Planning Analist

Job Description

At OVO, we are on a mission to solve one of humanity's biggest challenges, the climate crisis. And we know it takes all of us to change the world. That's why we need diverse people from all abilities, gender identities, ethnicities, ages, sexual orientations, life experiences and backgrounds to join us.

Teamworking for the planet

Everything we do here spins around Plan Zero. So, naturally, the team you'll be joining plays a gigantic role in making that happen. Here's how:

• Working as part of a team building out short, medium and long term forecasts to enable true understanding of resource requirements and costs.

This role in a nutshell

You'll be working as part of the Forecasting and Planning Team within OVO Retail and will be at the heart of enabling the planning for customers for the Ovo business. You'll champion customer excellence and be empowered to make a difference on a global scale through enabling our Plan Zero objectives.

As part of the Resource Planning Team reporting to the Planning Manager, you'll help to develop world-class plans that challenge the business to keep moving forward and work across our wider function and our Operational stakeholders to deliver our collective goals.

The Planning Analyst is an integral part of the Forecasting & Planning Team with ownership and accountability for the delivery of accurate robust long range to 15 minute planning forecasts and resource plans, supporting the Planning Manager and operations in ensuring resource requirements & staffing solutions are defined to ensure Ovo Energy delivers world class service to its customer base.

The Planning Analyst will collaborate to support change initiatives, producing detailed analysis, impact assessments, prognosis and scenario modelling for business transformation, identifying options that mitigating service impacting change.

Your key outcomes will be

• Accountability for the production of demand forecasts, for voice, email, digital & offline contact mediums along with resource plans to ensure the right level of resource is deployed to deliver service excellence to our customers.
• To work with operational colleagues and conduct detailed analysis to understand and be able to articulate variances to budgets and forecasts, presenting findings to key stakeholders.
• Responsibility for tactical intraday forecasts are aligned to the strategic forecasts and are prepared for use for internal resource deployment, and shared with OSP partners for scheduling and planning purposes as per planning cycle requirements.
• Engage & support business change, undertaking impacts assessments, scenario modelling & performance prognosis to assist with informed decision making
• To ensure all output is delivered on time aligning to the monthly planning cycle.
• Accountability for the day to day management and maintenance of operational supply & demand planning models that deliver targeted business outcomes, providing detailed analysis for variances to planned modelled KPI's and service level targets.
• To carefully assess Supply requirements building in house & OSP resourcing plans that support targeted outcomes and estate design principles.
• Produce attrition forecasts based on historical trends, building recruitment plans and outsourced hours required, along with driving delivery of the requirements.
• Working closely with our operations and suppliers to understand drivers being outcomes and how this impacts projections, along providing recommended mitigation plans.
• Build shrinkage plans based on business needs and targets, profiled across the year for each operational area. Produce detailed analysis for performance against the assumptions and influences on service level attainment.
• Responsible for the delivery of monthly, quarterly and budget planning processes, build, outlooks and content, providing insight and articulating drivers to any variances.
• Provide operational planning and performance insight, undertaking detailed analysis of operational performance, identifying core drivers to outcomes, and where necessary provide detailed recovery plans, telling consistent, clear and compelling stories, articulating complex data up to various levels of senior leadership.
• Manage On Salary and Osp's performance against interval hit rate.
• Responsibility for the weekly planning output, providing support to the DA community in construction of the outlook packs and content.
• Proactively investigating operational needs, resolving problems and contributing to a continual improvement culture.
• Working collaboratively across the Planning Analyst working group, sharing knowledge and skills to aid the wider peer development of report writing, presentation skills and overall ongoing development.
• Building relationships with stakeholders and challenge where appropriate.
• To utilise best in class methodology and statistical modelling to drive accuracy in forecasts to the agreed levels as defined.
• To ensure that planning projections have a tolerance that facilitate effective service delivery and optimise operating expense.
• To ensure that all supply & demand plans are constantly reviewed and monitored up to and including "on the day" to provide the most accurate information available to manage resources effectively, conducting deep dive analysis and sharing findings with key stakeholders.
• Responsible for Shift Fit profiles ensuring that staffing shifts meet required ToD demand arrival patterns, with robust shift alignment in place that secures delivery of of operational SLAs intraday.
• Analyse historical data to identify trends, seasonality to mature forecast projections.
• To use MI to assess Root Cause and formulate corrective plans and actions with key stakeholders with measures of success defined.
• Post Day review and analyst providing insight into variance to plan and performance drivers.
• Providing the business with timely status updates on projects and initiatives.
• Assisting in the development and continuous improvement of current and new MI requirements.
• Supporting standardisation across the F&P Team, for all systems, processes and procedures.
• Taking a proactive approach on all business tasks to support the Management Team.
• Supporting and guide the wider team to ensure core priorities are consistently delivered.
• Ensuring that all planning, forecasting and resourcing models are kept up to date to maintain rigour.
• Carry out any other tasks or duties as required by our senior management team

