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Title: Inventory Management Analyst, Central Inventory Management
Location: Ann Arbor, MI - Hybrid - on-site Monday - Thursday / Remote Fridays

Job summary

The Inventory Management Analyst plays a critical role in supporting end-to-end inventory planning and execution across the Supply Chain. This individual contributor position is responsible for planning and coordinating inbound inventory shipments to Supply Chain Centers across assigned commodity categories. This position is responsible for maintaining accurate master data, enabling system-driven planning, and ensuring alignment across suppliers, Supply Chain Centers, and cross-functional teams to support operational performance and service levels. Qualified candidates will possess experience in inventory planning, demand scheduling, and purchasing, along with strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities.

Main responsibilities

Inventory Planning:

- Schedule and coordinate inbound shipments across all assigned commodity categories
- Manage supply planning activities for assigned commodities, including support for special projects as needed
- Provide cross-coverage for other Buyers to ensure continuity of operations
- Develop and maintain economic order quantities (EOQs) to optimize profitability by balancing product costs, inventory carrying costs, and warehouse capacity constraints
- Support Supply Chain Services' customer service commitments by ensuring SCCs maintain appropriate inventory levels to achieve a 99.971% store fill rate
- Execute proactive planning strategies to minimize reliance on expedited freight
- Develop and implement safety stock strategies to ensure consistent and reliable SCC supply
- Communicate effectively with SCCs regarding inventory-related events, risks, and updates
- Analyze forecast and sales data across systems to inform planning decisions and identify trends
- Maintain organized and accurate order confirmation processes to ensure supply integrity

Cross-Functional Supply Chain Collaboration:

- Partner with Freight Services to ensure third-party carriers and suppliers are provided with accurate and timely information to support reliable supply to SCCs
- Collaborate with Direct Procurement to support optimal supplier selection, ensuring overall value and service to stores
- Work closely with Food Safety Quality Assurance to address and resolve product quality issues identified at SCCs
- Coordinate with Direct Procurement Category Leads on product quality, packaging, and related concerns
- Track and analyze vendor performance, providing insights to support service level commitments to stores
- Partner with Supply Chain Finance and Procurement Shared Services to resolve store pricing discrepancies
- Investigate and resolve cost discrepancies directly with supplier customer service teams
- Develop and distribute monthly 16-week forecast outlooks to assigned suppliers

Test Market and Promotional Supply Management:

- Develop and implement forecast models to support inventory planning and purchasing activities for new test initiatives driven by Marketing
- Monitor and compare actual sales performance against forecasts for assigned markets, identifying variances and trends
- Proactively identify and recommend solutions to address supply challenges in test and promotional environments

Special Projects:

- Participate in long-term Supply Chain initiatives and cross-functional projects
- Support and, as assigned, lead inventory-related projects, ensuring timely execution and alignment with business objectives

Product/Commodity Champion:

- Partner with the Direct Procurement and Food Safety Quality Assurance teams to support supply continuity, item transitions, and product changes
- Participate in supplier selection processes in collaboration with Direct Procurement
- Work closely with suppliers to identify and mitigate logistical challenges
- Collaborate with suppliers to optimize shipping locations, balancing cost efficiency and service requirements
- Lead resolution of supply challenges and communicate product, supplier, and item changes to the Direct Procurement team
- Partner with the Direct Procurement team to identify and implement case pack and logistics optimization opportunities

Minimum Qualifications

- Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Supply Chain Management or related field
- Min 1-3 years of experience in inventory planning, scheduling, and/or purchasing experience
- Ability to drive purpose and commitment to the direction chosen
- Ability to develop and manage internal and external relationships
- Expert project management, time management, organizational and influence skills
- Experience in working with cross-functional teams and managing multiple stakeholders across different departments and locations
- Strong oral/written communication skills, attention to detail and high level of accuracy in work output
- Proven ability to make independent decisions with minimal supervision, quickly assess new technologies and identify applications, manage complex issues concurrently and work under strict deadlines and in a rapidly changing environment

Competencies

Candidates must perform at the appropriate proficiency level for the organization's core competencies and leadership competencies.

Leader of Self

- Ensures Accountability: Holding self and others accountable to meet commitments
- Collaborates: Building partnerships and working collaboratively with others to meet shared objectives
- Self-Development: Actively seeking new ways to grow and be challenged using both successes and failures as development channels
- Customer Focus: Building strong internal and external customer relationships and delivering customer-centric solutions