for dashboards on inventory and sales
- Google Analytics and ad account data for assessing traffic
How performance is measured
- Demand forecast accuracy by SKU
- Product availability in target positions (fill rate)
- Inventory turnover
- Share of slow-moving stock and write-offs in total turnover
- Adherence to the purchasing plan and supplier deliveries
- Number of stockouts and lost sales caused by product shortages
- Compliance with warehouse shipping deadlines
By vertical
Nutra
In nutra, the planner takes into account restrictions on advertising and labeling of dietary supplements and health products, as well as the short lifecycle of offers: demand for a product can rise sharply after a funnel launch and fall just as quickly when the creative stops working. For this reason, the purchasing plan is built to be flexible, with short review cycles and a clear strategy for when traffic is switched off.
Levels
Senior
A senior planner is responsible for the full planning cycle across a group of SKUs or several business lines, independently makes purchasing decisions involving large amounts, and defends their plan at management level. They take on complex cases: shortages during the launch of new funnels, seasonal peaks, and conflicts between marketing expectations and warehouse capacity.
How to get there
Most people move into the role from adjacent positions: sales or purchasing analyst, logistics specialist, warehouse specialist, purchasing manager, or operations coordinator at a large manufacturer. Experience working with numbers and an understanding of how goods physically move from supplier to customer are essential. In nutra it helps to know that products go through regulatory checks and may be restricted from circulation, so operational decisions are tied to the legal side.
To get started, learn basic forecasting, calculation of safety stock and reorder points, model building in Excel, and SQL queries. It is useful to understand ERP and WMS systems and production and logistics lead times, and to practice building scenarios such as what happens if a supplier delays a batch or traffic doubles. It is also important to be able to explain your calculations to non-technical colleagues.
Growth goes from planning a single SKU to managing a group of products, then to managing the whole portfolio and working with marketing at a strategic level. To move up to senior, you need to run plans independently without constant oversight, anticipate risks in advance, and build the S&OP process. A good sign of growth is when management consults the planner before deciding to launch a major campaign.
Next steps: Supply Chain Manager, Head of Supply Chain, Head of Operations, Inventory Manager, Demand Planning Lead
FAQ
How is a Senior Supply Chain Planner different from a logistics specialist?
A logistics specialist is responsible for the physical movement of goods: delivery, carriers, routes and shipping times. A planner decides how much product is needed and when to order, produce and distribute it. The two roles work together, but the planner is responsible for balancing demand and stock, while the logistics specialist is responsible for executing transportation.
Why is planning in nutra harder than in ordinary retail?
Demand in nutra depends heavily on advertising traffic, which can change within days, and on restrictions on advertising and labeling. Offers have short lifespans, so forecasts need to be revised more often. In addition, products often have expiry dates, and an incorrect over-purchase quickly turns into a write-off.
Which skills matter most at the senior level?
Confident work with forecasts and models, an understanding of production and logistics lead times, and the ability to negotiate with suppliers and colleagues from marketing are key. A senior must clearly explain risks to management and propose options for action, not just record problems.
What determines income in this role?
Income depends on the size of the portfolio and the value of purchases the specialist is responsible for, the type of company and its stage of development, the region, and whether the role includes managing a team. Experience in nutra and the ability to resolve shortages quickly also increase a candidate's value.
Do you need to know programming to become a planner?
Programming is not required, but knowledge of SQL and experience with BI tools helps a lot. Most tasks can be handled in Excel and company systems, but the ability to pull data yourself and verify calculations noticeably speeds up the work.
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