Website The Coca-Cola Company
Welcome to Coca-Cola South Africa, the company that does the most for community upliftment and is the home of South Africa’s favourite brand. It is the mission of TheCoca-Cola Company to refresh the world, inspire moments of optimism and happiness, create value and make a difference. Here y… read moreou’ll find everything you want to know about the Coca-Cola business in our country, from our bottling partners and brands, to our leadership and sustainability programmes. South Africa is the largest Coca-Cola market in Africa and consistently ranks among the best performing countries in the world of Coca-Cola. This impressive position is made possible by the hard work and commitment of our four bottlers, our canning operation as well as our employees, whose main vision is to benefit and refresh the people of South Africa. We’re proud to be a business unit of the Coca-Cola Eurasia and Africa Group, which is headquartered in Istanbul, Turkey. TheCoca-Cola Company has operations in more than 200 countries around the world and serves its beverages at a rate of 1.8 billion every day. Working together with our bottling partners, we work to consistently deliver value to our customers—the grocers, retailers, vendors, spazas and tuck shop owners—across South Africa. TheCoca-Cola Company owns the brands, and our bottling partners produce, package, distribute and merchandise our products worldwide. In South Africa, The Coca-Cola System (our Company and bottling partners) employs approximately 9,000 employees and has 15 facilities. Learn more about our bottling system.
Key Purpose
The Demand Planning Manager leads the national demand forecasting process, ensuring an accurate, aligned forecast that supports commercial, financial, and supply chain planning. The role improves forecast accuracy, manages demand risks and scenarios, enables effective IBP cycles, and develops a high-performing Demand Planning team.
Key Duties & Responsibilities
Key Outcome
Demand Forecasting and Consensus Building
Own the national volume forecast across all categories, channels, and time horizons.
Lead monthly demand review cycles in alignment with the IBP process.
Work cross-functionally to build consensus between Commercial, Finance, and Supply Chain
Forecast Accuracy and Continuous Improvement
Analyse forecast performance, identify root causes of inaccuracies, and lead corrective action initiatives.
Drive continuous improvement in forecast accuracy through analytics, collaboration, and enhanced process discipline.
Implement forecast segmentation, lifecycle planning, and event-based adjustment best practices.
Process and System Enablement
Ensure adherence to a structured demand planning calendar and governance framework.
Leverage statistical models, system-generated forecasts, and market intelligence to produce robust projections.
Champion the use of demand planning system across all users.
Leadership and People Development
Lead, coach, and mentor Demand Planners, ensuring role clarity, capability development, and performance excellence.
Set clear objectives, provide regular feedback, and support career development for team members.
Foster a high-performance, collaborative culture within the demand planning function.
Scenario and Risk Management
Lead the modeling of demand scenarios in response to promotional activity, pricing shifts, customer initiatives, or market disruption.
Provide early warnings on risks and opportunities, with actionable mitigation plans.
Accountable for volume alignment across financial, commercial, and operational functions.
Stakeholder Engagement and Communication
Partner with Commercial and Finance teams to align forecast with revenue targets and market dynamics.
Represent the demand function in Integrated Business Planning (IBP) forums and executive reviews.
Present forecast insights, key drivers, and forecast accuracy metrics clearly to senior leadership.
Skills, Experience & Education
Education
Minimum: Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain, Business, Statistics, Economics, related field
Preferred: Honours or postgraduate qualification in Demand Planning, Operations Research, or Commercial Strategy
Experience
6–8 years’ experience in demand planning or forecasting within FMCG or manufacturing
Proven success in cross-functional planning environments (Commercial, Finance, Manufacturing)
Demonstrated impact on forecast improvement and planning process enhancement
Experience in integrated IBP cycles
Demonstrated experience leading and developing demand planning teams, including setting objectives, coaching performance, and building capability.
Skills
Strong statistical forecasting and analytical capabilities
Expertise in SAP, Blue Yonder or similar demand planning platforms
Advanced proficiency in Excel; Power BI or Tableau is a plus
Understanding of market dynamics, promotional planning, and product lifecycle management
Skilled in presenting data-driven insights and engaging cross-functional teams
Familiarity with commercial planning processes and their integration with supply chain
Strong influential, communication, facilitation, and coaching skills
Proven people leadership skills, with the ability to coach, develop, and performance-manage Demand Planners.
Deadline:1st March,2026
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Apply via company website ( http://www.coca-cola.co.za ) or