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Cambridge University Press & Assessment
Production Planner - 7270
Whittlesford On-site 2-5 yrs exp Education 11,778 employees£30k – £39k / year
Production PlanningSchedulingData AnalysisExcelPower BI
Requirements
The ideal candidate should have experience in production planning or a similar operational environment, with strong data analysis skills. Proficiency in IT tools, particularly Excel and Power BI, along with effective communication skills, is essential.
Job Description
Job Title: Production Planner
Salary: £29,700-£38,550 per annum
Location: Cambridge, Whittlesford- DC10
Contract: Full time, permanent, 35 hours per week
If you thrive on balancing demand and capacity, this role lets you turn data into clear plans that keep production moving and customers satisfied.
This is an opportunity to take ownership of production planning across Print Operations, ensuring orders are delivered on time, in full, and to the right quality standards.
Your work will influence how efficiently we operate, how we respond to demand, and how we continue to improve our processes - and how we deliver for customers across a global publishing operation.
We are Cambridge University Press & Assessment, a world-leading academic publisher and assessment organisation and a proud part of the University of Cambridge.
About The Role
As Production Planner, you'll act as the central coordination point between production, Studio, and wider stakeholders, aligning customer demand with manufacturing capacity and schedules. Your work will focus on creating clear, data-led plans, anticipating risks, and enabling consistent, reliable delivery.
You'll combine day-to-day scheduling with longer-term thinking - using data and insight to improve how we plan, identify opportunities for efficiency, and support ongoing automation and process improvements.
You will:
About You
You bring demonstrable experience in production planning, scheduling, or a similar operational environment, with the ability to balance competing priorities and make informed decisions using data. You're comfortable working across teams, translating complex information into clear plans, and identifying where improvements can be made.
You will also have:
We are a Disability Confident (DC) employer that is committed to equality and inclusion ensuring our recruitment process is accessible to all. The DC scheme's Offer of an Interview commitment applies to applicants who opt in, and disclose a disability or a long-term health condition, and who best meet the minimum criteria for the role. In instances where interviewing all qualifying candidates is not practicable and/or appropriate, we prioritise those who best meet the minimum criteria, as we would for applicants who do not have a disability or long-term health condition.
Cambridge University Press & Assessment is an approved UK employer for the sponsorship of eligible roles and applicants under the Skilled Worker visa route. Please refer to the gov.uk website for guidance to understand your own eligibility based on the role you are applying for.
Rewards And Benefits
We will support you to be at your best in work and to live well outside of it. In addition to competitive salaries, we offer a world-class, flexible rewards package, featuring family-friendly and planet-friendly benefits including:
We aim to support candidates by making our interview process clear and transparent. The closing date for all applications will be 14th July 2026. We will be reviewing applications from 15th July onwards, and shortlisted candidates can expect interviews to take place w/c 20th & w/c 27th July. If we are able to interview earlier, we may try and do so.
If you are shortlisted and progressed through the stages, you can expect:
Please note that successful applicants will be subject to satisfactory background checks including DBS due to working in a regulated industry.
We are committed to an equitable recruitment process. As such, applications must be submitted via our official online application procedure. Please refrain from sending your CV directly to our recruiters. If you experience technical difficulties or require additional support with submitting your online application, contact the Recruiter.
Why join us
Joining us is your opportunity to pursue potential. You will belong to a collaborative team that is exploring new and better ways to serve students, teachers and researchers across the globe – for the benefit of individuals, society and the world. Sharing our mission will inspire your own growth, development and progress, in an environment which embraces difference, change and aspiration.
Cambridge University Press & Assessment is committed to being a place where anyone can enjoy a successful career, where it is safe to speak up, and where we learn continuously to improve together. We welcome applications from all candidates, regardless of demographic characteristics (age, disability, educational attainment, ethnicity, gender, marital status, neurodiversity, religion, sex, gender identity and sexual identity), cultural, or social class/background.
We believe better outcomes come through diversity of thought, background and approach. We welcome applications from people from all backgrounds and communities, actively seeking to employ people from a wide range of different communities.
