Demand Lead - Deco EMEA

About the role

As Demand Lead – Deco EMEA, you are accountable for shaping and continuously improving the demand planning function across the Decorative Paints business in the EMEA region. You will lead the transformation of demand teams into an empowered, insight-driven function that goes beyond statistical forecasting to deliver real business value.

This role sits at the heart of the Integrated Business Planning (IBP) process, acting as the key link between regional teams and the central IBP cycle. You will ensure that demand plans are accurate, aligned, and decision-ready, enabling better business outcomes across service, cost, and inventory.

Success in this role requires a strong understanding of the business strategy, the ability to challenge the status quo, and excellent stakeholder management across a highly matrixed and diverse environment. You will work closely with commercial, supply chain, and finance leaders, building trust and driving alignment across countries and functions.

Key skills will be an in depth knowledge and experience of demand management, alongside confidence and experience in managing senior stakeholders from different countries and markets, and at the same time being an inspiring, empathetic, & ambitious leader of the demand channel for Deco EMEA.

Your responsibilities

• Lead and develop the demand planning team across the EMEA region, ensuring high-quality monthly forecasting and strong collaboration with commercial teams
• Translate market trends, sales signals, and other forward-looking indicators into meaningful demand plans that support business decisions
• Ensure all assumptions, risks, and constraints are clearly defined and understood, enabling transparent and well-informed planning
• Strengthen collaboration with Sales and Marketing to improve forecast quality, combining data-driven forecasting with market insights
• Use planning systems (such as OMP) to standardize ways of working, improve data quality, and enable effective collaboration across functions
• Work closely with supply chain teams to align demand with production and supply capabilities, improving product availability while controlling inventory levels
• Lead prioritization decisions across countries when supply is limited, ensuring the best overall business outcome
• Drive continuous improvements in planning tools and processes, reducing manual work and increasing efficiency and accuracy
• Oversee short-term execution of the plan while also building longer-term capabilities and improvements within the demand planning function
• Design and improve team structures and ways of working to support end-to-end planning across markets and functions
• Collaborate with central and regional teams to continuously improve forecasting models and strengthen overall planning performance

Job Purpose

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Economics, or a technical discipline; an MBA is strongly preferred
• 7–10+years of broad business and operational experience with strong commercial acumen
• Proven experience in demand planning across multiple countries
• Experience in sales, customer management, and strategy is desirable
• Broad understanding of business practices with the ability to work effectively across cross-functional teams
• Strong influencing and change management skills, with the ability to engage stakeholders at all organizational levels
• Well-developed skills in problem solving, communication, negotiation, planning, and leadership
• Solid understanding of core business functions, including finance, sales, marketing, and supply chain management, combined with a clear understanding of business strategy and operations

Our offer and compensation package depends on the location of hiring. Further information will be discussed during the interview process.

How to apply

We welcome your online application via https://www.akzonobel.com/en/careers. Only online applications will be considered. If you have any questions, please contact Maria Botha, maria.botha@akzonobel.com

Agency or sales calls are not appreciated

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