Inventory Planning Manager

• , United Kingdom
• Job Family Group:

• Sales & Marketing
• Worker Type:

• Regular
• Posting Start Date:

• October 9, 2026
• Business Unit:

• Downstream and Renewables
• Experience Level:

• Experienced Professionals
• Job Description:

Join one of the UK’s most diverse and ambitious retail businesses. This role is particularly well suited to FMCG professionals who excel in using data and planning insights to optimise forecasting, replenishment, and business performance.

What’s the role

Shell UK Mobility & Convenience operates one of the UK's largest company-owned retail networks, with the convenience shop proposition playing a critical role in customer experience, non-fuel sales, margin delivery, waste control and network profitability.

As the Inventory Planning Manager, you will be accountable for managing product forecast exceptions to improve convenience retail product availability, inventory health and order proposal replenishment performance across the Shell UK convenience retail network. You will lead the optimisation of forecasting and replenishment capability through the RELEX platform, ensuring the right products are available at the right time while balancing sales growth, waste, working capital and operational efficiency.

This is a business-outcome focused role, expected to own performance, shape planning governance, influence cross-functional priorities and translate data, system recommendations and operational insight into practical action that improves customer experience and strengthens profitability.

Success in this role will be measured through the following business outcomes:

Improved on-shelf availability and reduced lost sales across priority customer missions and categories.

Improved inventory productivity through stronger stock cover, replenishment parameters and working capital discipline.

Reduced waste, markdown exposure and stock obsolescence, particularly in fresh, chilled, frozen, food-to-go and other high-volatility categories.

Improved forecast accuracy and replenishment effectiveness through high-quality data, clear governance and robust planning routines.

Stronger delivery of commercial plans, including promotions, seasonal events, range changes, new product launches and delists.

Increased adoption and maturity of Relex as a core business planning capability across Convenience Retail & Services.

Reduced manual intervention over time by resolving recurring exceptions at source and simplifying planning processes.

Improved supplier, wholesaler and distribution performance through clear issue resolution, escalation and service improvement routines.

What you’ll be doing

Principal Accountabilities

Availability and sales protection: Own availability and replenishment performance across the network, identifying risks to customer availability, lost sales and commercial delivery and prioritising action where intervention creates the greatest business value.

Inventory optimisation: Balance availability with stock cover, waste and working capital by maintaining effective replenishment parameters, reviewing inventory productivity and challenging overstock or understock positions.

Relex capability ownership: Lead the business use, governance and continuous improvement of Relex forecasting and replenishment processes, ensuring system recommendations are reviewed, challenged and translated into effective business action.

Exception-based planning: Establish and lead daily and weekly exception-management routines that focus attention on the highest-value issues across demand, supply, stock, data, supplier service and site execution.

Commercial plan execution: Partner with Category Management, Supply Chain and Operations to ensure range changes, promotions, seasonal events, new product launches and delists are supported by robust planning assumptions and stock execution routines.

Planning governance and standards: Shape and embed the planning operating model, including parameter governance, escalation routes, standard routines, playbooks and performance reviews.

Continuous improvement: Identify recurring root causes and drive sustainable fixes that reduce manual workarounds, improve forecast quality and increase confidence in automated replenishment.

Cross-functional leadership: Influence internal teams, suppliers, wholesalers and distribution partners to resolve service issues, improve supply reliability and align replenishment activity with business priorities.

Key Dimensions

Planning scope across the Shell UK company-owned convenience retail network.

Coverage of multiple retail categories, including ambient grocery, impulse, foodservice, fresh, chilled, frozen and seasonal trading areas.

Performance focus across availability, forecast accuracy, supplier service, waste, stock cover, working capital, exception volumes and commercial execution.

Close working relationships with Category Management, Supply Chain, Operations, IT, Relex super users, suppliers, wholesalers and distribution partners.

Active involvement in RELEX implementation, pilot activity, go-live readiness, hypercare, issue triage and post-implementation improvement.

Acts as the business lead for inventory and replenishment planning capability, influencing priorities across multiple functions and shaping future planning processes, governance and ways of working.

Key Responsibilities

Monitor Relex forecasts, replenishment recommendations and exception alerts to identify risks and opportunities across the retail network.

Take timely action on demand, supply and inventory exceptions, ensuring effort is focused on the issues with the greatest business value.

Review and optimise replenishment parameters, including lead times, minimum order quantities, order frequency, safety stock, case sizes, seasonal profiles and promotional uplift assumptions.

Analyse demand patterns, seasonality, promotions, range changes, local events and site-level trading behaviour to improve forecast quality and replenishment outcomes.

Partner with Category Management to ensure launches, delists, range reviews and promotional events are supported by robust stock planning and clear execution routines.

Work with suppliers, wholesalers and distribution partners to resolve service issues, improve order fulfilment and mitigate product availability risks.

Identify the root causes of recurring exceptions and recommend process, system or data improvements that reduce manual intervention over time.

Develop and maintain standard operating procedures, planning playbooks and governance routines for Relex-enabled forecasting and replenishment.

Provide clear performance insight on availability, forecast accuracy, service level, stock cover, waste and exception volumes to support business decision making.

Champion a data-led, exception-based planning approach, helping teams move from legacy and manual ways of working to a more scalable planning model.

What you bring

Experience in supply planning, demand forecasting, replenishment, inventory management or supply chain operations, ideally within food retail, FMCG, convenience or multi-site environments.

Strong analytical capability, with the ability to interpret data, identify trends, diagnose issues and translate insight into clear business action.

Experience working with forecasting, replenishment or supply chain planning systems. Relex experience is advantageous, but experience with similar planning solutions will also be valuable.

Good understanding of availability, forecast accuracy, stock cover, waste, supplier service and inventory optimisation measures.

Ability to work cross-functionally with commercial, category, operations, supply chain, IT and external partner teams.

Confidence to shape new processes, challenge existing ways of working and lead through ambiguity during the implementation of a new planning capability.

Strong communication skills, with