Senior Planner and Production Scheduler At Symrise AG

About the Role

We are looking for a Planning & Scheduling professional to manage and optimize raw material planning, inventory performance, and production scheduling across our manufacturing operations in Egypt. This role plays a key part in ensuring material availability, production continuity, cost efficiency, and service level excellence, while driving continuous improvement and digital transformation within the planning function.

The position requires close collaboration with Production, Procurement, Sales, Supply Chain, and Finance, as well as strong analytical capabilities and hands‑on experience with SAP and data‑driven planning tools.

Key Responsibilities

Planning Activities

• Plan and manage raw material requirements based on annual sales forecasts, ensuring timely availability for production and customer orders.
• Define and maintain safety stock and cycle stock strategies to balance service levels, inventory costs, and risks of stock‑outs or disposals.
• Monitor and analyze inventory performance, including slow‑moving items and planned disposals, and collaborate with stakeholders to repurpose or retest materials when required.
• Ensure accurate and timely forecasting, including annual forecasts for purchased products and monthly make‑to‑stock orders for global customers.
• Use SAP to manage material planning, generate reports, and ensure proper documentation for production orders.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives to optimize planning processes, reduce waste, and address root causes of inefficiencies.
• Ensure full compliance with environmental, health, and safety standards throughout all planning activities.
• Collaborate cross‑functionally to meet customer delivery commitments while maintaining operational excellence.

Scheduling Activities

• Develop, manage, and maintain production schedules and priorities for both factories in Egypt.
• Coordinate closely with Production Managers, Planning, Procurement, and Sales to align capacity, material availability, and business priorities.
• Prepare and organize SAP documentation to release production orders accurately and on time.
• Release and confirm production orders based on real‑time shopfloor and warehouse conditions.
• Track delays versus planned production dates, including toll cycle follow‑ups, and proactively resolve issues.
• Identify bottlenecks and drive process improvements to enhance efficiency across the production planning cycle.
• Generate SAP‑based reports and schedules to ensure visibility, control, and adherence to company deadlines.

Planning Process Improvement

• Identify gaps and lead initiatives to streamline S&OP, MRP, and inventory management processes.
• Embed best practices and continuous improvement methodologies across the planning organization.

Governance & Compliance

• Ensure adherence to planning standards and WOW (Ways of Working).
• Drive accountability for forecast accuracy and alignment with financial targets.

Digital Transformation & Analytics

• Design, develop, and maintain Power BI dashboards to monitor supply planning KPIs, inventory performance, and forecast accuracy.
• Automate reporting processes and integrate data sources to enable real‑time insights.
• Support the implementation of digital tools and advanced analytics to improve planning efficiency and decision‑making.

About you:

Background & Experience

• +3 years of experience in Demand Planning, Supply Planning, Material Requirements Planning (MRP) or other Supply Chain-related roles.
• Experience in the same industry, FMCG, or manufacturing environments is a strong plus.
• Make‑to‑Order (MTO) experience is an advantage.
• Multinational environment exposure is highly valued.
• S&OP experience is considered a plus.
• Experience with capacity to grow into a broader planning scope.

Education

• Bachelor’s degree in:
  • Engineering (preferred, but not mandatory)
  • Supply Chain
  • Business Informatics
  • Business Administration (Supply Chain major)

Technical & Digital Skills

• SAP experience is preferable (material planning, production planning, inventory management).
• Strong data analysis capabilities with hands‑on experience in:
  • Power BI (dashboards, KPIs, data visualization)
  • Advanced Excel (pivot tables, formulas, macros)
  • Data queries and reporting automation
• Exposure to Business Intelligence tools, data analytics, or basic coding is a plus.

• Professional training background is accepted; CPIM and MITx MicroMasters certifications are considered a strong plus.
• Fluent English is mandatory.

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