REPORTS TO: Manager, Consulting Resource Planning, Consulting Operations
LOCATION: TBD
SUMMARY:
Under the guidance of the Manager of Consulting Resource Planning, the Demand Planner (DP) is responsible for effectively keeping an overview of incoming demand for unsigned opportunities. The source of the opportunity demand comes from RFP information, Bid Pack (BP) documents and meetings with Sales and Business managers. The DP will ensure resource requests for unsigned opportunities are raised by Sales in a timely manner in the RMO planning system(Polaris) to match the staffing plan in the BP. The DP will work with the relevant Resource Planners (RPs) to ensure resource is soft allocated on-time and in alignment with the requirements in the resource request.
In addition, the DP is responsible for the daily management of Demand Planning processes. This includes maintaining the Planning process, conducting monthly Demand Planning meetings with the Business stakeholders, Single Point of Contact (SPOC) Resource Management coordinator for very large ongoing Projects and preparing Demand Planning reports.
This role provides support to the Managers and Directors of Consulting Resource Planning and will have no supervisory responsibilities.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
• Comply and Assist DPs, RPs and RM leadership team with Resource Management Processes
o Ensuring compliance with Rules of Engagement (ROE)/KPIs for Resource Management processes and the Resource Management staffing tool (Polaris)
o Assisting with process revisions/enhancements based on business changes, tool changes, team changes, etc.
o Assisting with documentation of RM processes and communications
o Ensuring RM processes are updated and stored on RM page on SharePoint
• Serve as SPOC for Staffing Plans and Staffing Issues on large/strategic projects within a region:
o Collect startup information about the project, so you are aware of the key data for the project
o Work with Project Manager and Project Director to identify staffing gaps and future staffing needs for the project
o Ensure that the Project Manager has requested extensions for consultants according to ROE, as well as understanding which consultants the Project Manager has agreed to roll off the Project.
o Responsible for updating the Resource Planning team about agreed resource changes to the Project.
o Assist Resource Planners to maximize utilization by promoting benched resource to the Project Manager.
o Drive escalation calls in case of sourcing conflicts
• Serve as Demand Planner, for the assigned Region, so that future demand becomes visible to the Business, Competence Center and RMO Management:
o Work with Sales via phone, mail, skype, so that Project opportunities become visible in the staffing tool (Polaris) no later than when the Opportunity becomes qualified to be included in Revenue forecast (Forecast Category Commit) or is considered a qualified opportunity (Forecast Category Upside)
o Participate in weekly/biweekly calls with Sales about status of opportunities
o Ensure, via searches in Infor CRM and communication with Client Partners, that new opportunities are added to the list of opportunities DP’s record in the Infor Global Resource Management Office Sharepoint
o Keep a detailed overview of demand for satellite products and special functional areas belonging to the ERP product and the capacity to deliver consultancy in these areas
o Keep a detailed overview of the staffing for project opportunities per Product in order to contribute to a detailed master demand plan for the Theatre
o Facilitate regular calls to ensure the Business, Competence Center, and Sales Managers have the same perception of opportunity demand and sourcing challenges
o Conduct regular calls with the Resource Planners in order to coordinate and secure resource for opportunities and SPOC Project requests
o Facilitate regular calls with Resource Planners to discuss Bid Pack approvals and to ensure the opportunity requests are actioned in a timely manner with the necessary information provided.
• Monitor Infor Services Demand via Opportunity Report / Tracking
o Perform validation of the actual vs scheduled report, and address any problems to the RP as well as the PM
• Review Bid Packs to ensure adequate Resource Planning is in place
o Review smaller and larger Bid Packs to ensure that sourcing can be done in an appropriate manner and according to approved ROE
• First level Approver for Bid Packs above a certain value.
o First Approver responsible for large Bid Packs over a value agreed by the Business
o Ensure that Bid Packs for large opportunities, at final stage, have a valid staffing plan and a sourced project team, which match the sold roles, hours, price and that the resource has been allocated in the staffing tool (Polaris)
o Responsible for documenting RMO concerns at the Bid approval stage so approvers upstream are aware of the concern
• Maintain the data accuracy and workflow in Resource Management System (Polaris)
o Ensure all Opportunity resource requests comply with process and system requirements
o In a timely manner move an Opportunity role request to appropriate RP for sourcing considerations
o When an Opportunity is WON ensure that sourcing is finalized, the opportunity request is moved to allocated Project Manager ensuring the project manager takes ownership of the resource request roles, update the Resource request with last key information
o When an Opportunity is lost, ensure the relevant RPs are informed, soft allocated consultants are released and the resource requests are cancelled
o When an Opportunity is pushed back, ensure begin and end dates are amended
QUALIFICATIONS:
• Bachelor’s degree in business-related field or equivalent discipline from an accredited college or university.
• Five to eight years work experience, preferably in a consulting or professional services firm with experience ideally in resource management and/or recruiting
• Proficient in using specialized scheduling tools and other Microsoft applications such as Excel, Access, and PowerPoint
• Strong understanding of the policies of a professional services firm
• Strong understanding of various industries needs to successfully assist in the assessment and preparation of resources for projects in those industries.
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to work as part of team and execute tasks across multiple assignments and liaise with people at all levels
• Strong writing, presentation, and communication skills.
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail. High initiative, flexibility, and adaptability are skills critical for the role
• Strong problem-solving skills
• The ability to juggle multiple tasks and to work in a fast-paced office changeable environment
• The ability to mentor Demand Planning and Resource Planning at all levels
• Critical thinking skills
