The Business Steering & Planning Team is the strategic heart of the Business Operations & Steering unit. While our Analytics teams provide the data, our mission is to translate that data into direction. We act as the "Strategic Newsroom" for ZMS, owning the financial narrative, the planning cadence, and the executive decision-making process. We ensure that ZMS leadership has a clear, forward-looking view of our commercial performance against our ambitious targets.
We are looking for a Senior Commercial Planner to serve as the architect of our financial roadmap. You will take full ownership of the commercial planning process, transforming high-level targets into granular, actionable financial models that guide our business throughout the fiscal year.
INCLUSIVE BY DESIGN
If you think you have what it takes, we encourage you to apply even if you don't meet every single requirement. You may just be the right candidate for this or other roles!
At Zalando, our vision is to be the leading pan-European ecosystem for fashion and lifestyle e-commerce – one that thrives on diversity and is truly inclusive by design. We believe that diverse teams fuel innovation and creativity, and we actively seek out talent from all backgrounds.
We actively seek to reduce bias in our hiring and employment processes, focusing on your qualifications, skills, and contributions. To support this, we kindly ask that you refrain from including personal details such as your photo, age, or marital status in your CV, ensuring a fair and equitable evaluation based solely on your abilities and potential.
We are committed to providing an exceptional and accessible candidate experience for everyone. If you require any accommodations to support you throughout the hiring process, please let us know – we are here to assist you.
Discover more about our commitment to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace: https://jobs.zalando.com/en/our-culture/diversity-and-inclusion
WHERE YOUR EXPERTISE IS NEEDED
You have end-to-end responsibility for the ZMS commercial planning cycle, orchestrating the creation of the Annual Budget and managing the quarterly re-forecasts (3+9, 6+6) with high precision.
You act as the owner of the Master Financial Model, building and maintaining sophisticated, multi-variable revenue models (in Excel/Google Sheets or Planning tools) that connect high-level strategy to bottom-up commercial reality.
You perform rigorous variance analysis on a monthly basis, digging deep to understand exactly where and why Actuals are deviating from the Plan, and quantifying the impact of price, volume, and mix effects.
You collaborate directly with our Business Intelligence and Commercial Analytics teams to ensure that the data feeding your planning models is accurate and automated, moving us away from manual data gathering.
You support the business by modeling complex "What-If" scenarios to assess the financial impact of new commercial initiatives, pricing changes, or market risks.
You proactively identify Risks and Opportunities (R&O) within the current quarter, providing early warning signals to the business so we can course-correct before it’s too late.
WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR
You have a degree in Finance, Economics, Business Administration, or a related quantitative field and have relevant > 5 years working experience in FP&A (Financial Planning & Analysis), Commercial Controlling, or Corporate Finance, ideally within a dynamic Tech or Media environment.
You possess "Expert-Level" modeling skills. You can build complex, transparent, and error-proof financial models from scratch and are comfortable handling large datasets in Excel or Google Sheets.
You have a proven track record of managing end-to-end planning cycles in a complex organization, demonstrating the ability to consolidate inputs from multiple stakeholders into a coherent financial plan.
You combine financial rigor with commercial curiosity; you understand the difference between "accounting revenue" and "commercial value," and you know the business drivers (e.g., CPM, Sell-Through Rate) that influence the P&L.
You possess strong analytical problem-solving skills and are capable of performing detailed root-cause analysis on budget variances independently.
You have efficient project management skills and can manage tight deadlines during peak planning seasons without losing your attention to detail.
Experience with enterprise planning tools (e.g., Anaplan, Pigment, SAP BPC) and a basic understanding of SQL to query data independently would be a strong plus.
OUR OFFER
Zalando provides a range of benefits, here’s an overview of what you can expect.
27 days of holiday a year to start for full-time employees (and +1 every year until 30)
2 paid volunteering days a year
Hybrid working model with up to 60% remote per week, actual practice is up to each team to best support their collaboration
Work from abroad for up to 30 working days a year
Employee shares program
40% off fashion and beauty products sold and shipped by Zalando, 30% off Lounge by Zalando, discounts from external partners
Relocation assistance available (subject to prior agreement)
Family services, including counseling and support
Health and wellbeing options (including Wellhub, formerly Gympass)
Mental health support and coaching available
Drive your development through our training platform and biannual peer-to-peer review
Please note that all applications must be completed using the online form - we do not accept applications via email.