Role: Director, Demand Planning & S&OP (Sales & Operations Planning)
Location: Canada (Quebec or Ontario)
Start Date: ASAP
Duration: 6 months
Context
xNorth is currently supporting a mid-sized manufacturing company undergoing a broad operational transformation. As part of this effort, we are seeking senior leadership to reinforce the demand planning and S&OP function. The organization aims to implement a structured, cross-functional planning process to improve visibility, forecast reliability, and decision-making across the business.
Mission
We are looking for a senior leader who can step in immediately to design and lead a robust S&OP process. This includes close collaboration with Sales and Marketing to capture market insights and promotional activity, as well as alignment with Supply Chain to ensure capacity, inventory, and production plans are synchronized with demand. This role is both strategic and operational, requiring someone who can lead transformation while managing daily planning activities.
Key Objectives
- Improve forecast accuracy by integrating inputs from Sales, Marketing, and Supply Chain
- Establish a collaborative and structured S&OP cycle
- Lead recurring planning meetings and drive cross-functional alignment
- Build internal capabilities through coaching and structured process implementation
- Enable better decisions related to inventory, production, capacity, and customer service
Responsibilities
- Assess the current planning and forecasting environment
- Implement and lead an end-to-end S&OP cycle (pre-S&OP, demand review, supply review, executive S&OP)
- Work closely with Sales and Marketing to align forecasts with commercial strategies and product plans
- Coordinate with Supply Chain to translate demand into operational plans
- Define and implement planning KPIs and dashboards
- Run planning meetings, facilitate collaboration, and ensure accountability
- Transfer knowledge and ensure long-term sustainability of the process
Profile
- 10+ years of experience in Supply Chain, with strong expertise in demand planning and S&OP
- Proven experience aligning Sales, Marketing, and Operations within a planning framework
- Background in the food & beverage industry, ideally within manufacturing, FMCG, or other supply chain-intensive environments
- Strong facilitator and communicator, able to drive cross-functional alignment
- Hands-on, pragmatic, and structured—capable of delivering impact quickly
