Estée Lauder Companies Affiliate Supply Chain Planning Manager

About Estée Lauder Companies

The Estée Lauder Companies is a global leader in prestige beauty, founded in 1946 by Estée and Joseph Lauder and built on an enduring belief in creativity, high-touch service, and entrepreneurial spirit. As an employer, the Group offers talent the scale of an international house with the energy of distinctive brands across skincare, makeup, fragrance, and hair care. Its culture values innovation, inclusion, learning, and responsible growth, inviting professionals to shape consumer experiences from laboratory to counter, digital platform to boardroom. Employees join a purpose-led organization where heritage, artistry, and scientific excellence meet to define the future of luxury beauty.

Role & Responsibilities

• Lead Japan Affiliate integrated business planning and Consensus processes, aligning demand, supply, inventory and financial outlook and driving fact-based cross-functional decisions.
• Directly manage end-to-end planning for 2–3 assigned brands while leading and developing the Affiliate Planning team.
• Represent Japan in communication and negotiation with Regional Demand Planning and Supply Planning teams, and own key planning KPIs: WFA, Fill Rate, Air Freight Cost and Excess Inventory.
• Lead the Japan Affiliate Consensus Meeting and planning process, including agenda setting, issue prioritization, scenario evaluation, decision-making and follow-up.
• Integrate demand, supply, inventory, financial outlook and commercial priorities into an aligned Affiliate plan.
• Facilitate cross-functional discussions with Commercial, Finance, Marketing, Brand and Supply Chain stakeholders to drive fact-based decisions.
• Clarify trade-offs among sales opportunity, product availability, inventory, cost and business risk; confirm decisions, owners and timelines.
• Translate Consensus decisions into executable demand, supply and inventory actions.
• Escalate material issues and unresolved trade-offs to Affiliate or Regional leadership when required.
• Manage end-to-end Affiliate planning activities for 2–3 assigned brands in addition to Manager responsibilities.
• Own assigned brands’ demand, supply, inventory and service outlook, and work with Brand, Commercial, Marketing and Finance to translate business priorities into executable plans.
• Manage demand and supply planning, conduct relevant analysis and take appropriate action to secure short-term (M–M+2) availability of saleable, sample and gifting goods in line with market strategy.
• Anticipate business risks and respond to unplanned events to maximize sales revenue.
• Align NPL execution, product availability and launch plans—including appropriate timing for releasing customer orders—at market and sales-channel level with stakeholders.
• Represent assigned brands in Affiliate and Regional planning discussions as required.
• Oversee Affiliate-level demand, supply, inventory and service performance across brands, identifying cross-brand risks and opportunities.
• Set priorities for the Affiliate Planning team and guide planners in responding to supply constraints, demand changes and inventory risks.
• Lead scenario planning and recommend actions that balance sales, service, inventory, cost and waste.
• Ensure planning activities align with decisions made through the Consensus process.
• Promote early risk identification and escalation, and drive continuous improvement in planning accuracy, process discipline and execution quality.
• Serve as a key Japan Affiliate Planning contact for Regional Demand Planning and Supply Planning teams.
• Represent Japan’s business priorities, demand outlook, launch requirements, supply risks and inventory situation in Regional discussions.
• Influence and negotiate with Regional teams on supply allocation, recovery plans, deployment priorities, product availability and planning assumptions based on Japan business impact.
• Build fact-based cases using demand, sales, inventory, service and financial data, and constructively challenge Regional plans when material gaps exist.
• Secure clear actions, owners and timelines with Regional stakeholders, escalating critical issues when appropriate.
• Lead, coach and develop the Affiliate Planning team.
• Set objectives, priorities and performance expectations, and allocate brands and workload according to business priorities and team capability.
• Conduct regular performance and development discussions, providing ongoing coaching and feedback.
• Develop team capabilities in demand and supply planning, inventory management, data analytics and stakeholder management.
• Build succession and development plans, and promote cross-training and process standardization to ensure business continuity.
• Foster accountability, collaboration, inclusion and continuous learning; support hiring and onboarding when required.
• Own and monitor Affiliate Planning KPIs: WFA, Fill Rate, Air Freight Cost and Excess Inventory.
• Review KPI performance at Affiliate, brand and planner levels to identify material gaps, trends and emerging risks.
• Lead root-cause analysis of KPI gaps, establish corrective actions, owners and timelines, and ensure follow-through.
• Manage appropriate inventory levels and drive stakeholder actions to reduce excess, expiry and destruction, aiming for zero waste.
• Manage transportation modes appropriately for goods procurement, minimizing avoidable air freight.
• Work with Affiliate and Regional stakeholders to address structural issues affecting KPI performance.
• Determine planning priorities, scenarios and trade-offs across sales opportunity, availability, service, inventory and cost within assigned responsibilities and agreed guidelines.
• Determine when business or supply risks require escalation to Affiliate or Regional leadership, and prioritize Planning team activities based on business impact.
• Resolve complex demand and supply imbalances involving multiple brands, functions and Regional stakeholders; lead root-cause analysis and preventive actions for recurring KPI issues.
• Operate independently within agreed business strategies and Supply Chain objectives.
• Remain accountable for the quality of Affiliate Planning and Consensus processes, decision follow-through, end-to-end planning for assigned brands, team performance and KPI performance.
• Influence Air Freight Cost and Excess Inventory through planning decisions; the role has no direct operating budget ownership.
• Lead the Japan Affiliate Planning team, with 2 direct reports, including goal setting, performance management, coaching, talent development and succession.
• Lead the Consensus process and model fact-based decision-making and proactive risk management.

Qualifications

• More than 7 years of experience in Integrated Business Planning, Consensus processes and cross-functional planning processes.
• Strong understanding of demand planning, supply planning and inventory management.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Strong stakeholder management, influencing and negotiation skills, including with Regional teams.
• People management, coaching and team capability development skills.
• SAP experience; planning system experience such as o9 or equivalent is preferred.
• Experience across end-to-end supply chain and Marketing operations to communicate effectively with stakeholders.
• Native-level Japanese and business-level English.

Skills

Experience

More than 7 years in Integrated Business Planning, Consensus processes and cross-functional planning processes.

Benefits

Annual performance bonus and annual salary review, subject to business performance and evaluation results; comprehensive benefits service with an annual ¥60,000 subsidy, resort facilities and Resorttrust membership; employee product discounts; regular health checks; defined-contribution and defined-benefit pension plans; congratulatory and condolence payments, including marriage, childbirth, illness and disaster payments; commuting allowance up to ¥50,000; overtime allowance (for employees below management level); weekends and public holidays off, year-end and New Year holidays, paid leave from the first day of employment (3–12 days in the first year, up to 22 days thereafter), special leave, menstrual leave, refresh leave for eligible long-service award recipients, and caregiving leave; onboarding training, internal and external skills-development programs, career development programs and e-learning.

Culture

The Estée Lauder Companies fosters a collaborative, inclusive workplace where creativity, entrepreneurial thinking, and a passion for prestige beauty are deeply valued. As a global house of distinctive brands, it offers employees an environment that encourages innovation, professional growth, and a shared commitment to excellence and consumer inspiration.

About Cerulean

Cerulean is the definitive career portal for the global luxury industry. We match exceptional professionals with exclusive opportunities at the world's most prestigious brands. From haute couture and fine watchmaking to prestige beauty, hospitality, and boutique retail, Cerulean centralises luxury employment to help you find the career for which you were destined.