10104 - Business Development Associate

The Business Development Associate plays a critical role in supporting the execution of the company's global business strategy by serving as the primary operational liaison between customers, internal supply chain teams, demand planning, production planning, and market leadership.

This position is responsible for managing customer orders, coordinating demand forecasts, identifying business risks, and ensuring proactive communication of supply constraints and operational challenges. The role requires strong analytical skills, customer relationship management capabilities, and the ability to influence customers by challenging forecast assumptions and aligning demand plans with market trends and business realities.

The ideal candidate is highly organized, proactive, bilingual in English and Spanish, and capable of working in a fast-paced international environment.

Key Responsibilities

Customer Order Management

• Process and monitor customer purchase orders from receipt through fulfillment.
• Ensure orders are accurately entered, validated, and aligned with company procedures and service commitments.
• Coordinate with Supply Chain, Production Planning, Logistics, and Customer Service teams to secure timely order fulfillment.
• Monitor open orders and communicate delivery updates to customers.
• Resolve order discrepancies, allocation issues, and delivery concerns promptly.

Forecasting and Demand Planning

• Collaborate with customers to collect, review, and maintain rolling sales forecasts.
• Work closely with Demand Planning and Supply Chain teams to align customer demand with production capabilities.
• Analyze historical sales trends, market performance, seasonality, and promotional activities to evaluate forecast accuracy.
• Challenge customer forecasts when inconsistencies, unusual spikes, or unrealistic demand assumptions are identified.
• Support forecast reviews and recommend adjustments to improve planning accuracy.

Customer Communication & Issue Resolution

• Serve as the primary operational point of contact for assigned customers.
• Communicate supply constraints, production limitations, raw material shortages, and capacity restrictions in a timely and professional manner.
• Coordinate mitigation plans with internal stakeholders to minimize customer impact.
• Provide regular updates regarding order status, inventory availability, and service performance.

Risk Management & Escalation

• Identify risks that could impact business performance, customer service levels, or forecast execution.
• Escalate critical issues and market risks to Market Leaders.
• Monitor key business indicators and proactively communicate red flags, including:
  • Material shortages
  • Production capacity constraints
  • Demand surges
  • Inventory risks
  • Service level concerns
  • Forecast deviations
  • Customer operational challenges
• Support action plan development to mitigate identified risks.

Business Analysis & Reporting

• Generate and maintain reports related to forecast accuracy, customer demand, inventory positions, and order performance.
• Track customer KPIs and support monthly business reviews.
• Provide insights and recommendations to management regarding demand planning and customer support strategies.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with:
  • Market Leaders
  • Demand Planning
  • Supply Chain
  • Production Planning
  • Logistics
• Participate in S&OP (Sales and Operations Planning) and forecast review meetings as required.
• Support new product launches, customer transitions, and strategic business initiatives.