Material Planner - South Africa

Material Planner – Mars Snacking Johannesburg, South Africa

As a Material Planner at Mars Snacking, you will be responsible for ensuring the continuous availability of Raw & Pack Materials to our South Africa Plant in line with demand requirements and stock cover policies. In this role, you will be fully responsible for planning, controlling, and managing pipeline stock levels - whether at the supplier, in transit, or on-site. You will act as a crucial link connecting production, planning, and procurement to drive efficiency and optimize our supply chain.

What are we looking for?

• A Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Logistics, Industrial/Mechanical/Manufacturing Engineering, Operations Management, or a related field.
• 3 to 5 years of experience in material planning, production planning, supply chain, inventory management, or procurement within a manufacturing environment.
• Practical, hands-on experience with Material Requirements Planning (MRP), material availability monitoring, and production schedule support.
• Strong proficiency with ERP systems for planning and inventory management, preferably SAP S/4HANA or SAP ECC (specifically SAP PP and MM modules).
• A collaborative mindset with excellent analytical, communication, and problem-solving skills to navigate supply chain complexities.

What would be your key responsibilities?

• Pipeline & Stock Management: Maintain Raw & Pack materials stock within target ranges to ensure high flexibility and production availability while actively managing risks and costs (e.g., freight, freshness, and obsolete inventory).
• Supplier & Commercial Partnership: Develop deep knowledge of supplier profiles and capabilities to collaborate effectively with commercial buyers on contracts, performance, and Service Level Agreements (SLAs).
• System Key User Support: Serve as the Inbound Key User for ATLAS, supporting system needs, working closely with site experts, and driving local process improvements.
• Proactive Communication & Escalation: Establish structured ways of working with production planners and buyers, providing clear KPI projections and timely escalation of risks or opportunities.
• Continuous Improvement: Initiate and execute optimization and continuous improvement projects to enhance overall operational efficiency and customer service.

What can you expect from Mars?

• Work with over 130,000 diverse and talented Associates, all guided by the Five Principles.
• Join a purpose driven company, where we’re striving to build the world we want tomorrow, today.
• Best-in-class learning and development support from day one, including access to our in-house Mars University.
• An industry competitive salary and benefits package, including company bonus.