Associate Director Global Vaccines Planning

Job Description

This Associate Director (P4) position as an End to End Planner supporting Vaccines will be responsible for supply planning to meet customer demand, meeting inventory targets, and partnering with manufacturing sites and commercial teams to manage supply and demand issues for their respective product(s).  The Vaccine Planning team coordinates all aspects of supply through supply planning, sourcing, making, inventory management, packaging and delivery. We partner across the Marketing, Finance and Manufacturing organizations to build a robust demand and supply plan and ensure we get products to the right customer, at the place, at the right time.

This role will routinely interact with Site planning and operations personnel as well as Commercial partners via the integrated business process.  Depending on the scope of the assigned product(s) the End to End planner may serve as the primary point of contact for our Manufacturing Division and Commercial stakeholders or support an aspect of a more complex product (example HPV and PCV).  This role routinely partners with Operations leads, site and functional leads, site and regional planners, ExM operations and functional leads, Value Chain leaders, VCM Product leaders and Centers of Excellence to achieve their priorities.  This role is responsible for supply planning within the 0-36 month horizon, while supporting tactical escalations and strategic decision making as required.

Primary Responsibilities:

- Apply basic to intermediate knowledge and understanding of Planning (MRP, ERP), Inventory & Forecast Planning and demand planning.
- Lead the End to End (E2E) Product Supply Team for assigned product.  Develop and articulate supply plans and scenarios, with impact on revenue, product cost, inventory, and transfers.  Understand production rhythms and plant shop floor challenges Understand, balance & integrate dependent demand across nodes/regions and allocate as appropriate to optimize business benefits (inventory, tax, capacity, P&L, etc.) Address and mitigate supply issues and bottleneck situations, while enabling resiliency and responsiveness within the supply chain.  Key activities include connecting the various nodes of the supply chain, engaging sites and DS/DP/packaging network in supply chain improvements.
- Drive Product Inventory Plan performance.
- Partner with Commercial Team & Value Chain Management Team to integrate Regional and Global Brand Strategies into supply plans within the 0-36 month planning horizon, as appropriate.
- Lead product Profit Plan and Inventory Plan for their product.  Provide overall strategic guidance including flavor management strategy to the sites.   Approve targets for end-to-end supply chain for Drug Substance through Finished Goods.
- Own supply execution strategies for global source changes including regional allocations, transition timings, to ensure supply, minimize discards, & minimize inventory.
- Follow established planning processes and generate new processes when there is a gap.
- Lead and participate planning projects focused on continuous improvement.
- Manage issues utilizing strong communication skills and stakeholder management.
- Assembling and analyzing data, identifying problems and developing recommendations which support supply chain operations and planning.
- Demonstrates a sense of urgency and ownership while working for the common good.
- Collaborate and create a positive environment within their product planning team.

Education

- Bachelor's degree in Business, Supply Chain, Operations, Life Sciences, Chemistry, Biology, Engineering, or a related scientific discipline
- MBA or advanced degree preferred

Experience Required

- Minimum 7 years of experience within the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, vaccine, or related regulated industry
- Experience in Supply Chain Planning, Operations, Master Data Management, Inventory Planning, Demand Planning, Production Planning, or Value Chain Management
- Experience supporting end-to-end supply planning processes across a manufacturing network
- Experience working with master data governance, ERP systems, and planning systems to support supply chain execution
- Demonstrated experience coordinating with Manufacturing, Quality, Commercial, Finance, and Supply Chain stakeholders
- Experience managing supply interruptions, inventory risks, and supply-demand imbalances in a regulated environment

Preferred Qualifications

- Pharmaceutical, biotech, or vaccine industry experience.
- Proficiency with SAP, ERP/MRP, and planning systems.
- MBA preferred.

Required Skills:
Driving Continuous Improvement, Inventory Logistics, Logistics Management, Master Data, Materials Requirements Planning (MRP), Order Management, Pharmaceutical Industry, Planning, Risk Management, SAP Master Data, Strategic Thinking, Supply Chain Processes, Supply Planning

Preferred Skills:

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US and Puerto Rico Residents Only:

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As an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.  As a federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.  For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:

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We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively.

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The primary location for this posting is:
USA - North Carolina - Durham (Old Oxford)

Where required by law, the compensation range for this role is provided below.

The salary range for the primary location of this role is:
$129,000.00 - $203,100.00

This range reflects the Company's reasonable expectation of the base salary applicable to this role at the time of posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs. The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits. Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits .

Additional location(s): Please note the salary range above applies to the Primary Location of the position. Where a role has other listed locations, different compensation guidelines may apply. You may find the salary ranges for additional locations below. If the salary range is not listed for the location you are applying to, our Talent Acquisition team will provide further information to you relevant to your location.

Additional location(s) Compensation Information:

San Francisco Residents Only:  We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Los Angeles Residents Only:  We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully 
Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company.  No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails.

Employee Status:
Regular

Relocation:
No relocation

VISA Sponsorship:
No

Travel Requirements:
10%

Flexible Work Arrangements:
Hybrid

Shift:
Not Indicated

Valid Driving License:
No

Hazardous Material(s):
n/a

Job Posting End Date:
10/23/2026
*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE  the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.