Regional Industrial Replenishment Manager

Job Description

• Lactalis South Africa is looking for an experienced supply chain leader to take responsibility for Industrial Replenishment across our South African and Australe Africa operations. This is a high-impact regional role connecting material planning, factory operations, inventory governance and business performance.
• You will lead multi-site replenishment teams, strengthen Material Requirements Planning (MRP), secure raw-material and packaging availability, optimise working capital and build the disciplined systems, controls and partnerships required to protect production and customer service.

Required Skills

• Bachelor's Degree in Supply Chain Management, Logistics, Operations Management, Industrial Engineering or a related discipline.
• A postgraduate qualification in Supply Chain, Business Management or Leadership will be advantageous.
• 8 to 10 years' experience across supply chain, replenishment, planning, inventory management, procurement or manufacturing operations.
• At least 5 years' leadership experience in a manufacturing or FMCG environment.
• Proven delivery in multi-site or regional operations, inventory optimisation, working-capital improvement and supply chain transformation.
• Experience supporting product launches, change programmes and cross-functional business projects.
• Ability to travel extensively within Southern Africa
• Ability and flexibility to support the operational requirements outside of normal business hours when required

Technical and commercial capability:

• Advanced knowledge of MRP, supply planning, forecasting, production planning and inventory management.
• Advanced ERP capability, ideally BPCS, SAP, Oracle or an equivalent platform, together with strong master-data and systems-governance experience.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills and practical experience with business intelligence tools such as Power BI.
• Strong understanding of warehouse operations, stock governance, traceability, audit requirements and inventory risk.
• Sound financial and commercial acumen, including working capital, inventory investment, cost optimisation and supply chain trade- offs.
• Ability to interpret complex operational data and translate insights into clear decisions and actions.

Leadership and behavioural strengths:

• Strategic thinker with strong business acumen and a results-driven, customer-focused mindset.
• Credible leader who can coach teams across multiple locations and create accountability, ownership and continuous improvement.
• Strong communicator and influencer who can engage senior leaders and operational teams without relying on direct authority.
• Resilient, adaptable and decisive under pressure, with strong negotiation and conflict-resolution skills.
• High levels of integrity, professionalism, attention to detail and personal ownership.
• Working knowledge of the Sales and Operation Planning processes.
• Strong analytical skills, influencing skills, written and verbal communication skills and the ability to work cross-functionally at all levels of the organization.

Duties & Responsibilities

• Supply planning and material availability:
• Lead the regional Industrial Replenishment function; maintain robust MRP parameters; align factory and central planning; monitor forecast accuracy and PVA; identify and mitigate material risks.
• Inventory and warehouse control:Drive stock accuracy, lot traceability, shelf-life control and inventory integrity across BPCS, WMS and related systems; manage obsolete, redundant, short-dated and expired materials.
• Procurement and supplier collaboration: Partner with Procurement, Buyers and suppliers to secure raw materials and packaging, improve supplier performance, coordinate claims and returns, and recover credits.
• Working capital and cost optimisation: Manage non-finished-goods working capital, deliver forecasts and reporting, improve stock holdings, and identify replenishment, warehousing and logistics savings.
• Risk and business continuity: Manage runouts, changeovers and end-of-life strategies; implement contingency plans; minimise write-offs and protect factory operations from supply disruption.
• Projects and systems excellence: Support innovations, product launches and transitions; strengthen master data and planning governance; lead continuous improvement in MRP, systems and operational processes.
• Leadership and capability building: Coach multi-site teams, establish clear KPIs and accountability, support recruitment and succession, and develop graduate, intern and site replenishment capability.
• Governance and stakeholder management: Provide accurate daily, weekly and monthly reporting; support the Industrial Executive with analysis; drive alignment across Supply Chain, Procurement, Finance, Quality, Marketing, R&D and Operations.