Director of Sales, Inventory & Operations Planning

Bugaboo is a premium Dutch company that reinvented the baby stroller twenty years ago. They still maintain a pioneering mindset and dedication to quality and are looking for entrepreneurial and passionate people to join them. Bugaboo designs and innovates in-house, has production in their Xiamen factory, and offices worldwide. They are proud of their creativity, diversity and cultural inclusion.

About Bugaboo

Founded in 1994, Bugaboo designs, develops, and delivers innovative baby and toddler products to enhance the parenting journey. They combine technology and aesthetics to create practical and beautiful home and mobile products. Today, millions of families worldwide enjoy the comfort and style of Bugaboo baby and toddler strollers, car seats, cots, accessories, and new high chairs and carriers. Their products are designed for everyday use and can last a lifetime with replaceable, end-of-life parts and easily re-stylable products. 

In 2018, Bain Capital invested in Bugaboo and an ew CEO and executive leadership team were introduced. The growth strategy is defined along three axes: Geography; Channels (B2B and D2C); and Product categories expansion. During this transformation period, they also introduced new systems and processes.

Bugaboo is proud of its ongoing culture of responsibility and freedom. Their core values ​​are ownership, collaboration, transparency and simplicity, supportive colleagues and ambition.

Job description: Director of Sales, Inventory and Operations Planning

The Director of Sales, Inventory and Operations Plannnig (SI&OP) will be responsible for data-driven demand forecasting, supply, and inventory planning across Bugaboo’s global portfolio. Reporting to the COO and leading a team of nine FTEs, this role will lead the professionalization of inventory planning. It is a serious mandate, given the complex international supply chain as most parts are sourced in Asia, and includes senior stakeholders’ involvement.

The Director of SI&OP will work with the sourcing, manufacturing, sales, finance, distribution, and product teams to integrate input from relevant sources and ensure a data-driven approach to inventory planning. This includes designing adequate systems and processes. And they will support the Planning team to build analytics capabilities and take a pro-active, steering role in demand planning. The SI&OP Director will provide leadership for both technical and stakeholder management. This way, they can ensure enough products are available while preventing an inventory surplus.

“After the recent transformation, it is time to step up our demand planning with a fact-based, data-driven approach. Senior stakeholder management is also key: expectations from Sales, Finance, Product and other teams need to be taken into account and managed. In this role there is a lot of room to build and professionalize the company’s planning capabilities.” – David Prchala, COO of Bugaboo

This is an inspiring challenge for an experienced planning and forecasting manager who previously worked with complex international supply chains. The ideal candidate will quickly develop a thorough understanding of how the chain works and which forecasting parameters are key in Bugaboo’s complex portfolio. They offer about ten years’ expertise in demand planning, forecasting, and inventory management. And they should have at least five years’ of management experience to enjoy success in this role.

The current team is made up of solid performers. And with the new Director of SI&OP, the team will gain more confidence as a pro-active voice at the table for demand planning, overall SI&OP synchronization, and delivering on promises. This role elevates demand planning to a level of strategic importance, and will position Bugaboo to achieve its ambitious growth strategy.

Interested?

Bugaboo is working with Top of Minds to fill this vacancy.
To express your interest, please contact Stephanie Stuit at stephanie.stuit@topofminds.com .