[Hiring] Senior Decision Scientist @Fractal Analytics

Role Description

We are seeking a highly analytical Demand Planner to support demand forecasting and planning for a portfolio of consumer products across multiple markets and sales channels. The Demand Planner will analyze historical sales, Sell-In and Sell-Through performance, channel inventory, seasonality, promotions, product launches, and other demand signals to develop accurate and actionable forecasts.

Working closely with Sales, Marketing, Supply Planning, Channel Operations, Finance, and Analytics teams, this role will help identify changes in demand, investigate forecast gaps, maintain planning assumptions, and ensure that the latest market intelligence is reflected in the demand plan.

This is an ideal opportunity for someone early in their supply chain career who enjoys working with data, solving business problems, and understanding how customer demand translates into inventory and production decisions.

Key Responsibilities

• Demand Forecasting
  • Develop and maintain demand forecasts across products, markets, customers, and sales channels.
  • Analyze historical demand, Sell-In, Sell-Through, channel inventory, promotions, seasonality, and market trends.
  • Maintain weekly and monthly forecast updates based on the latest business inputs.
  • Support bottoms-up forecasting at SKU, channel, customer, and regional levels.
  • Assist with forecasting for new products where limited historical data is available.
  • Document forecast assumptions and changes to improve planning transparency.
• Forecast Performance & Analytics
  • Track key demand planning metrics including:
    • Forecast Accuracy
    • Forecast Bias
    • Sell-In vs. Forecast
    • Sell-Through vs. Forecast
    • Weeks of Supply
    • Channel Inventory
  • Investigate significant forecast misses and perform root-cause analysis.
  • Identify patterns and emerging demand trends within large datasets.
  • Highlight unusual changes in sales, channel inventory, or market performance.
  • Develop reports and dashboards to make demand trends easier for stakeholders to understand.
• Product Launch & Lifecycle Planning
  • Support demand planning for New Product Introductions (NPI) and product launches.
  • Develop initial launch forecasts using comparable products, market assumptions, and commercial inputs.
  • Monitor early Sell-Through performance and recommend forecast adjustments.
  • Support transitions between existing and next-generation products.
  • Monitor slowing demand and inventory exposure as products approach End-of-Life (EOL).
  • Help ensure forecasts appropriately reflect different stages of the product lifecycle.
• S&OP Support
  • Prepare demand data and analyses for the monthly Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP) process.
  • Consolidate forecast inputs from Sales, Marketing, Channel, and other stakeholders.
  • Identify material changes between the previous forecast and latest demand plan.
  • Prepare summaries explaining key forecast changes, assumptions, risks, and opportunities.
  • Track follow-up actions from demand review meetings.
  • Support senior planners and planning managers in developing consensus forecasts.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration
  • Partner closely with Sales to understand customer and regional demand.
  • Marketing to incorporate promotions, campaigns, launches, and other demand drivers.
  • Channel Operations to understand Sell-In, Sell-Through, and channel inventory.
  • Supply Planning to communicate changes in demand and potential supply implications.
  • Finance to reconcile operational forecasts with business plans.
  • Data & Analytics teams to improve forecasting data, reporting, and analytical tools.
• Reporting & Planning Tools
  • Maintain recurring demand planning reports and dashboards.
  • Use Excel and SQL to analyze demand, inventory, and sales data.
  • Build or maintain dashboards using tools such as Power BI or Tableau.
  • Work within ERP, MRP, and planning platforms to maintain forecasts and planning parameters.
  • Help automate repetitive reporting and forecasting activities.
  • Identify opportunities to improve data quality and planning processes.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in demand planning, supply chain planning, inventory planning, business analytics, operations, or a related field.
• Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain, Operations, Business, Engineering, Economics, Analytics, or a related discipline.
• Strong quantitative and analytical skills.
• Experience analyzing sales, demand, inventory, or operational data.
• Strong proficiency in Microsoft Excel.
• Familiarity with forecasting and basic statistical concepts.
• Ability to identify patterns and explain differences between forecast and actual performance.
• Strong attention to detail and ability to work with large datasets.
• Good written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to work effectively with multiple cross-functional stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in consumer electronics, wearables, hardware, retail, e-commerce, or manufacturing.
• Understanding of demand planning concepts such as:
  • Sell-In
  • Sell-Through
  • Forecast Accuracy
  • Forecast Bias
  • Channel Inventory
  • Weeks of Supply
  • NPI
  • EOL
  • S&OP
  • CPFR
• Working knowledge of SQL.
• Experience with Power BI or Tableau.
• Exposure to planning or ERP systems such as o9, Oracle, or JD Edwards.
• Experience supporting products sold through both direct-to-consumer and retail/channel models.

Benefits

• Health, dental, vision, life insurance, and disability plans.
• Eligibility for benefits on the first day of employment.
• Participation in the Company 401(k) Plan after 30 days of employment.
• 11 paid holidays and 12 weeks of Parental Leave.
• "Free time" PTO policy for sick time or vacation.