Staff Technical Program Manager (Merch Planning, Forecasting & Allocation)

About the Role

We are looking for a highly experienced Staff Technical Program Manager (TPM) to lead strategic, cross-functional technology initiatives supporting Merch Planning, Forecasting, Sizing, Allocation, and Inventory Optimization capabilities.

This role sits at the critical intersection of business and technology, partnering closely with Merch Planning, Allocation, Product, Data, and Engineering teams to deliver scalable technology solutions that drive measurable business outcomes.

The ideal candidate brings strong expertise in retail planning processes, inventory management, forecasting systems, and enterprise-scale program delivery.

What You'll Do

Lead Portfolio-Level Programs

Own end-to-end delivery across multiple interconnected programs supporting:

• Merchandise Planning
• Demand Forecasting
• Sizing & Size Curve Optimization
• Allocation & Transfer Optimization
• Inventory Planning & Optimization
• Drive execution across complex cross-functional initiatives and ensure alignment with merchandising calendars, buy cycles, and Go-To-Market (GTM) milestones.
• Coordinate delivery across Product, Engineering, Data Science, Analytics, and Business stakeholders.

Drive Business & Technology Alignment

Partner directly with Merch Planning and Allocation leaders to translate business strategies into scalable technology solutions.

Support key planning processes including:

• Assortment Planning
• Buy Planning
• Size Curves
• Inventory Allocation
• In-Season Reforecasting
• Sell-Through Optimization
• Evaluate trade-offs between:
• Forecast accuracy vs. responsiveness
• Inventory productivity vs. service levels
• Automation vs. planner control

Technical Leadership & Strategic Decision Making

• Facilitate decision-making across planning platforms, forecasting engines, allocation systems, and enterprise data ecosystems.
• Develop executive-ready recommendations, architecture considerations, and roadmap sequencing plans.
• Ensure solutions optimize end-to-end merchandising workflows rather than isolated system capabilities.

Release Governance & Operational Excellence

• Own release readiness and governance processes across planning and allocation systems.
• Ensure releases align with critical retail calendars, peak selling seasons, and merchandising milestones.
• Mitigate business disruption through robust validation, testing, and dependency management.

Stakeholder & Executive Leadership

Present program status, risks, outcomes, and business impact to senior leadership.

Influence prioritization decisions using business value, customer impact, and operational efficiency metrics.

Partner with leaders across:

• Merch Planning
• Allocation
• Product Management
• Engineering
• Data & Analytics

Required Qualifications

8-12+ years of Technical Program Management, Program Management, or related experience.

Proven success delivering large-scale enterprise programs in Retail Technology, Planning, Supply Chain, or Inventory domains.

Deep understanding of:

• Merch Planning
• Allocation Planning
• Inventory Optimization
• Demand Forecasting
• Retail Planning Processes

Experience leading cross-functional programs involving Product, Engineering, Data, and Business teams.

Strong executive communication and stakeholder management skills.

Experience driving portfolio-level planning, dependency management, and release governance.

Preferred Qualifications

Experience with planning platforms such as:

• Anaplan
• Blue Yonder
• o9 Solutions
• JDA
• SAP IBP
• Oracle Retail Planning

Exposure to AI/ML-based forecasting and optimization solutions.

Experience with Snowflake, enterprise data platforms, and modern data ecosystems.

Background in:

• Retail
• Apparel
• Fashion
• Omnichannel Commerce
• Supply Chain Technology