Supply Chain Planning Analyst

Reports to: Supply Chain Manager

Location: Rainham, Essex (RM13 8RH)

Hours: 40 hours, 5 days on-site, with occasional weekend coverage

The Role

The Supply Chain Planning Analyst is responsible for analysing, optimising, and continuously improving Frive's end-to- end supply chain operations through data analysis, business intelligence, and strategic planning. Reporting to the Supply Chain Manager, this role owns material planning and translates operational data into actionable insight that improves forecasting accuracy, inventory performance, working capital, and overall business performance. It works closely with Procurement, Operations, Warehouse, Technical/NPD, Finance, and Commercial teams, combining business analysis, supply chain planning, and business intelligence to identify improvement opportunities and support strategic decision-making.

This is a fast-paced, short-shelf-life food manufacturing environment, based full-time on-site in Rainham with occasional weekend coverage. The role suits someone who can get up to speed quickly, work comfortably with ambiguity, and translate data into decisions without heavy handholding - taking initiative and delivering results from day one.

Responsibilities

Supply & Demand Planning

• Owning the end-to-end supply planning process, translating sales forecasts and promotional activity into accurate production and material plans.
• Running and refining the Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP) cycle, aligning demand, supply, and inventory positions across commercial, manufacturing, and finance stakeholders.
• Managing Material Requirements Planning (MRP) to ensure raw materials, packaging, and finished goods are available in the right place at the right time.
• Maintaining and interrogating Bills of Materials (BOMs), working closely with technical and NPD teams to reflect allergens, shelf life, and specifications accurately.
• Building and continuously refining demand forecasts, and maintaining a rolling risk/opportunity view so issues are flagged and actioned before they reach the production line.

Procurement & Supplier Performance

• Raising, expediting, deferring, or cancelling purchase orders, and managing disputes, partial receipts, and variances as they arise.
• Monitoring and reporting on supplier performance, including On Time In Full (OTIF), lead-time variability, and supplier SLAs, and driving improvement where performance slips.
• Leading root cause analysis and supplier follow-up on recurring issues, and spotting emerging patterns - demand shifts, supplier reliability, lead-time creep - early enough to act on them.

Inventory, Waste & Cashflow

• Planning stock rotation on FEFO/FIFO principles, tracking short-dated risk, and shaping demand, substitution, or redeployment to minimise write-offs while protecting availability.
• Setting days-of-cover targets and tuning MOQs, lead-times, and safety stocks to balance cash tied up in inventory against run-out risk.
• Optimising inventory levels across raw materials, work-in-progress, and finished goods, and tracking waste across the supply chain to identify root causes and drive corrective action.

Business Intelligence & Reporting

• Building weekly reports and dashboards (using SQL, Looker, Power Query, and Excel) that surface trends and opportunities to reduce waste and maximise margin.
• Building and maintaining data models that connect planning, sales, and inventory data into a single source of truth.
• Automating recurring reporting and manual processes to free up time for analysis over admin, and building the case for further automation where it adds value.

Business Analysis & Continuous Improvement

• Mapping and analysing existing supply chain and planning processes to identify inefficiencies, bottlenecks, and opportunities for improvement.
• Driving continuous improvement initiatives across planning, inventory, and supplier processes, measuring impact against clear before/after KPIs.
• Producing regular business reporting and insight packs for senior stakeholders, presenting findings and recommendations clearly and confidently.

Technical Skills

• SQL, Advanced Excel, and Power Query (M), with working knowledge of Looker and VBA for dashboard and KPI development.
• Strong grounding in supply chain planning methods and tools, including MRP, S&OP, and demand forecasting.
• Food manufacturing awareness, including BOMs, allergens, shelf life, and product specifications.

About You

• You have experience in food manufacturing, meal-kit, fresh produce, or FMCG, ideally with short-shelf-life products.
• You're comfortable with BOMs and food technical basics - allergens, specifications, and shelf life.
• You have a solid grounding in procurement and supplier performance metrics, particularly OTIF, lead-time variability, and supplier SLAs.
• You have strong SQL and advanced Excel skills, and can build and interpret complex queries and models independently.
• You have experience with Looker, Power Query (M), and dashboard development.
• You have experience with MRP or production planning systems in a manufacturing context, and prior exposure to S&OP processes.
• You hold a degree in Supply Chain, Business, Data Analytics, or a related field, or have equivalent experience.
• You're a self‑starter who takes ownership without needing much steer, and you're calm under pressure and comfortable with a bit of chaos.
• You're genuinely curious about the “why” behind the numbers.
• You're happy working full-time, on-site in Rainham, with occasional weekend coverage.

Staff Benefits

• Discounted Private Medical Insurance
• 25 days Holiday + Public
• Bonus Scheme
• A discount on our amazing food
• Hybrid working pattern
• Enhanced parental leave

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