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Executive Director, Account and Sales Planning
Estee Lauder
Culver City, CA, United States
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Description
Smashbox - Executive Director, Account and Sales Planning
PRINCIPAL OBJECTIVE:
Strong retail business manager with extensive experience developing retail category strategies, sell-through and sell-in forecasts, negotiating stock & sales plans and managing inventory in the trade. Responsible for delivering gross shipment plans and executing against return objectives. Works with Account Planners and Account Leads to set and revise monthly and annual retail and gross shipment estimates. Advisor to Head of Account Management, helping inform overall brand strategy through providing quantitative input. Primary supervisor to all planners, setting planning policies, strategic priorities, processes and ensuring that each account’s business is managed in a strategic and mutually beneficial manner. Collaborates closely with Demand Planning and Supply to ensure that Account inventory needs are being anticipated and met.
PRIMARY EVALUATION METRICS: Gross shipments, returns, WOS, Turn, Counter Service Level, Inventory Accuracy
KEY ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
Annual Budgets/LRP
• Support the 3-year LRP and Annual budget process through developing the following:
◦ Develop brand estimates for door closings and openings
◦ Develop or contribute significantly to Account level Retail, Gross Shipments, returns and other financial estimates for total brand with Account Management, Finance, GM and Marketing
• Partners with Finance, Marketing, Head of Account Management and GM to increase profitable sell through
Retailer Seasonal Plans
• Provide feedback to Marketing on Brand Category Strategy
• Facilitate Planner development of Seasonal Account plansthrough developing and providing guidance to Account Planners on:
◦ Gift and Launch/holiday/sets/PWP strategy and Account level quantities
◦ Door closings / openings estimates
◦ High-level targets for each Account’s performance (developed with Head of Account Management, Finance and GM)
◦ Develop inventory level targets etc. needed to put together Brand Stock and Sales Plan
• Facilitate Roll-up of Brand-level Seasonal Account plans and Alignment through:
◦ Roll up entire account level plans, analyzing risks and opportunities between account and brand level category plans, helping facilitate discussion to come to alignment between Marketing and Account Management
◦ Strong ability to work with Account Management, Marketing and GM to align on brand’s final plan and the investment needed to fulfill plan
◦ Ability to evaluate and provide feedback to planners on Brand Stock and Sales plans by account and roll up to brand level, including returns, markdowns, etc.
• Oversees and approves Launch Manager’s plan and execution of markdowns and Gift & Inventory in the Trade Manager’s plan and execution of returns
• Supervises promo/gift and launch/set/PWP forecasts done by Gift & Inventory in the Trade and Launch Managers
• Oversees launch program design and timelines and account allocations
• Works with Demand Planning to ensure that brand level forecasts are accurate based on brand and account plans
• Provides input to Account Management on roll up of side-by-side calendars to ensure they are realistic and aligned with brand’s priorities
Monthly / Quarterly Estimate Review Process
• Leads monthly LE process, including Retail Sales & Gross Shipments, returns and other financial estimates; gathers input from planners, Launch Manager and Gift & Inventory in the Trade Manager to develop a Gross Shipment plan
• Identifies opportunities and risks to the plan
Inventory and Monthly Maintenance of Accounts
• Analyze stock and sales plans, WOS and provides feedback to Account Planners on how to best manage the business; ensure that plans align with retailers’ objectives/metrics
• Oversee planners to ensure optimal management of inventory levels including phase-ins, phase-outs, discos, returns (customer and RTVs), DIFs, testers, inventory adjustments and markdowns, with particular focus on proactively minimizing returns and DIFs
• Monthly review of account performance metrics (e.g., ROQ, WOS, counter service levels, fill rates, inventory turn) to ensure that planners are optimizing inventory in the trade; proactively work with supply to call out needs to sustain the business based on metrics
• Oversees launch, G/Promo and sets/holiday allocations by account
• If applicable, supervises management of excess/rolling GWP
• Ensure planners are managing and executing return of goods on discoed and post-holiday items