Within your first 3 months month you'll::

• Gain a great understanding of the end to end planning process.
• Provide great insight and analysis into your direct workstream.
• Build out long term planning models.
• Support you line manager with strategic decision making

Systems

Genesys WFM, Office Suite (Primarily Excel), Google Suite

You'll be a successful Role Title here at OVO if you...

• Have a proven track record of delivery and expertise in business, resource forecasting and planning, from long range outlooks through to intraday staffing.
• Possess experience working within a technology, business transformation or business analysis field.
• Have a structured and disciplined approach - able to build networks and foster collaborative ways of working and promote effective data driven decision making.
• Are confident working in fast paced, complex and innovative businesses that have seen rapid growth and expansion including through acquisitions.
• Have the ability to meaningfully and appropriately challenge, but commit wholly once a decision is made.
• Can effectively time-manage and prioritise workload.
• Have the tenacity to go that extra mile for your customer(s).
• Have a growth mindset with a passion for learning and continued development.
• Possess outstanding problem solving abilities - creating solutions that appropriately balance risk and reward, operating with curiosity.
• Have outstanding data analytical skills, able to see through the data and identify underlying trends or causes.
• Can demonstrate strong business acumen, understanding commercial strategy and financial performance.
• Have strong stakeholder management skills and the ability to influence through the use of data.
• Showcase strong communication skills, with the ability to produce transform complex data sets into clear and concise analysis outcomes and recommendations that enables informed data led decision making.
• Have energy sector knowledge (desirable).
• Hold formal training and certifications in business analysis, such as BCS or equivalent (desirable).
• Hold formal training in lean process design, such as lean six sigma (desirable).
• Hold formal training in agile delivery methodology such as certification as a scrum master or product owner (desirable).

You won't like this role if you...

• If you prefer a predictable, slow-moving workflow.
• If you find frequent pivots and shifting priorities frustrating.

Let's talk about what's in it for you

We'll pay you between £35,000 and £38,000, depending on your specific skills and experience.

We keep our pay ranges broad on purpose to give us, and you, flexibility to match your experience to our zero carbon mission.

You'll be eligible for an on-target bonus of 15%. We have one OVO bonus plan that focuses on the collective performance of our people to deliver our Plan Zero goal.

We also offer plenty of green benefits and progressive policies to help you feel like you belong at OVO...and there's flex pay. We'll give you 9% Flex Pay on top of your salary - 4% of this is auto enrolled into your pension, and the remaining 5% is yours to do what you like with. You can use this to buy from our extensive range of flexible benefits, including our green benefits which we've put at the heart of our offering, add to your pension or even take it as cash.

Here's a taster of what's on offer:

For starters, you'll get 34 days of holiday (including bank holidays).

For your health

With benefits like a healthcare cash plan or private medical insurance depending on your career level, critical illness cover, life assurance, health assessments, and more

For your wellbeing

With gym membership, travel insurance, workplace ISA, will writing services, dental insurance, and more

For your lifestyle

With extra holiday buying, discount dining, home & tech loans, and supporting your favourite charities with give-as-you-earn donations

For your home

Get up to £400 towards any OVO Energy plan, plus great discounts on solar, smart thermostats and EV chargers

For your commute

Nab a great deal on ultra-low emission car leasing, plus our cycle to work scheme and public transport season ticket loans

Want to hear about our full range of flexible benefits and progressive people policies? Our People Team can tell you everything you need to know.

For your Belonging

To find better ways to support our people, we need to listen to each other's experiences and find ways to build a truly inclusive and diverse workplace. As part of this, we have 8 Belonging Networks at OVO. Led by our people, for our people - so when you join OVO, you can play a part - big or small - with any of the Networks. It's up to you.

Oh, and one last thing...

We'd be thrilled if you tick off all our boxes, yet we also believe it's just as important we tick off all of yours. And if you think you have most of what we're looking for but not every single thing, go ahead and hit apply. We'd still love to hear from you!

If you have any additional requirements, there's a space to let us know on the application form; we want to make the process as easy and comfortable for you as possible.