Planning Manager - Manufacturing Operations

Gloucester
Up to £55,000 (DOE)

The role:

Our client is seeking a hands-on and driven Planning Manager to lead an established planning team within a complex, fast-paced manufacturing environment. This role demands a confident leader who can quickly integrate, build trust and steer the team towards even greater efficiency and collaboration.

As the Planning Manager, you'll take full responsibility for leading and developing the planning function. Ensuring seamless coordination between production, materials and capacity to meet business goals. You'll play a pivotal role in aligning resources, improving systems and mentoring a capable team to meet high standards of performance.

Key responsibilities:

• Lead and motivate the Planning team, ensuring clarity, accountability and continuous development.
• Take ownership of production planning, materials scheduling, capacity planning and forecasting.
• Ensure planning systems and controls are consistently improved to meet evolving business needs.
• Maintain optimal inventory levels for raw materials, WIP and finished goods.
• Drive performance against OTIF targets, using root cause analysis tools (e.g. 8D, PPS) to tackle issues.
• Support cross-functional efforts during NPI (New Product Introduction) and process changes.
• Generate, track and report on relevant KPIs, driving visibility and accountability across the function.
• Contribute to audit readiness and supplier reviews with robust planning inputs.

About you:

• A proven people leader with experience managing and developing planning teams in a manufacturing setting.
• Excellent working knowledge of ERP systems (ideally IFS, SAP or equivalent) and planning tools such as S&OP, capacity modelling and finite scheduling.
• Effective communicator with a proactive, team-oriented approach.
• Comfortable working with engineering and production teams, including interpreting technical drawings (GD&T).
• Adaptable and solutions-focused, ideally with experience of lean or continuous improvement initiatives.

The company:

This is an opportunity to join a well-established and innovative manufacturing business with a strong reputation for quality and customer commitment. Operating in a highly regulated, complex sector, the company combines engineering excellence with a long-term vision for sustainable growth.

How to apply:

If you're ready to lead from the front and shape the future of a capable and committed planning team, we'd love to hear from you. Please submit your CV along with current remuneration details, quoting reference 9993.