【Job Purpose/Overview】
The Supply Planning Manager is a critical role responsible for leading overall supply planning activities to maintain stable supply and strengthen supply capability for the Royal Canin business in the Japan market.
The role collaborates closely with key stakeholders including Sales, Finance, global/regional teams, and other E2E Supply Chain functions including Packaging Center Operations.
The position is expected to demonstrate strong team leadership by influencing cross-functional stakeholders, driving alignment, and acting as a central coordinator during supply issues, business changes, and strategic initiatives.
The Supply Planning Manager takes initiative to optimize planning structures and processes while improving service level and logistics cost in collaboration with Finance and Logistics teams. The role also develops and drives the facilitation of SCMR (Supply Chain Management Review) as part of the S&OP+ process.
In addition, the role acts as a role model within Supply Planning by providing expertise, practical guidance, and day-to-day support & coaching to supply planners, including knowledge sharing and collaborative problem-solving, while driving operational excellence through strong ownership and performance.

【Key Responsibilities】
⚫ Lead overall supply planning activities to maintain stable supplyFG/Kibble/materials) for the Japan market by validating supply plans, purchasing plans, production plans, inventory levels, change management activities, and key planning parameters maintained by supply planners.
⚫ Develop and execute mid- to long-term supply planning strategies to strengthen supply capability by collaborating with key stakeholders including Sales, Finance, 3PL providers (M-Logi), regional teams, and other E2E Supply Chain functions.
⚫ Collaborate with the external customer (VMI operations) to ensure stable supply, inventory optimization, operational alignment, and effective issue resolution across the end-to-end supply chain.
⚫ Lead the proposal, alignment, and continuous review of SLA (Service Level Agreement) frameworks with the external customer to ensure inventory management principles and service expectations within VMI operations.
⚫ Review, align, and continuously improve supply-related SLA and operational parameters with manufacturing sites and regional teams to strengthen supply stability, responsiveness, and execution quality.
⚫ Take initiative in cost improvement activities (DiB: Do it Best) in ollaboration with Finance and Logistics teams, balancing service, cost, and operational efficiency.
⚫ Represent the Supply Planning team during supply issues and lead cross-functional stakeholders, including regional teams, to quickly assess situations, drive alignment, and resolve issues in a timely manner.
⚫ Lead supply contingency planning activities to strengthen supply security and business continuity in collaboration with regional and cross-functional stakeholders.
⚫ Drive continuous improvement and optimization of supply planning, production planning, and inventory management processes while balancing cost, efficiency, and service level.
⚫ Own and orchestrate Supply Planning KPIs across functions, ensuring annual targets are properly defined, monitored, and achieved.
⚫ Develop and drive the facilitation of SCMR (Supply Chain Management Review) as part of the S&OP+ process framework.
⚫ Lead critical supply chain initiatives, including product launches, transition management, and risk mitigation activities to minimize operational disruption.
⚫ Support and guide supply planners through expertise, coaching, and day-to-day collaboration while acting as a role model within the Supply Planning function.
⚫ Collaborate with Digital, regional teams, and key stakeholders to ensure effective utilization, governance, and continuous improvement of planning systems and tools such as ERP and FuturMaster, including planning parameters, data accuracy, and process alignment.

【Context and Scope】
The Supply Planning Manager is responsible for leading end-to-end supply planning activities for the Japan market, ensuring stable product availability while balancing service level, inventory, and logistics cost optimization.
This role plays a critical part in strengthening overall supply capability and resilience by collaborating cross-functionally with Sales, Finance, Logistics, Manufacturing, and regional/global stakeholders. The Japan business operates with a highly complex Route-to-Market (RTM) model, including Retail, EC, D2C, and VMI operations, requiring agile and flexible supply planning capabilities. In addition, the role requires close coordination with multiple overseas manufacturing sites and regional teams to manage complexity
and volatility of E2E supply chains.
The position requires both operational excellence and strategic thinking to manage supply continuity,
drive process optimization, and support business growth.
The role also leads and facilitates SCMR (Supply Chain Management Review) as part of the S&OP+ process framework, ensuring alignment between demand, supply, inventory, and business priorities. In addition, the position is expected to proactively identify supply risks, lead issue resolution, and drive contingency planning in close partnership with internal and external stakeholders.
While this is an individual contributor role, strong leadership and stakeholder management capabilities are essential. The role is expected to influence cross-functional teams, act as a role model within Supply Planning, and support supply planners through expertise and daily collaboration.

Scope Allocation (Approx.)
 Supply Planning Operations & Execution — 35%
 Cross-functional Alignment & Issue Management — 25%
 Strategy & Process Improvement (S&OP / SCMR) — 15%
 Team Support & Capability Building — 25%