Merchandise Financial Planner (MFP)

Role Overview

We are seeking an experienced MFP Practitioner with over 8-10 years of experience in Merchandise Financial Planning, preferably within the Retail/Apparel industry. The ideal candidate will possess deep functional expertise in MFP processes, strong analytical capabilities, and hands-on experience in aligning financial planning with merchandising strategies. Exposure to IT systems and planning tools will be a strong advantage.

Key Responsibilities

• Hands-on Delivery & Customer Engagement
• Act as a hands-on practitioner in MFP processes, actively contributing to solution design, configuration inputs, and business validation.
• Serve in a customer-facing role, partnering with business stakeholders to articulate the value of MFP transformation and automation.
• Lead conversations that demonstrate ROI, efficiency gains, and decision intelligence enabled through automation
• Lead MFP Transformation Programs
• Drive end-to-end Merchandise Financial Planning (MFP) implementation for clients, from discovery to post-go-live stabilization.
• Define target operating model for MFP aligned with client’s retail strategy.
• MFP Process Design & Solutioning
• Translate business requirements into scalable MFP processes including:
• Financial planning (sales, margin, inventory)
• OTB (Open-to-Buy) framework.
• Pre-season and in-season planning.
• Design planning hierarchies, KPIs, and planning calendars.
• Functional-to-Technical Translation
• Function as a bridge between business stakeholders and technology teams.
• Convert MFP processes into system design.
• Client Engagement & Stakeholder Management
• Collaborate closely with client merchandising, finance, and supply chain leadership.
• Facilitate workshops, requirement gathering sessions, and design signoffs.
• Provide thought leadership on MFP best practices in Retail/Apparel
• Implementation Oversight
• Review solution design to ensure alignment with business objectives.
• Change Management & Business Adoption
• Drive adoption of MFP processes and tools within client organization.
• Thought Leadership & Practice Development
• Contribute to building MFP capabilities, accelerators, and reusable assets.
• Stay updated with industry trends in Retail/Apparel planning and digital transformation.

Required Skills & Experience

• 8-10 years of experience in Merchandise Financial Planning, preferably in Retail/Apparel
• Strong understanding of:
• OTB planning
• Assortment planning linkage
• Demand forecasting concepts.
• Inventory and margin optimization.
• Proven experience in managing large datasets and deriving insights.
• Strong business acumen with the ability to translate financial metrics into business strategies.
• Advanced proficiency in Excel and data analysis tools

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in IT or techno-functional roles (system implementation, integration, or support)
• Exposure to digital transformation or planning system implementations
• Understanding of data models, integrations, and planning architecture
• Experience working in cross-functional and global teams.

Key Competencies

• Strategic thinking with strong analytical mindset
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills
• Problem-solving and decision-making ability
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
• Leadership experience or mentoring junior team members.

Education

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, Business, Finance, Supply Chain, or related field
• MBA or equivalent degree is preferred.