HIRE TALENT  /  PROJECT DELIVERY  /  PRODUCTION PLANNER
Production Planning & Scheduling Recruiting

Hire Production Planners

Hire Production Planners — sometimes titled Master Scheduler, Production Control Planner, or Material Planner — who own the build plan behind a defense-hardware, space, or gigafactory line: master production schedule and MRP parameters, capacity and material planning, build plans for rate ramps, shop-floor dispatch lists, and the demand and supply inputs to S&OP. Schedule attainment and inventory results reference-verified, not just ERP access.

Hire Production Planners →How it works
Production Planner - iRecruit.coExample profile
Priya K.
Vetted Specialists
Project Delivery
Production Planner
APICS CPIM · CSCP · SAP PP
Sectors
Defense, space and advanced manufacturing
Defense-tech and space hardware, gigafactory, semiconductor, robotics, launch and test sites
Role scope
Demand signal through dispatch list
MPS/MRP, capacity and material planning, rate-ramp build plans, shop-floor scheduling, S&OP inputs
Geography
US-wide
Industrial, defense and mission-critical network
Placement warranty
Replacement guarantee
Every model, every placement
How It Works

Hire Production Planners in 3 steps

A structured process for the hire that keeps the plan honest — where an MPS loaded past the autoclave’s real capacity, a rate ramp planned without the kitting lead time, or a dispatch list nobody re-sequenced after the test cell went down is how a program reports green on Monday and misses the ship date on Friday.

Step 01

Talk to our team

30-minute call. Align on the line the seat plans (build-to-order hardware, rate production, or both), ERP and MES stack (SAP PP, Oracle, NetSuite, Odoo, Plex, or similar), number of part numbers and work centers, planned rate ramps and their dates, whether the seat also buys, S&OP cadence, reporting line, and start date.

Step 02

Review hand-selected talent

Within 2 weeks we introduce 3–5 Production Planners with verified planning history on comparable programs — schedule attainment they moved, rate ramps they built the plan for, inventory targets they held, and MRP parameters they cleaned up. References from production managers and materials leaders included.

Step 03

Hire with confidence

Every placement carries a replacement guarantee. If the hire fails within the warranty window, we run a no-fee replacement search.

Why iRecruit.co for Production Planner Hires

What makes our Production Planner shortlist different

A Production Planner on a solid-rocket-motor line or a battery module plant is the person who knows the plan is 12% over capacity at the CNC cell before the production meeting does, builds the rate ramp from 4 to 20 units a month around real lead times and tooling, and re-sequences the dispatch list the same hour a test stand goes down. Generic recruiters screen for ERP keywords; we screen for schedule attainment and ramps delivered.

01

MPS and MRP ownership verified

Every candidate has documented ownership of a master production schedule and the MRP parameters beneath it — lead times, lot sizes, safety stock, planning time fences — with exception messages worked and planned orders released on a cadence the shop could execute. We confirm schedule attainment with the production manager, not just the resume.

02

Capacity and rate-ramp planning depth

Reference-verified rough-cut capacity planning by work center, constraint identification (autoclave, test cell, cleanroom, coating line), and build plans for rate ramps that account for tooling, kitting, and supplier lead time. We ask which ramp they planned, what the plan said, and what the line actually shipped.

03

Shop-floor scheduling and S&OP inputs

Verified daily dispatch-list ownership and re-sequencing in the MES or ERP when a machine, part, or operator drops, plus clean demand, supply, and inventory inputs to the monthly S&OP cycle. Planners who only run MRP and never walk the floor do not make our shortlist.

Meet Vetted Production Planners

The caliber of Production Planner you’ll interview

Every candidate is credential-verified, reference-checked, and matched to your production environment. Anonymized examples below reflect real placement profiles.

Vetted SpecialistsMale Production Planner - defense hardware plantExample profile

Trevor B.

Master Scheduler, Munitions Components
  • Owned the MPS for a 2,400-part-number munitions-component line in SAP PP, releasing planned orders weekly across 18 work centers with schedule attainment moved from 78% to 93% in a year
  • Built the rate-ramp plan from 300 to 1,100 units a month, sequencing tooling deliveries, second-shift start, and energetics-cell capacity so the ramp shipped on the contract date
  • Cleaned MRP parameters on 600 part numbers — lead times, lot sizes, safety stock — cutting reschedule-in messages 60% and past-due planned orders to near zero
SAP PPRate rampsCapacity planning
Vetted SpecialistsFemale Production Planner - space hardware factoryExample profile

Luca G.

Production Planner, Propulsion & Structures
  • Planned engine and tank structure builds in Oracle with a Plex MES layer — 900 active part numbers, 11 work centers including autoclave, X-ray, and cryo-proof test
  • Ran the daily dispatch list and re-sequenced around three test-stand outages in one quarter without missing an integration date
  • Delivered the material plan for a 5x vehicle ramp: kitting lead times, long-lead valves and forgings, and WIP held to a 40-day target
Oracle + Plex MESDispatch schedulingMaterial planning
Vetted SpecialistsMale Production Planner - gigafactoryExample profile

Nathan R.

