Demand Planner

Company Overview

Field is a family‑owned global supplier of fasteners, “C” commodities, inventory management services, and technical support. We currently have locations in Rockford, IL (headquarters), Texas, South Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Mexico, and Taiwan. For over 30 years, Field has grown an average of 19% annually because of its dedication to lowering our customers overall cost and improving quality through a technical approach to fasteners.

Field was recognized by INC. magazine as one of the fastest growing privately owned companies in the USA. It has also been recognized nationally by Great Places to Work as one of the Best Small Companies in America, ranking #8 nationally among small companies and #5 nationally among manufacturing/production companies. Locally, it has been recognized by the Rockford Register Star as one of the top Employers in the area.

At Field, having a great culture is more than a priority – it’s everything.

All full‑time positions at Field are eligible for benefits including Medical, Dental, Vision, Life Insurance, 401(k), Life Coaching, paid Vacation, paid Holidays, paid Volunteer Time, quarterly Bonuses, and more.

The Demand Planner is responsible for creating a reliable, data‑driven demand signal that enables the business to balance service, inventory, and working capital—especially in an OEM/VMI environment with erratic and project‑based usage. This role sits at the intersection of Sales/Account Management, Purchasing, Commodity Management, and Operations. The Demand Planner owns the forecast, the assumptions behind it, and the process discipline that turns noise into an actionable plan.

The planner does not own customer relationships or place purchase orders but interacts with cross‑functional teams and will need to be confident to drive decisions and challenge input without direct leadership oversight.

Reports to: V.P. of Supply Chain
Direct reports: No
Location: Rockford, IL
Salary: $75,000‑$80,000

• Commit to FIELD’s Mission Statement, Core Values, and Fieldamentals.
• Develop rolling forecasts (12–24 months) at SKU / customer / location level and own the execution and communication to the team.
• Segment demand (stable, intermittent, project, lifecycle).
• Incorporate customer programs, EOLs, launches, and engineering changes.
• Maintain forecast accuracy and bias metrics.
• Ownership of ABC Classification and management.
• Own statistical and collaborative forecasts.
• Prepare demand inputs for monthly planning cadence.
• Present risks, upside, downside, and confidence ranges to VP of Supply Chain, Executive Vice President and/or President.
• Align demand plan with inventory and supply strategies.
• Translate OEM signals (consumption, schedules, forecasts) into actionable demand.
• Define min/max, safety stock logic, and replenishment triggers.
• Identify customers/items where VMI is inappropriate.
• Recommend stocking vs non‑stocking classifications.
• Partner with Inventory Optimization tools and consultants.
• Recommend stocking policies by SKU class.
• Identify excess, obsolete, and slow‑moving inventory drivers.
• Escalate gaps between demand and supply.
• Act as the single source of truth for demand assumptions.
• Document forecast changes and rationale.
• Drive accountability to one agreed plan.
• Primary metrics include:
  Forecast Accuracy (MAPE / WAPE), Forecast Bias, Demand Plan Adherence, Inventory Turns above 3.5 by 2030 without eroding margin, Service Level / Fill Rate, Excess & Obsolete Inventory, Expedites caused by forecast error.

• High School diploma or GED equivalent.
• Polite and professional manner.
• 3‑5 years of forecasting experience.
• Advanced Excel (forecasting, pivots, data modeling).
• Experience with demand planning / inventory tools.
• Understanding of intermittent and lumpy demand.
• Ability to synthesize imperfect and conflicting data into a clear plan.
• Understanding of lead times, MOQs, and constraints.
• Financial acumen related to inventory and working capital.
• Comfortable with ambiguity and imperfect data.
• Strong communicator who can challenge assumptions.
• Process‑driven but pragmatic.
• Strong in mathematics.
• Statistical modeling experience.
• Use…