If You Don’t Know, Now You Know… This is protein works.™
Rewind to 12th December 2012. Out of a freezing cold office (because we couldn’t afford heating back then!), our founders huddled round a couple of computer screens. This was the moment. After a year of working round the clock and a lifetime of tempering the thirst to create a world-class brand, we pressed LAUNCH. That was the moment protein works.™ website went live to the globe.
It’s not an overly fancy story, we know. There’re no garages worked out of, no office in the Bay Area to talk up. But fancy isn’t in our DNA, innovation is. With the idea to rock the very foundations of a sports nutrition industry that had become complacent, we set out to create an online sports nutrition brand that put pure quality & wow service before lowest possible price. With that vision and all it entails; we knew we’d be the underdogs from the very beginning. But you know what? We love that.
Fast forward almost 8 years and the journey from humble Cheshire beginnings, to over 1 million orders shipped globally may be in the bag, but our future is just beginning…
At our very core we believe in innovation in everything we touch. It’s engrained in our product range, in our people and in our proposition.
So of course, it follows naturally that we believe in an in-house approach to everything. We purposely put the talent and expertise that our business thrives on in the sole care of ourselves and our team. In short, we don’t ‘do’ agencies, and we categorically believe that if there’s a solution to be had – our team are the best ones to devise and deliver it. As such, TPW is an entrepreneurial place that values those people who want to make a dent, don’t want to be held back & don’t do politics. Our people are bored with ‘corporate’, are positively impatient & passionate self-learners. The culture is fast paced, supportive, and audacious.
The way our business is built and what we’re capable of, reflects that mindset.
At our Cheshire based HQ we handle the full business mix - a vast facility over two sites and over 75,000 square feet. On one site you’ll find everything from our Operations Department, including Finance & Customer Experience to Fulfilment and Warehousing, On the second site, you’ve got the engine room of Manufacturing, Product Development, Technology and Digital Marketing teams. Our award-winning Sales & Marketing Team handle the full Performance Marketing mix, Brand Management, Design, Customer Experience, Content Creation, SEO and CRO and Trading. Is it a squeeze? Sure. But only when it comes to knowledge base! We do this on purpose because we believe that our business is best when it collaborates and moves as one. It’s super charges personal and business growth.
Opportunities Like This Don’t Come Often…
This is your chance get on board the rocket ship! Reporting directly into the CEO, you’ll bag yourself a role that sits at the heart of the engine room of the business. This incredible opportunity is ideal for someone with exceptional organisational and planning skills. Working with all teams across the business, you will be challenging Fulfilment and Manufacturing teams to deliver against set plans. You will be managing a team of planners who will look to you to develop them, build a vision for the planning function, whilst at the same time, support them at the coal face. You will be exposed to food manufacturing processes and protocols, commercial modelling, logistics co-ordination and above all else, the very latest scheduling and performance reporting. You must be a true collaborator and highly numerate, who can make a difference by seeing ‘problems’ as challenges to overcome. You will have a relentless drive to improve efficiencies and smash targets. This is a hands-on role with the opportunity to fundamentally shape the future supply chain of a high growth business.
The Role: Head of Supply Chain Planning
This role is based within our vertically integrated Manufacturing & Logistics Centre in Runcorn and has the following main responsibilities: -.
- Manage a team of production and fulfilment planners
- Own the plan for end to end supply chains in terms of stock, people and performance
- Liaise with key functions across the business including Procurement, Commercial, Fulfilment and NPD
- Create daily and weekly production and fulfilment plans to optimise manufacturing performance, whilst considering allergen controls, labour resource and commercial priorities
- Review daily the factory output against plan and adjust plans accordingly in an agile manner
- Schedule ad hoc production runs for global customer orders for both Protein Works & abnormal brands
- Oversee finished goods inventory levels across a number of warehouse around the world
- Build planning models and systems that evolve the business away from spreadsheets
- Co-ordinate & model sales forecasts to ensure demand needs are met in a timely & efficient manner
- Ensure production runs are aligned with Online, Amazon and International Trade channel requirements
- Challenge and collaborate with the Production Team to drive continuous improvement
- Present data insights and management information in a compelling manner to support fulfilment resource decisions and future strategic plans
- Work closely with Finance to ensure our exported goods and accurately accounted for, reconciled and challenged effectively if and when issues arise.
- Play a key role in the launch of new products and the discontinuation of old ones
- Develop and improve existing planning tools to support our high growth strategy
The successful candidate will ideally have an excellent understanding of food manufacturing and extensive experience within a supply chain planning function. The candidate should also be interested in driving improvements through team collaboration across the business.
Immediate Responsibilities and Hot Projects
Plot, Plan and Deliver on the following:
1. Immediately learn the day-to-day production planning functions across the business
2. Manage the team of planners to enable a smooth and effective running of the department
3. Review our current working practices and trigger improvements at an exciting speed
4. Develop effective working relationships with the key resources in the business.
5. Improve our planning and review processes to better serve the business and drive efficiencies
6. Optimise in-stock levels and minimise delivery times to key customers.
7. Partner with Commercial, NPD, Technical and Operations colleagues on a daily basis.
8. Develop and implement a ‘continuous improvement’ culture
9. Challenge positively the plan attainment, stock levels and on time and in-full delivery rates.
10. Daily reporting and managing of key metrics.
The Things You’ll Nail as Standard
1. Create reports and presentations for the wider business
2. Ability to use excel to a high level as part of your core responsibilities
3. Coordinating with internal teams and individuals to develop an effective way of working
4. Regular communication with the operational team and senior management team
5. Oversee the current planning process for hundreds of product lines
6. Well-organised, with an eye for detail in everything you do
7. A strong work ethos to document key working processes and practices
8. Attending and contributing to planning and operational meetings.
9. Supporting the commercial team with key information for effective decision making.
10. Great team worker and the ability to see a ‘challenge as an opportunity’.
You’re Naturally Like This…
1. Possess a “can-do” attitude
2. Highly enthusiastic with a drive to improve and develop new ways of working and improving
3. Have a growing strategic mindset and appreciation
4. Avid self-learner & teacher
5. Highly motivated self-starter with a flexible, can-do attitude
6. An uncommonly fast-learner
7. Place a high value on delivering business impact
8. Able to trade-off short & long-term targets and have a history of making the right calls.
9. Positively impatient
10. Great at building positive, productive collaborations and teams
11. Competent at extracting information and make effective use of it
12. Excellent interpersonal skills
13. Ability to clearly communicate complex topics in simple terms, to a variety of audiences
Non-Negotiables
1. Previous man management experience
2. Demonstrable supply chain planning experience in a fast growth business
3. Highly organised and excellent verbal and written skills
4. Ability to multi-task and deliver to deadlines
5. Ability to lead and motivate, and challenge as required
6. Excellent relationship building skills and ability to influence at various levels
Desirables
1. Degree educated
2. Experience in FMCG / Sports Nutrition category
3. Experience of working in an E-Commerce vertically integrated business
We Think This Type of Person Would Kill the Role!
1. An exceptional all round Supply Chain professional looking for their next big challenge
2. An excellent planner who is ready to take the step up to a Head of role