Production Control Planner, Cell & Module
  • Scheduled cell formation and module assembly for a battery plant in NetSuite tied to an Ignition MES — 24/7 operation, 4 crews, weekly build plan issued every Thursday
  • Owned the demand, supply, and inventory inputs to monthly S&OP, reconciling the commercial forecast to formation capacity so the plan stopped loading past the constraint
  • Held finished-goods and WIP inventory to targets through commissioning by resetting safety stock as yields improved instead of carrying the launch buffer
NetSuite + IgnitionS&OP inputs24/7 scheduling
Production Planner Specializations

Match the Production Planner specialty to your line and rate

“Production Planner” covers several seats depending on whether the load is the master schedule, material planning, shop-floor dispatch, or all three. Below are the specializations we recruit for:

Production Planner
MPS/MRP, build plans, dispatch lists
Hire for this specialty
Material Planner
MRP parameters, safety stock, kitting readiness
Hire for this specialty
Production Control Planner
Shop-floor scheduling, work orders, MES
Hire for this specialty
Capacity Planner
Rough-cut capacity, constraint work centers
Hire for this specialty
Buyer/Planner
Planning plus purchasing for a cell or line
Hire for this specialty
Senior Production Planner
Owns a value stream, leads rate-ramp planning
Hire for this specialty
Aerospace & Defense Production Planner
ITAR programs, contract delivery schedules
Hire for this specialty
Master Scheduler (senior peer)
Site-level MPS and S&OP ownership
Hire for this specialty
Buyer (peer)
Executes POs against the plan
Hire for this specialty
Expeditor (peer)
Dedicated delivery-tracking seat
Hire for this specialty
Materials Manager (leader)
Planning, purchasing and stores under one leader
Hire for this specialty
Production Manager (leader)
Owns the line the plan feeds
Hire for this specialty

Not sure which Production Planner specialty fits?

We’ll help you scope the role on the call — part-number count, work centers, ERP and MES stack, planned ramps, and whether the seat also buys.

Hire Production Planners →
Vetting Criteria

What we verify on every Production Planner candidate

Production Planner hires live and die on schedule attainment and ramps delivered, not on which ERP appears on the resume. Below is what every candidate has documented before you meet them:

MPS and MRP ownership

Verified ownership of a master production schedule and its MRP parameters in SAP PP, Oracle, NetSuite, Odoo, Plex, or similar, with schedule attainment confirmed by the production manager who ran the line.

Capacity and rate-ramp planning

Reference-verified rough-cut capacity planning by work center and at least one build plan for a rate ramp — what the plan called for, what constraints it sequenced around, and what the line shipped.

Shop-floor scheduling results

Documented daily dispatch-list ownership and re-sequencing in the MES or ERP through machine, material, or test-cell disruptions, with integration or ship dates held.

S&OP and inventory discipline

Verified demand, supply, and inventory inputs to a monthly S&OP cycle, and WIP or finished-goods inventory held to a target through a ramp or a commissioning period.

Credentials verified

APICS CPIM or CSCP where claimed; supply chain, industrial engineering, or business degree; SAP PP, Oracle, NetSuite, Odoo, Plex, MES, and Excel proficiency; US-person status for ITAR programs where claimed — all checked.

Compensation alignment

Planner, Senior Planner, and Master Scheduler comp bands aligned before finalists are introduced, including shift premiums, bonus, and relocation terms at defense-tech, space, and gigafactory employers.

FAQ

Hiring a Production Planner: frequently asked questions

How long does it take to hire a Production Planner?

Time to shortlist is typically 2 weeks from scoping call. Total time to placement (shortlist through offer acceptance) is typically 3–4 weeks. Seats that require ITAR eligibility, an active clearance, or relocation to a remote plant or launch site can run a week longer.

What does a Production Planner cost in 2026?

Most US Production Planners in industrial and aerospace manufacturing land between $70K and $95K base depending on metro, part-number count, and ERP complexity. Senior Production Planners and Master Schedulers at defense-tech, space, and gigafactory employers typically run $95K–$125K, often with a 5–10% bonus. These are market bands; we confirm live market bands during scoping. See our production planner salary guide for the full ladder.

How is a Production Planner different from a Master Scheduler?

A Master Scheduler owns the site-level MPS and the S&OP reconciliation between the commercial forecast and plant capacity, and is the senior rung on this ladder. The Production Planner owns a value stream or a set of work centers beneath that schedule: MRP parameters, build plans, dispatch lists, and material readiness. On a single-line plant the same person often carries both titles; rate programs split them.

How is a Production Planner different from a Buyer or an Expeditor?

The Production Planner generates the demand: the MPS, the MRP parameters, and the planned orders. A Buyer converts that demand into purchase orders and negotiates price and lead time. An Expeditor chases past-due and critical lines to the dock. Many plants combine the first two into a Buyer/Planner seat per cell; larger programs run all three under a Materials Manager.

Do you require APICS CPIM or a supply chain degree?

No. CPIM and CSCP are useful signals and we verify them when claimed, but reference-verified schedule attainment and ramps delivered outweigh the credential. Strong candidates often come from production control, industrial engineering, or a shop-floor supervisor seat that learned the ERP from the dispatch list up.

Can you recruit Production Planners for ITAR-controlled or cleared programs?

Yes. Defense-tech and space programs add ITAR data handling, contract delivery schedules with government milestones, DD250 and DCMA interface, and in some cases clearance requirements to the planner’s workload. We confirm US-person status and clearance eligibility during scoping and shortlist only candidates who can start on your timeline.

Do you offer a placement guarantee?

Yes. Every Production Planner placement carries a replacement guarantee. Guarantee terms are confirmed in writing at engagement start.

Can you build a full production planning team?

Yes. Multi-hire builds (several Production Planners by value stream under a Master Scheduler or Materials Manager, plus Buyers and an Expeditor) route through embedded recruiting or RPO. Common for employers standing up a new plant or planning a multi-year rate ramp.

Ready to hire

Talk to a production planning recruiter

30-minute scoping conversation. We’ll review the Production Planner role you need — part-number count, work centers, ERP and MES stack, planned ramps, S&OP cadence — then recommend the right hire path and start sourcing.

Hire Production Planners →
Related: Master Scheduler hiring  ·  Supply Chain Manager hiring  ·  Production planner salary guide
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