Data & Analytics Leader – Fulfilment Planning & Forecasting

Who you are We are looking for a technical and people centric leader with focus on creating tangible value from data, analytics and data-driven decision making. You will lead a team that is responsible for developing the next generation of IKEA planning tools, including demand forecasting and optimisation capabilities, to support operational planners. As a person, you are passionate about building, coaching, and developing a team of skilled technical practitioners, as well as influencing stakeholders and driving change in the business. It is likely that you are currently working as a technical lead or having people responsibility in the Data Science or Analytics space. You are motivated to stay up to date on the latest developments, tools and technologies of the rapidly changing data and analytics landscape. The IKEA culture and values are very much a part of our business and day-to-day work life. For you to thrive and grow with IKEA it’s important for us that you share our values! You can read more regarding our values and life at IKEA on our website: www.ikea.com You have good knowledge in the following areas:

• Application of advanced analytics and data analytics in addressing and solving business problems
• Machine learning and forecasting
• A broad understanding of insights generation, analytical reporting, data engineering, and the developments in the fast-moving data technology landscape
• Programming languages, modern platforms, and systems for handling small and large datasets
• Data-driven digital product development, including data processing, analysis, and knowledge extraction, with agile processes, continuous improvement, and deployment at scale
• Stakeholder management, in relation to development of data-driven digital products

Your qualifications and past experiences are:

• A master’s degree or PhD in a quantitative field
• Progressive and diverse experience in professional data and analytics work (incl. personal hands-on experience)
• Demonstrable experience in working in an Agile or DevOps working set-up
• Confident in digging into code and understanding how things are working
• Experience in leading and developing a team
• Preferred: Experience with data or analytics within retail and/or logistics/inventory/supply chain processes.

This is our wish list! If you don’t see yourself in all the points above, you might still be a very good candidate for this role! Your responsibilities You will be the line manager for a team of Data & Analytics professionals with responsibility for driving value creation from data and analytics, as well as for people processes such as recruitment, performance, competence, career development and health/welfare of co-workers. Your team will consist of data scientists, data analysts and data engineers. Specifically, you and your team will be embedded in our Inventory & Logistics Operations domain, a unit in our global Digital organization that creates the systems and data flows that enable and optimize all the movement of goods in our stores and warehouses and keeps track of our massive inventory. In our journey towards an omnichannel retailer, these capabilities are critical for our business. As part of a cross-functional leadership team, you will work collaboratively with functions like product management, software engineering and UX to inspire and empower teams, shape product roadmaps, and enable achievement of desired business outcomes. Within the Data & Analytics community you will support management with strategic, tactical, and technical input. You will also work closely with key data enablement units like Data Management and Data Architecture to secure successful data-driven product development. Within the area of Fulfilment Planning & Forecasting, you are responsible for:

• the implementation and delivery of Data & Analytics solutions that enable and improve the way we operate our business, from establishing foundational data assets to developing reports and dashboards
• proactively contributing functional expertise and guidance to teams to ensure the right Data & Analytics solutions are implemented to meet requirements, contributing hands-on if needed
• actively pushing to improve data-driven insights and decision-making solutions, driving effectiveness and efficiency in Data & Analytics
• engaging with Product, Engineering, and Design leads regarding resources and functional expertise required in product development to ensure a most competent and suitable team
• ensuring that the right Data & Analytics resources, people, and expertise are available for committed product development through hiring the right talent or bringing in and managing vendors/contractors if needed
• providing leadership that promotes best practices in Data & Analytics – continually benchmarking against industry standards and trends
• leading, coaching, and developing team members to secure people development, leadership and succession and a high performing team

Our team within Ikea At Group Digital, we set the digital agenda to keep IKEA leading in an uncertain and fast-moving environment. We drive the development, provision and operation of our digital products and services using existing and emerging modern technologies and agile delivery methods to deliver at pace. At the same time, we provide a home to develop and extend the business, people, and technical skills needed to ensure continuous improvement and growth of our digital capability. We are a global team and work together on global solutions. The Data & Analytics function is a core pillar of Group Digital, with responsibility to shape and drive digital objectives with deep internal competence along the data value chain, ranging from key enablers such as Data Management and Data Architecture to product success drivers like Data Engineering and Advanced Analytics. We can offer you:

• An exciting and empowering work environment with exceptional opportunities to grow and develop together with us
• Opportunities to have global impact with your work
• Flexible and modern tools: we deploy on Google Cloud Platform, and we use a lot of open-source solutions across the board
• Hardware and OS of your choice
• A team of great colleagues to learn with and from (with world-class experience across all aspects of Data & Analytics)
• Continuous learning (we aim to spend 20% of our working time on learning)
• Flexible and friendly working environment in a truly value-based company

This role is based in Amsterdam, in our new Digital Hub located in the harbor area north-west of the city center. Questions and support? Let's connect! If you have questions regarding the recruitment process, please reach out to Carl-Johan Andersson at carl-johan.andersson@ingka.ikea.com . Please apply with your application in English. Note that we cannot process any applications through e-mail. A background check will be part of the recruitment process for the final candidate.