- How do you prioritize your work to ensure you meet important deadlines?
- Why do you want to become a demand planner?
- What are your career plans for the next five years?
- How did you hear about this position?
- Why are you interested in working for our company?
Top 20 Demand Planner Interview Questions and Answers for 2022
Describe a time when you had to meet a tight deadline.
Another behavioral interview question and another test of your attitude. Different people and departments in the company depend on the work of demand planners.
Actually when we talk about industries like automotive, plans are often made daily, and companies are interconnected heavily. In such a case whether you finish your analysis at 2pm or 3pm can make a huge difference for several people in the supply chain–and not only in one company.
Because someone cannot finish their work without receiving data from you, and someone else cannot move on without receiving email from that person, and so on, and so forth.
Any situation you talk about, you should ensure the interviewers that you understood the importance of meeting deadlines. You know that other people need your forecasts for their work, and therefor you always try your best to send them in time. You may fail sometimes, because at the end, you may also wait for data from someone else… But you at least try, and that’s the attitude interviewers expect from a good job candidate.
17. Have You Ever Used Logic to Solve a Problem?
The interviewer wants to assess whether you are able to make judgments based on new information available. How flexible are you when it comes to your work? Share what has worked for you before.
Sample Answer
“At the beginning of the Covid 19 Pandemic, our statistical tools could not forecast the effect that the pandemic could have on our operations. I used logic to request that we stock up more than usual to respond to any emergencies that may arise. I predicted that there could be delays in the supply chain and therefore it would be great to have buffer stock Justin case we experience challenges in sourcing for items from suppliers.”
4. What Major Challenges Did You Face During Your Last Role? How Did You manage Them?
This role may present a myriad of challenges. The interviewer is interested in knowing whether you can mitigate the challenges. Share a challenge you faced in a past role and how you went about it.
Sample Answer
“When I started this role in my former employer, there was a discord of communication between departments. Information flow was restricted too. Handing forecasts in such an environment was hard because departments would give either understated or overstated. This led to forecasts that were no way near the actual. As a result, I organized joint meetings with staff across all departments to discuss the importance of a Demand Planner. The meetings bore fruit therefore forecasts were near accurate as possible.”
Describe a time when you struggled to communicate something technical to someone (for example explaining your prediction to one of the managers). What did you do to eventually get your message over?
Managers have to understand your forecasts (and often also your methodology of work), in order to benefit from your work. You should talk about a situation from the past when you used pictures, demonstration, charts, or perhaps just explained your analysis or forecast in a language of common people.
Ensure the interviewers that you do not expect to sit at your desk all day, working with data, and just sending emails over to the managers. You expect to participate in the meetings, make presentations, and explain things to different people from the company, in a language they should understand. That’s the attitude they seek in the best applicant for this job.
Special Tip: Download all questions in a one-page long PDF, print it, and practice your interview answers anytime later:
