Inventory Planning Executive
Resume:
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linkedin.com/in/jim--curtis Jim Curtis Corte Madera, CA
INVENTORY PLANNING EXECUTIVE BUSINESS TRANSFORMATION Experienced planning executive who leads the development, provides the vision for improvements, and directs the execution of an organization’s structure and systems, fostering continued growth, profitability, and future expansion. Uses proven techniques to implement strategies that maximize inventory performance while taking performance risks into account.
A trusted advisor who leads in highly collaborative environments and forms crucial cross-functional partnerships with internal and external stakeholders.
Financial Forecasting Cross-Functional Team Leadership Change Management Inventory & Merchandise Planning Assortment Development Relationship Development Demand Strategy Process Development Business Intelligence Trend Analysis Data Visualization Coaching & Mentoring CAREER HIGHLIGHTS/CORE STRENGTHS
● Buildout of the inventory planning function for Grocery Outlet, which supported rapid store growth of ~90% over 6+ years and a boost in total annual company sales from $1.4B to $2.4B.
● Conceptualized and established an in-house distribution system for Grocery Outlet.
● 10+ years of leading management teams to optimize inventory for driving sales growth, delivering margin expansion and executing targeted inventory levels. EXPERIENCE
Restoration Hardware Senior Director, Inventory Planning 2019 - Apr, 2020 Corte Madera, CA
Responsible for meeting demand, margin, sales, and inventory targets. Led weekly meetings to discuss current business trends and recommend necessary action points to further drive the business.
● Trained and led planning team on processes to analyze demand, margin, and resulting inventory levels related to prior forecasts and plan. Led to significant improvements in inventory levels, reduced backorders, and higher demand conversion.
● Reviewed projections/analysis with the planning team for consistency, strategic alignment, and thought process.
● Partnered with SVP, Merchant and Product Development teams to develop a clear understanding of future assortments and resulting growth, accounting for expected impact to existing assortment. This led to increased accuracy for initial orders of new product, re-orders of existing product and improved OTB position
● Partnered with cross-functional partners and key suppliers to prioritize production in order to reduce current and future backorders balances and drive increased delivered revenues. Grocery Outlet Director, Inventory Planning & Allocation 2014 - 2019 Berkeley, CA
Interviewed, hired, developed, and led the inventory planning team spanning six departments. Developed tools and processes, and partnered closely with cross-functional teams in an effort to support the company’s rapid growth strategy, generating +$2.4B in sales and reaching 322 stores, an increase +$1B in annual revenue. Developed and conveyed department level inventory plans (turns, cases, and cost) across all departments and warehouses.
● Partnered closely with supply chain and purchasing partners to successfully manage inventory below capacity levels across all 9 US Grocery Outlet warehouses.
● Collaborate with IT to design, develop, and roll out an in-house warehouse-to-store distribution system entailing days of supply replenishment logic, coefficient distributions and Gross Margin $ supply calculations. Allowed Grocery Outlet to be significantly more targeted with distribution, leading to higher in-stocks, increased turns, increased sales and increased profits. James Curtis 510-***-**** **********@**.***
Grocery Outlet, continued ...
● Drove process improvement and cost efficiency by designing and employing OTB tools.
● Supported purchasing and supply chain teams in the transition of fresh meat distribution from third-party to an in-house distribution center. The move reduced assortment costs, provided better service to store owners/operators, and increased profitability within the department/company.
● Worked in tandem with cross-functional partners in converting the second-largest grocery store warehouse facility to a fulfillment center to serve the northwest region. Inventory Planning Manager
2013 - 2014
Hired as the first member of the Inventory Planning and Allocation team. Oversaw proof of concept and buildout of the Inventory Planning Department at Grocery Outlet, which was a $1.3B business at the time. Developed and implemented OTB tools for inventory planning and financial forecast/OTB processes. Recruited and onboarded qualified inventory planners.
● Partnered with the IT team to develop new replenishment logic and roll out to purchasing and planning organizations. Days of supply methodology introduced resulting in reduction in shrink, increased turns, and increase in GM$.
● Closely aligned with independent contractors to develop and launch a replenishment tool to utilize for supply purchasing for warehouse replenishment. Efforts resulted in a more targeted and most efficient forecasting and led to a 25%+ in-stock increase in top 75 everyday items.
● Built close relationships with buying teams to gain insight into existing tools, processes, and intricacies for each department.
Restoration Hardware Senior Business Analyst
2009 - 2013 Corte Madera, CA
Planned and managed training sessions for employees. Tracked cost of goods to find areas of cost reduction and assess internal processes for product quality improvement. Analyzed financial profit gain and internal project opportunities.
● Led strategic analysis for new Just Enough Demand Planning System, which was successful in identifying business requirements, developing design specifics, and crafting user acceptance testing materials.
● Created, designed, and produced a detailed and comprehensive user guide for all 50+ merchandise and planning employees.
● Created and facilitated classroom training sessions tailored to address intricacies specific to each division, including Furniture, Lighting, Textiles, and Decor.
● Coached best practices and demonstrated tips and tricks through periodic forums created from scratch.
● Designed an internal inventory planning and allocation resource website, placing information in an easily accessible spot for employees.
Senior Planning Manager, Bedding and Bath Textiles 2008 - 2009
Managed inventory for retail, web, and catalog channels. Oversaw a 4-employee team in charge of $90M+ business and more than 2K SKUs.
● Built new inventory warehouse replenishment tool to more accurately forecast warehouse demand. Effectively decreased back-orders from $3.5M to less than 400K (as Merchandise Planner, Furniture), and
$600K to less than $80K (as Senior Planning Manager, Bedding and Bath Textiles).
● Rolled out an MS Excel Demand Planning Tool suite to the entire planning organization, allowing employees to access the same platform and forecast with the same logic. Other roles with Restoration Hardware include Planning Manager, Bath, and Hardware Division (2006-2008); Merchandise Planner, Furniture (2006), Associate Buyer, Holiday (2005-2006); Merchandise Planner, Holiday Items (2002-2004); and Inventory Analyst, Holiday (2001-2002) TECHNICAL SKILLS
MicroStrategy, Advanced Excel, MS Office Suite, Google Suite, Hyperion Analyzer
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