Kao Corporation
Demand Planner, Team lead
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About Kao
We are Kao, listed as one of the world’s most ethical companies for the last 20 years. Our EMEA brand portfolio spans across three sectors; Consumer Care (John Frieda, Guhl, Bondi Sands, Bioré, Jergens, Curél), Professional Hair (Goldwell, Oribe, KMS Hair, Kerasilk), and Molton Brown. Our corporate philosophy, The Kao Way, guides us in everything we do – acting with integrity, courageously driving innovation, and treating each other with trust and respect.
About the Role
The Demand Planning Team Lead leads and develops a team of two Demand Planners, driving forecast accuracy, process improvement, and best-practice planning across approximately 10 global sales channels and three main hubs. Working closely with Sales, Marketing, Production, and Supply Chain, the role translates demand drivers and market insights into robust forecasts, improving short-term performance while building sustainable planning capabilities across a 24-month horizon to support inventory, service levels, and business growth.
What You Will Do
- Lead the Molton Brown Demand Planning team, ensuring the team owns, develops, and drives Molton Brown Demand Planning forecasts using the Kao forecasting system and tools.
- Ensure processes are transparent, consistent, and aligned with continuous improvement initiatives, with a focus on improving accuracy and efficiency.
- Oversee the analysis of demand patterns, SKU performance, and market dynamics to identify opportunities for improvement and recommend appropriate actions.
- Partner with Molton Brown Commercial teams across regions to ensure Demand Planners capture and make effective use of relevant customer demand information when developing the internal forecast, including promotional planning inputs and NPD volume validation.
- Work closely with senior management, including VPs, Directors, and Senior Managers, on a regular basis to align demand expectations with business priorities and manage decisions with significant revenue impact.
- Manage, coach, and develop two Demand Planners, supporting their performance, capability, and professional development.
- Support all new product launches (NPD) and range reviews. Ensure Christmas, summer, and winter sales promotions are supported by the required quantities being available across all markets and delivered in a timely manner.
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What You Will Need
- A Bachelor's degree or equivalent professional experience is required; a higher degree or relevant professional qualification would be an advantage.
- 5–7 years' experience in demand planning, ideally within cosmetics and toiletries or an FMCG environment, with experience using SAP/IBP or similar planning systems.
- People leadership experience, with the ability to manage, coach, and develop a team, while setting clear priorities and driving accountability.
- Commercial and strategic judgment, with experience making complex decisions involving significant cost, revenue, and business considerations.
- Analytical and critical-thinking skills, with the ability to interpret demand data, identify key drivers, and translate insights into accurate forecasts and practical actions.
- Effective stakeholder management and influencing skills, with experience working with senior leaders and collaborating across Sales, Marketing, Production, and Supply Chain.
- Ability to operate across multiple planning horizons in a fast-paced environment, balancing short-, medium-, and long-term objectives, with a good understanding of the wider supply chain including production planning, logistics, and manufacturing.
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What You Can Expect from Us
- An entrepreneurial environment where passionate and innovative teams come together.
- Respect, teamwork, and collaboration are at the heart of how we work.
- A workplace culture that prioritizes employee wellbeing, with opportunities to get involved in initiatives such as Mental Health First Aiders, our Charity Committee, and DE&I communities.
- A broad range of benefits, including flexible working, competitive salaries, health and wellbeing offers, pension schemes, insurance options, and more.
- Learning and development opportunities.
- Your voice matters here; we value entrepreneurial thinking and innovation from our teams.
To find out why 33,000 people across the globe work at Kao please visit:
- https://candidate-brochure.kao.com/kao-emea/full-view.html
- https://www.kao.com/emea/en/careers/
- Discover careers at Kao and how we live our purpose, Kirei – Making Life Beautiful
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