Demand Planner

Castrol is one of the world’s leading lubricant brands, serving customers and consumers in the automotive, marine, industrial and energy sectors. Castrol brands are recognised globally for their premium quality and high performance, shaped by the company’s commitment to innovation and cutting-edge technology. With products sold in more than 150 countries, Castrol has helped keep things moving onroads and racetracks, air, sea, and space for over 125 years. 

Whether you're just starting out or ready for your next big move, you're in the right place to explore an exciting career with Castrol.

Job description

About the team

You’ll join Castrol’s Performance Unit supply chain planning team, bringing customer requirements, sales insights and forecast data together into a realistic demand plan that helps the business make informed decisions. Working with Sales, Marketing, Finance and the unit’s Planning, Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP) and Sales & Operations Execution leads, you’ll lead demand alignment alongside a Demand Planning Advisor who provides system-ready data, forecast analytics and accuracy insights.

Key tasks

• Own the realistic, unconstrained demand plan for your markets and portfolios, reflecting customer requirements, commercial assumptions, risks and opportunities so Supply Planning has a clear view of demand.
• Develop and maintain forecasts in Kinaxis Maestro using historical sales, market trends and statistical models. Cleanse historical events and assess which forward-looking Sales and Marketing insights should inform the plan.
• Analyse forecast accuracy, forecast value added and bias at different levels of detail. Identify demand trends, seasonality, risks and deviations, and agree corrective actions with Sales.
• Lead pre-consensus and consensus calls with Sales and Marketing, challenge commercial inputs constructively, align assumptions and agree forecast changes ahead of the formal Consensus review. Document and communicate decisions, assumptions and accountabilities throughout the cycle.
• Work with Sales, Finance and the S&OP Manager to assess opportunities and vulnerabilities against business targets, translate forecast insights into cross-functional actions, facilitate trade-off decisions and escalate material risks or unresolved assumptions.
• Represent Demand Planning in S&OP Demand Review, Gap-to-Target and Management Business Review activities, explaining forecast changes, updated assumptions and their expected business impact.
• Maintain and improve reporting dashboards covering forecast accuracy, bias and inventory levels, and use Kinaxis Maestro’s capabilities to strengthen forecasting and planning.
• Improve demand planning processes through data-driven insights, working with other Performance Units and the Global Demand Planning Excellence Lead to adopt global frameworks and best practices.

Experience required

• A bachelor’s degree in supply chain management, business, statistics or a related field; a master’s degree is preferred, not essential.
• 5-8 years’ experience in demand planning or a related role in consumer goods, food and beverage, or manufacturing.
• Proven demand planning experience using an advanced digital planning tool; Kinaxis Maestro experience is highly desirable.
• Strong analytical and statistical modelling skills, with proficiency in supply chain planning software and ERP systems such as SAP ECC, SAP S/4HANA or JDE.
• Clear written and verbal communication, with the ability to build effective relationships and align demand decisions with Commercial, Sales and Marketing colleagues across countries.
• The ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.

Privacy

The Castrol entity recruiting for this role is the data controller for the personal information you provide. We use it to assess your application and to manage the recruitment and onboarding process. We may share it with service providers who support our recruitment, and it may be transferred to other Castrol entities internationally under appropriate safeguards. We keep it only for as long as necessary. For details of how we use your information and your data protection rights, contact  [email protected].

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, socioeconomic status, neurodiversity/neurocognitive functioning, veteran status or disability status. Individuals with an accessibility need may request an adjustment/accommodation related to Castrol recruiting process (e.g., accessing the job application, completing required assessments, participating in telephone screenings or interviews, etc.).

If you are selected for a position and depending upon your role, your employment may be contingent upon adherence to local policy. This may include pre-placement drug screening, medical review of physical fitness for the role, and background checks.