Lead Demand Planner

About the position Purpose As a Senior Demand Planner, you will be a key member of the Integrated Business Planning (IBP) team supporting sales and commercial customers. You will be responsible for developing, managing, and optimizing the demand plan for assigned markets and regions. This role combines advanced analytical capability with deep regional knowledge to ensure forecast accuracy, support IBP and enable strategic decision‑making. The Senior Demand Planner partners closely with Commercial, Finance, Supply Planning, and Regional Leadership to deliver a reliable demand signal that drives service, growth, and profitability.

Key Responsibilities

Demand Planning & Forecast Ownership Lead the monthly regional demand planning cycle, including data preparation, statistical forecasting, and collaborative review. Own the 18–24‑month forecast horizon for assigned countries or business units. Apply deep regional insights (market trends, seasonality, regulatory shifts, customer dynamics) to enhance forecast quality. Analyze forecast accuracy, bias, and demand variability; implement corrective actions and continuous improvements. Maintain SKU/customer/channel‑level demand plans aligned with business strategy. Provide key input into global inventory management and optimization strategies. Execute regional inventory allocation and/or direct regional deployments as necessary. Work with markets and IBP leadership team to address escalations and resolve conflicts S&OP / IBP Integration Represent the region IBP meetings as the demand planning authority. Present risks, opportunities, and key forecast drivers to supply, finance, and executive stakeholders. Ensure demand plans are aligned with revenue targets, inventory strategies, and capacity constraints and any gaps to those targets or strategies have alignment across commercial and supply leadership. Support scenario modeling, demand shaping, and long‑range outlook creation. Regional Market Expertise Serve as the subject‑matter expert for regional demand dynamics—economic conditions, competitor actions, promotional cycles, product lifecycles, and customer behaviors. Build strong relationships with regional commercial teams to anticipate demand shifts early. Monitor and interpret regional performance KPIs, channel shifts, and macroeconomic indicators to inform demand assumptions. Provide demand‑related insights for new product introductions, portfolio transitions, and regional business planning. Data, Analytics & Systems Utilize demand planning system (Smoothie) to develop and manage forecasts. Expertise and experience in advanced planning systems (e.g., SAP APO/IBP, Oracle, Anaplan, o9, Kinaxis, or similar) is highly recommended. Leverage advanced analytics, statistical modeling, and historical data to improve forecast accuracy. Lead data quality improvements for the region—SKU setup, domain data alignment, parameter management, etc. Create dashboards and reports that translate data into actionable insights for cross‑functional teams. Cross‑Functional Collaboration Work closely with: Commercial teams to validate assumptions and understand customer intelligence. Supply Planning to balance demand and supply perspectives. Finance to align demand signals with revenue and financial projections. Marketing / Product to incorporate campaigns and lifecycle events. In addition to the main responsibilities listed above the manager is allowed to USE discretion TO add further duties and tasks based on the business needs which are not explicitly listed here.

Responsibilities

• Lead the monthly regional demand planning cycle, including data preparation, statistical forecasting, and collaborative review.
• Own the 18–24‑month forecast horizon for assigned countries or business units.
• Apply deep regional insights (market trends, seasonality, regulatory shifts, customer dynamics) to enhance forecast quality.
• Analyze forecast accuracy, bias, and demand variability; implement corrective actions and continuous improvements.
• Maintain SKU/customer/channel‑level demand plans aligned with business strategy.
• Provide key input into global inventory management and optimization strategies.
• Execute regional inventory allocation and/or direct regional deployments as necessary.
• Work with markets and IBP leadership team to address escalations and resolve conflicts
• Represent the region IBP meetings as the demand planning authority.
• Present risks, opportunities, and key forecast drivers to supply, finance, and executive stakeholders.
• Ensure demand plans are aligned with revenue targets, inventory strategies, and capacity constraints and any gaps to those targets or strategies have alignment across commercial and supply leadership.
• Support scenario modeling, demand shaping, and long‑range outlook creation.
• Serve as the subject‑matter expert for regional demand dynamics—economic conditions, competitor actions, promotional cycles, product lifecycles, and customer behaviors.
• Build strong relationships with regional commercial teams to anticipate demand shifts early.
• Monitor and interpret regional performance KPIs, channel shifts, and macroeconomic indicators to inform demand assumptions.
• Provide demand‑related insights for new product introductions, portfolio transitions, and regional business planning.
• Utilize demand planning system (Smoothie) to develop and manage forecasts.
• Leverage advanced analytics, statistical modeling, and historical data to improve forecast accuracy.
• Lead data quality improvements for the region—SKU setup, domain data alignment, parameter management, etc.
• Create dashboards and reports that translate data into actionable insights for cross‑functional teams.
• Work closely with: Commercial teams to validate assumptions and understand customer intelligence.
• Supply Planning to balance demand and supply perspectives.
• Finance to align demand signals with revenue and financial projections.
• Marketing / Product to incorporate campaigns and lifecycle events.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Supply Chain, Analytics, Economics, or a related field (Master’s preferred).
• 5–8+ years of demand planning, forecasting, or S&OP experience; regional or global planning exposure strongly preferred.
• 5–8+ years of proven expertise in forecasting tools (SAP, IBP, o9, Kinaxis, Anaplan, etc.)
• 5–8+ years of strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret complex datasets.
• 5–8+ years of demonstrated success improving forecast accuracy and influencing cross‑functional decisions.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills; able to engage senior leadership.
• 5–8+ years of experience with statistical models, advanced Excel, and business intelligence tools (Power BI, Tableau, etc.) is a plus.
• Experience in Medical Device industry is preferred.

Nice-to-haves

• Experience launching new advanced planning platforms is preferred.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation
• Excellent healthcare including medical, dental, vision and prescription coverage
• Short & long term disability plus life insurance -- cost paid fully by CONMED
• Retirement Savings Plan (401K) -- CONMED matches your contributions dollar for dollar, with the potential for up to 7% per pay period
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan -- allows stock purchases at discounted price
• Tuition assistance for undergraduate and graduate level courses

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