Senior Director, Merchandise Planning and Inventory Management (East-Asia Pacific)

About the role

Levi Strauss & Co. is looking for a senior leader to guide merchandise planning and inventory management across the East Asia Pacific region. This position sits under the VP of Asia Merchandise Planning & Inventory Management and acts as the main MPIM partner for the cluster. The role covers key markets including Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines, with a focus on aligning local market needs to regional and global business priorities.

The right person will help shape inventory strategy, improve merchandise planning discipline, and strengthen cross-market execution across channels. A major part of the job is to turn business needs into practical planning actions that support sales, margin, and inventory goals.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a regional team of merchandise planning and inventory management professionals across East Asia Pacific.
• Set and execute a coordinated merchandise management strategy across channels in the region.
• Improve inventory productivity by managing turns and excess/obsolete stock.
• Review investment plans with senior leadership to help ensure budgets and targets stay on track.
• Promote consistency across markets and channels wherever it makes commercial sense.
• Use past seasonal results to guide merchants toward stronger assortment decisions.
• Oversee in-season sales reviews, demand management, and open-to-buy planning.
• Prepare OTB forecasts and provide strategic input to support financial objectives.
• Establish and maintain standard business processes and operating rhythms such as investment reviews, hindsight reviews, S&OP, and WOR meetings.
• Raise market-specific issues early and help drive timely resolution.
• Manage buying, merchandise planning, allocation, and inventory teams to ensure strong execution.
• Work with merchandising teams to define segment and store productivity targets based on performance history and brand direction.
• Build bottoms-up sales and inventory buy plans, including monthly product flow, to support productivity and financial decisions.
• Track monthly demand forecasts, especially for core and replenishment items.
• Lead cluster-level S&OP planning to align demand and sales while reducing business risk and excess inventory.
• Ensure in-season allocation and replenishment are consistent and support proper stock coverage in stores and distribution centers.
• Provide commercial insight to support in-season decisions that improve inventory use, sales, and margin.
• Create inventory strategies that support company financial goals while staying within budget.
• Maintain forecast accuracy so the business can balance financial performance with inventory targets.
• Build new processes and reports, and manage existing communication streams effectively.
• Support rollout of new planning tools, process improvements, and working methods across business teams.
• Analyze inventory planning in depth and clearly communicate actions that improve inventory turns.
• Act as a bridge between global and local teams so brand strategy and ways of working are applied consistently in each market.

Requirements

• At least 10 years of experience in areas such as merchandise financial planning, buying, demand forecasting, inventory management, store allocation, production planning, sales and operations planning, or planning systems and tools.
• At least 8 years of leadership experience managing multiple teams or functions within merchandise planning, inventory management, allocation, and order management.
• Proven experience in an omnichannel retail environment across own stores, wholesale, outlet, franchise, and ecommerce.
• Comfort working with senior executives and aligning recommendations with leadership stakeholders.
• Strong command of retail financial metrics such as sales, margin, inventory, GMROI, inventory turn, fill rate, OTFR, and OTIF.
• Ability to analyze quantitative data and extract clear business insights.
• Ability to build productive relationships with a wide range of internal partners, especially cross-functional teams.
• Capability to influence stakeholders and manage team priorities effectively.
• Strong communication and storytelling skills, with the ability to present insights and action plans clearly.
• Ability to work quickly while balancing process requirements and deadlines.
• Track record of building inclusive, influential teams.

Additional information

This is a full-time, onsite role based in Singapore, 138589. Current Levi Strauss & Co. employees are expected to apply through their Workday account.

About Levi Strauss & Co.

Levi Strauss & Co. describes itself as a place for people who want to bring their own perspective and be part of a larger mission. The company values individuality, impact, and the idea that differences make teams stronger.