• Item forecast for seasonal or high impact SKUs/categories (e.g., outposts, sun, etc.) and communicate forecasts to Demand Planning and Account Planners
• Ensures that planners are correctly managing OOS and ensure re-orders are placed and filled in a timely manner; Provide input to Demand Planning on how OOS will influence other SKU supply needs and work with planners to incorporate into Account Category and Stock & Sales Plans
• Reviews excess inventory with supply and help develop plans to program, destroy or take other steps to reduce excess
• Works with BSM and NA Inventory Controller who manage and monitor stock levels at the DC; helps call out and devise solutions to address over/under supply
Concensus
• Structures feedback from planners to shape sales outlook on demand plan forecast
• Represents brand in consensus discussing impacts of programs, sales performance and other business issues on supply and demand planning forecasts; calls out supply risks/opportunities based on estimates
• Participant in executive consensus with Finance and Demand Planning; helps shape final proposal to GM with implications, opportunities and risks for GM sign off
• Leads more detailed SKU alignment meeting between Account Planning, Supply and Demand Planning to discuss impact at SKU level of current sales, in-stock levels at POS, etc. to align brand, demand planning and supply forecasts at granular level
SKU Management
• Provide input to Marketing to manage overall SKU assortment, including price increases, disco’s and phase out plans, etc.
• Working with Marketing Ops, conduct periodic reviews of overall assortment to advise on changes at brand or account level to improve relevance and productivity
• Works with Marketing Ops/Marketing Services to ensure the Listing and Exclusions list is transmitted to Account Services and Planners and monitors enforcement
Development of Planning Organization and Ongoing Process Improvement
• Develops effective and efficient processes to support the Head of Account Management, the Account Leads and Account Planners in developing account level plans that are realistic, aggressive and profitably grow the account
• Develops pre-season and in-season processes that are clear, consistent and insightful in helping Account Planners manage the business
• Stays up to date with new systems and innovations to continuously revise processes, level of planning and different areas covered to drive business insights and develop stronger, accurate and more aggressive plans
• Primary resource, support and monitor of planner activities to ensure that they are in line with brand standards
Related tasks performed by others:
Partner to Account Services which manages:
• Track POs & shipments and in DC dates, communicate ship dates and follow up with accounts for both launch and basic business
• Delivers Weekly OOS/in stock dates and POs
• Monitor Listing and Exclusions to ensure retailers have the right SKU/door set up and communicate assortments to buying offices
Marketing Ops/Services
• Seasonal packet with communication to retailers and field on SRP changes, SKU edits, discos, and launch SKU set up
• I-Pad and other capital investment programs; collateral management (e.g., testers, etc.)
• Door Profile updates for non-saleable
Replenishment
• Advise planners on replenishment parameters, pre-order callouts and WOS targets for key categories and advises on GWP orders
• Advise planners on OTS ordering and inventory adjustment process for DIFs and other inventory management processes
• Provide guidance on OTS parameters and health checks on inventory levels
Field Reporting
• All field sales reporting will either fall under a sales planning role or under the Head of Sales
Field Admin
• Training the field on DIF process
• Administering field programs (e.g., uniforms)
• Point of contact for field feedback (e.g., on defective product)
Core Competencies:
• Strong management skills and ability to provide clear guidance and coaching to a group of Account Planners
• Strong financial and analytical acumen; ability to advocate for and develop planning best practices and strong, mutually beneficial collaboration with retailers
• Strong business savvy and knowledge; ability to use analytics to convince others of the best options for the brand that are financially sound
• Highly organized and structured
QUALIFICATIONS
• 10+ years of relevant work experience
• Previous experience as a buyer/inventory planner a plus
• Superior analytical skills and sound business and financial judgment
• Strong negotiation, interpersonal and communication skills
• Strong excel, word, powerpoint, LFWB, FSM, IBM and RCTS skills
• Self-starter, adept at problem solving
• Team player
• Discretion in confidential matters