Group Inventory Manager

Drive smarter inventory decisions at the heart of our global supply chain.

Join us in strengthening how we manage inventory across BDR Thermea Group. In this role, you will shape global inventory optimisation – balancing service, cost and risk – while contributing to strong supply chain performance.

Your role

As our Group Inventory Manager, you will join the Group Supply Chain team and play a key role in improving how inventory is managed across our global organisation. This is a high-impact individual contributor position, reporting to the Group Supply Chain Director and working closely with colleagues and stakeholders across Planning, Logistics, Procurement and Commercial teams.

You will align and strengthen inventory management practices across multiple markets and sites. Your scope goes beyond monitoring and control: you will help steer inventory performance at group level by bringing structure, transparency, and clear governance. You will work with stakeholders to navigate trade-offs between product availability, working capital and risk, and help the organisation stay aligned on priorities.

You will also contribute to continuous improvement initiatives, partnering with internal teams and external experts to strengthen ways of working and enable more data-informed planning and reporting.

Your key tasks

• Define and implement the global inventory strategy, policies, and governance framework to optimise inventory levels while ensuring target service levels and business continuity.
• Take ownership of inventory performance at group level, including target setting, KPI definition (e.g. DIOH, inventory turns, service level and obsolescence) and performance tracking across regions and sites.
• Drive inventory optimisation initiatives across the network, including safety stock policies, segmentation strategies, multi-echelon inventory optimisation and parameter setting.
• Establish and standardise inventory management processes, tools and best practices across sites and business units.
• Drive data accuracy and inventory visibility across systems (e.g. ERP – we use SAP S/4HANA), ensuring reliable inputs for planning and decision-making.
• Lead cross-functional initiatives to improve inventory efficiency, collaborating closely with planning, procurement, manufacturing and logistics teams.
• Provide governance and constructive challenge to regional and site supply chain teams on inventory targets, assumptions and recovery plans.
• Contribute inventory projections and targets into the Sales & Operations Planning process, ensuring alignment with demand, supply and financial plans.
• Partner with Finance to align inventory targets with working capital objectives and support accurate financial reporting and forecasting.
• Support network design, industrial transfers, and new product introductions from an inventory perspective, ensuring appropriate strategies during transitions and product lifecycle phases.

What you bring

• 10+ years of experience in supply chain, with a clear focus on inventory management and planning.
• Proven experience managing inventory in a multi-site or global environment.
• Deep understanding of end-to-end supply chain and key inventory drivers.
• Experience with inventory optimisation methodologies (e.g. safety stock, segmentation, multi-echelon, make-to-forecast / make-to-order).
• Effective stakeholder management and communication skills, with the ability to contribute ideas and support continuous improvement.
• Demonstrated experience working cross-functionally with Finance, Operations and Commercial teams.
• A structured, data-focused approach to analysis and problem-solving.
• Solid financial acumen, including working capital, cash flow and cost of inventory.
• Comfortable operating in a transitional environment, where processes and structures are evolving.
• Experience with digital supply chain tools and data visualisation (e.g. Power BI, AI tools), as well as ERP systems such as SAP S/4HANA.
• Project and change management experience, with the ability to support and drive organisational transformation initiatives.
• A Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Operations, Engineering, or Business Administration.

What we offer

• A permanent contract.
• In addition to solid monetary compensation, receive a strong pension package.
• Benefit from a healthy work-life balance with 36 holiday days per year, based on a full-time contract. 30 of these are for your own choosing, 6 are office closure days.
• Take advantage of flexible home-working policies and a home-office budget.
• Enjoy discounts on our products and insurances.
• The opportunity to make a real impact in a global organisation advancing the energy transition.

About the company

At BDR Thermea Group, we bring the energy transition closer every day. Serving customers in more than 100 countries with a diverse team of 7,000, we are united by a shared mission to create a sustainable future through smart indoor climate solutions. We champion innovation, customer focus, and a cohesive team culture.