Materials & Planning Manager

About Brothers International Food Holdings, LLC: 

Brothers International brings the world's best fruit to its customers. Our Ingredients divisions supply every major food and beverage manufacturer in North America with the fruits from the best growing regions of the world. Our CPG division sells market-leading branded and private label freeze-dried fruits to retailers nationwide. 

We are seeking a full-time Materials & Planning Manager to join our talented team in our Rochester, NY office!

Position Overview

The Materials & Planning Manager is responsible for synchronizing our supply chain with production reality for our Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) division.  This role oversees the end-to-end flow of materials form raw ingredient procurement and packaging replenishment to the scheduling of Co-Man production runs.  The Materials & Planning Manager acts as the vital link between Sales forecasts and Operational capacity, ensuring we have the right materials in the right place at the right time to fulfill customer orders while minimizing waste and carrying costs.   

Duties and Responsibilities

Leadership & Management  

Lead and mentor a high-performing team, working cross-functionally to foster collaboration and accountability while driving results.   

Establish and manage team goals and KPIs that align with the company objectives.  Regularly conduct performance reviews and provide constructive feedback to ensure continuous improvement.  

Drive a culture of operational excellence by empowering team members to identify process efficiencies, solve problems, and take ownership of their work.  

Manage cross-functional challenges and resolve operational bottlenecks to maintain project timelines.  

Production Scheduling & Planning 

Develop and maintain the weekly and monthly production calendars with Co-Manufacturing Partners.   

Analyze capacity constraints against sales forecasts to identify potential shortages or overages.  

Act as the primary point of contact for external manufacturing partners, ensuring they have the necessary raw materials and packing to meet our production slots.  

Materials Management & Replenishment 

Launch & utilize Material Requirement Planning systems to trigger purchase orders for raw ingredients and packaging.   

Optimize inventory by maintaining “safety stock” levels to prevent stock-outs while monitoring “slow-moving and obsolete” (SLOB) inventory to reduce waste.  

Work closely with Supply Chain to communicate volume forecasts to vendors and troubleshoot potential delivery delays.  

Operations & Logistics Support  

Ensure the Co-Manufacturers have the “Bill of Materials” and ingredients staged for upcoming needs.  

In coordination with the Shared Logistics Services team, coordinate the timing of raw material deliveries to avoid warehouse congestion and “demurrage” (waiting) fees.   

Work collaboratively on new product introductions and new customer onboarding.   

Education Requirements

BS in in Supply Chain Management, Logistics, Business or Industrial Engineering. Masters degree preferred.  

APICS CSCP (Certified Supply Chain Professional) and APICS CPIM (Certified in Planning and Inventory Management) certifications preferred.  

Six Sigma Green Belt a plus.  

Required Experience

Minimum 5-7 years of experience in Supply Chain or Operations Management in a manufacturing/co-manufacturing environment.  

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

Advanced experience in ERP systems (e.g., Netsuite, SAP, Microsoft Dynamics), specifically within the Planning/Purchasing modules.  

Understanding of BOM Management- knowing how a change in packaging spec affects the entire procurement chain.  

Advanced Excel skills- must be a power user (Pivot Tables, VLOOKUPS, Data Modeling) 

Ability to interpret demand from sales forecasts, translating to a clean, executable production plan.  

Strong negotiation and professional persistence to ensure suppliers prioritize shipments during shortages.   

The ability to think critically, anticipating needs and mitigating risks.  

Ability to analytically and methodically problem solve if deadlines are compromised or missed.  

Analytical reasoning- ability to know when to bulk buy to save money vs. when to stay lean to preserve cash flow.  

Ability to hold external and internal stakeholders accountable.  

Understanding of how inventory levels impact the balance sheet and the cost of “carrying” raw materials.  

Ability to build and track KPIs such as schedule adherence, inventory turns, and stock-out rates.  

Ability to communicate effectively both written and orally, conveying complex issues.   

Detail obsession: Having a high level of precision and holding the team to the same standard. 

Brothers International is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, pregnancy, disability, age, veteran status, or other characteristics.