Operations Planner Coordinator

Fruitways is a leading agri-business in South Africa. We specialise in the growing, packing and marketing of apples and pears to retailers, traders and wholesalers around the globe.
 

OPERATIONS PLANNER COORDINATOR

 
We have an exciting career opportunity for and individual supporting our Planning team based at our Somerset West office. We are looking for a self-motivated, deadline-driven, and detail-oriented individual with a willingness to learn. The main purpose of the role is to coordinate fruit handling operations, update and execute supply plans, and ensure seamless communication among stakeholders to meet the required demand.

Responsibilities:

• Coordinate and monitor harvest delivery schedules to support optimal fruit availability and ensure deliveries are aligned with technical and operational requirements.
• Create and coordinate weekly presort and production plans, considering RA/CA allocations, rebin requirements, fruit availability, and operational priorities across sites.
• Plan and monitor storage requirements and stock movements, including RA/CA loading, CA room utilisation, stock age and fruit availability, to support efficient capacity management and timely product flow, in line with the planning framework and guidance provided by the Operations Planner.
• Support the alignment of fruit supply, production, and operational capacity with demand by monitoring changes, identifying deviations, and communicating required adjustments.
• Coordinate internal fruit and bin movements between packhouses, including the loading and opening of CA rooms for presorting and packing.
• Plan and coordinate empty-bin movements between packhouses, growers and external parties to support harvest and operational requirements.
• Monitor actuals against the production and supply plans, investigate variances, and provide accurate feedback for follow-up and corrective action.
• Maintain accurate planning information, schedules and operational updates to support effective day-to-day decision-making and execution.
• Communicate planning priorities, changes and potential constraints to growers, packhouses, Commercial, Logistics and Operations teams.
• Follow up with relevant stakeholders to ensure agreed planning actions, movements and operational requirements are completed within the required timeframes.
• Support the Operations Planning function with reporting, coordination and continuous improvement of planning processes and operational flow.

Requirements:

• Tertiary qualification in Logistics, Industrial Engineering, Operations Management, or a related field.
• 2+ years of relevant experience, preferably within a fruit packaging environment.
• Strong analytical skills and the ability to handle data-driven decisions.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills for engaging with cross-functional teams.
• Proficiency in Excel and experience with operational planning tools.
• Willingness to work over weekends during peak season as needed.
• Own vehicle and a valid driver’s license are required due to travel requirements between operational units.