At Lilly, the work is demanding because patients are waiting. We unite caring with discovery to help make life better for people around the world, knowing that every decision, every detail, and every day matters. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, our over 50,000 employees around the globe take on complex challenges to discover and deliver life-changing medicines, strengthen how health is understood and managed, and support the communities we serve. This is hard, urgent, selfless work—but it’s work worth doing. If you’re driven by purpose and ready to bring your best to work that truly matters for patients, we invite you to join us.
At Lilly, we unite caring with discovery to make life better for people around the world. We are a global healthcare leader headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. Our employees around the world work to discover and bring life-changing medicines to those who need them, improve the understanding and management of disease, and give back to our communities through philanthropy and volunteerism. We give our best effort to our work, and we put people first. We're looking for people who are determined to make life better for people around the world.
Position Overview:
The Supply Chain organization has responsibility for planning and scheduling operations at the site. The Sr. Associate, Production Planner serves as a key strategic contact for production planning, capacity management, and supply chain integration across the plant and with Global Supply Chain partners. This role requires a strong working knowledge of end-to-end planning processes and the ability to lead cross-functional problem-solving, mentor junior planners, and drive continuous improvement across scheduling and capacity management activities.
The Sr. Associate translates demand forecasts (commercial, development, and project-based) into robust master production schedules, while proactively identifying risks and opportunities across the Capacity Requirements Plan (CRP) and Sales, Inventory & Operations Plan (SI&OP). This role also plays a lead role in aligning site production activities with broader network and global supply chain strategy.
Responsibilities:
Planning/Scheduling
- Lead the alignment and optimization of short- and long-term production plans with operations capacity
- Drive production to inventory targets for assembled, packaged, and/or parenteral materials
- Prepare and present CRP, SI&OP, and other strategic planning data to leadership
- Convert production plans into master production schedules with a focus on risk mitigation and scenario planning
- Serve as a senior member of the Process/Flow Team, resolving complex capacity challenges and unplanned production issues
- Oversee timely processing of past due process orders and root-cause resolution
- Act as the primary hub for schedule-related communication in the Flow Team; represent supply chain at Flow, Lead Team, and cross-site meetings
- Partner closely with Purchasing to ensure component availability and proactively resolve supply risks
Capacity Management
- Lead plant capacity analysis, generate insights, and report findings to leadership
- Conduct advanced scenario analysis to evaluate strategic options and their downstream impacts
- Identify capacity constraints early and collaborate with cross-functional teams to develop mitigation plans
Customer Service & Stakeholder Engagement
- Build strong relationships across stakeholders to ensure the production plan is achievable and resilient
- Partner with upstream and downstream Global Supply Chain resources to align plans across the network
- Lead trade-off discussions with other schedulers/planners to optimize shared resources
- Integrate alternate demand into production schedules to meet evolving site needs
Safety & Quality
- Maintain a safe workplace through proper ergonomic practices
- Maintain a state of compliance (learning plan, SOP adherence, etc.)
- Champion quality and compliance mindset among junior team members
SAP Knowledge & Metrics
- Demonstrate advanced understanding of SAP processes, including Master Production Scheduling (MPS) and Material Requirements Planning (MRP), including complex exception message resolution
- Lead efforts to set up and maintain SAP master data (recipes, standards, data integrity)
- Generate, analyze, and present OSSCE (Operational Standards for Supply Chain Excellence) metrics to drive performance improvements
- Partner with stakeholders to identify and implement process improvements across plant supply chain operations
Leadership & Mentorship
- Mentor and coach junior planners/schedulers, supporting their onboarding and development
- Lead or co-lead continuous improvement initiatives within the planning function
- Serve as a subject matter expert and escalation point for planning-related issues
Basic Qualifications:
- 5+ years of experience in Manufacturing, Supply Chain, or Production Planning
- Prior SAP and APO experience required
- Bachelor's Degree (or equivalent work experience) in Supply Chain Management, Engineering, or a related technical field
Additional Skills/Preferences:
- Strong organizational, analytical, and project management skills
- Demonstrated leadership and mentorship capabilities
- Excellent interpersonal and cross-functional communication skills
- Advanced knowledge of MRP and OSSCE frameworks
- Strong customer orientation and stakeholder management skills
- Excellent computer skills (e.g., MPS, MRP, SAP, APO, Excel, Power BI a plus)
Lilly is dedicated to helping individuals with disabilities to actively engage in the workforce, ensuring equal opportunities when vying for positions. If you require accommodation to submit a resume for a position at Lilly, please complete the accommodation request form (https://careers.lilly.com/us/en/workplace-accommodation) for further assistance. Please note this is for individuals to request an accommodation as part of the application process and any other correspondence will not receive a response.
Lilly is proud to be an EEO Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, religion, gender identity, sex, gender expression, sexual orientation, genetic information, ancestry, national origin, protected veteran status, disability, or any other legally protected status.
Our employee resource groups (ERGs) offer strong support networks for their members and are open to all employees. Our current groups include: Africa, Middle East, Central Asia (AMECA), Black Employees at Lilly (BE@Lilly), Chinese Culture Network (CCN), EnAble, Evolve, Lilly Indian Network (LIN), Organization of Latinx at Lilly (OLA), Pride (LGBTQ+ Allies), Veterans Leadership Network (VLN) and Women’s Initiative for Leading at Lilly (WILL).
Actual compensation will depend on a candidate’s education, experience, skills, and geographic location. The anticipated wage for this position is
$65,250 - $145,200
Full-time equivalent employees also will be eligible for a company bonus (depending, in part, on company and individual performance). In addition, Lilly offers a comprehensive benefit program to eligible employees, including eligibility to participate in a company-sponsored 401(k); pension; vacation benefits; eligibility for medical, dental, vision and prescription drug benefits; flexible benefits (e.g., healthcare and/or dependent day care flexible spending accounts); life insurance and death benefits; certain time off and leave of absence benefits; and well-being benefits (e.g., employee assistance program, fitness benefits, and employee clubs and activities).Lilly reserves the right to amend, modify, or terminate its compensation and benefit programs in its sole discretion and Lilly’s compensation practices and guidelines will apply regarding the details of any promotion or transfer of Lilly employees.
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