Senior Consultant - Sales & Production Operations Planning - Consulting

Senior Consultant - Sales & Operations Planning - 5 - 7 years We are looking for a Senior Consultant - Sales & Operations Planning with 5 - 7 years of experience to work closely with manufacturing clients on production planning, S&OP, capacity planning, inventory optimisation and operational transformation. The role involves a strong mix of consulting, analytics and hands-on plant engagement, with a focus on improving Plan vs. Actual adherence, OTIF performance, working capital and overall planning effectiveness. Location - Odisha Your Future Employer: A leading consulting organisation working with manufacturing clients on business transformation, operational excellence and supply chain improvement initiatives. Responsibilities: - Diagnose production, demand-supply planning and shop-floor processes through data analysis, stakeholder interactions and plant observations. - Design and implement S&OP / IBP processes, governance mechanisms, KPIs and demand-supply balancing routines. - Drive capacity and production planning, including line loading, sequencing, production allocation and constraint management. - Optimise raw material, WIP and finished-goods inventory while balancing customer service and working capital requirements. - Establish Plan vs. Actual, Schedule Adherence, Production Attainment and OTIF review mechanisms and conduct root-cause analysis. - Develop client-ready presentations, diagnostic reports, implementation roadmaps and facilitate workshops with plant and functional leadership. - Coach client planning teams and develop SOPs, planning playbooks, templates and governance routines. Requirements: - 5 - 7 years of experience in manufacturing operations, production planning, supply chain planning or operations consulting. - B.E. / B.Tech in Industrial, Mechanical, Production, Manufacturing or a related engineering discipline; MBA / PGDM in Operations or Supply Chain is preferred. - Strong exposure to steel, metals, automotive, heavy engineering, building materials or other process-intensive manufacturing. - Strong expertise in production planning, scheduling, capacity planning, S&OP / IBP and inventory optimisation. - Hands-on experience with Plan Adherence, OTIF analysis, operational analytics and manufacturing performance improvement. - Prior management consulting or transformation experience is strongly preferred. - Strong Excel and PowerPoint skills; Power BI / Tableau and SAP / Oracle exposure would be an advantage. - Excellent stakeholder management, facilitation, problem-solving and executive presentation skills. - APICS CPIM / CSCP certification would be preferred. What is in it for you: - Work on high-impact manufacturing transformation and supply chain projects. - Gain extensive exposure to plant operations, senior stakeholders and cross-functional teams. - Drive measurable improvements in OTIF, planning adherence, inventory and working capital. - Build strong expertise across S&OP, production planning and operational excellence. - Opportunity to work in a highly execution-focused consulting environment.