Salary: £29,700-£38,550 per annum
Location: Cambridge, Whittlesford- DC10
Contract: Full time, permanent, 35 hours per week
If you thrive on balancing demand and capacity, this role lets you turn data into clear plans that keep production moving and customers satisfied.
This is an opportunity to take ownership of production planning across Print Operations, ensuring orders are delivered on time, in full, and to the right quality standards.
Your work will influence how efficiently we operate, how we respond to demand, and how we continue to improve our processes - and how we deliver for customers across a global publishing operation.
We are Cambridge University Press & Assessment, a world-leading academic publisher and assessment organisation and a proud part of the University of Cambridge.
About The Role
As Production Planner, you'll act as the central coordination point between production, Studio, and wider stakeholders, aligning customer demand with manufacturing capacity and schedules. Your work will focus on creating clear, data-led plans, anticipating risks, and enabling consistent, reliable delivery.
You'll combine day-to-day scheduling with longer-term thinking - using data and insight to improve how we plan, identify opportunities for efficiency, and support ongoing automation and process improvements.
You will:
- Develop production plans and maintain detailed schedules aligned with demand, capacity and delivery
- Monitor capacity and identify work suitable for outsourcing where appropriate
- Produce reporting on KPIs, volumes, capacity utilisation, and performance
- Identify operational risks and propose practical mitigation actions
- Support continuous improvement, including process optimisation and automation initiatives
- Work closely with production, Studio, account management and other stakeholders to coordinate delivery
About You
You bring demonstrable experience in production planning, scheduling, or a similar operational environment, with the ability to balance competing priorities and make informed decisions using data. You're comfortable working across teams, translating complex information into clear plans, and identifying where improvements can be made.
You will also have:
- Strong IT capability, including advanced Excel skills and experience with tools such as Power BI or similar
- The ability to analyse and interpret data, using it to inform planning decisions and reporting
- Experience solving operational problems and making data-informed decisions
- Clear communication skills, with experience engaging stakeholders across different functions
- Demonstrable experience applying resource and capacity planning principles
- Knowledge of planning, scheduling, or forecasting systems
- Experience working in print, manufacturing, or a similar operational environment
- Involvement in continuous improvement or operational excellence initiatives
- Experience contributing to process changes or performance improvements
We are a Disability Confident (DC) employer that is committed to equality and inclusion ensuring our recruitment process is accessible to all. The DC scheme's Offer of an Interview commitment applies to applicants who opt in, and disclose a disability or a long-term health condition, and who best meet the minimum criteria for the role. In instances where interviewing all qualifying candidates is not practicable and/or appropriate, we prioritise those who best meet the minimum criteria, as we would for applicants who do not have a disability or long-term health condition.
Cambridge University Press & Assessment is an approved UK employer for the sponsorship of eligible roles and applicants under the Skilled Worker visa route. Please refer to the gov.uk website for guidance to understand your own eligibility based on the role you are applying for.
Rewards And Benefits
We will support you to be at your best in work and to live well outside of it. In addition to competitive salaries, we offer a world-class, flexible rewards package, featuring family-friendly and planet-friendly benefits including:
- 28 days annual leave plus bank holidays
- Private medical and Permanent Health Insurance
- Discretionary annual bonus
- Group personal pension scheme
- Life assurance up to 4 x annual salary
- Green travel schemes
We aim to support candidates by making our interview process clear and transparent. The closing date for all applications will be 14th July 2026. We will be reviewing applications from 15th July onwards, and shortlisted candidates can expect interviews to take place w/c 20th & w/c 27th July. If we are able to interview earlier, we may try and do so.
If you are shortlisted and progressed through the stages, you can expect:
- 1st round via MS Teams
- 2nd round, if successful after 1st round- face-to face in Whittlesford- DC10
- You may be asked to do a role related task for the 2nd interview
Please note that successful applicants will be subject to satisfactory background checks including DBS due to working in a regulated industry.
We are committed to an equitable recruitment process. As such, applications must be submitted via our official online application procedure. Please refrain from sending your CV directly to our recruiters. If you experience technical difficulties or require additional support with submitting your online application, contact the Recruiter.
Why join us
Joining us is your opportunity to pursue potential. You will belong to a collaborative team that is exploring new and better ways to serve students, teachers and researchers across the globe – for the benefit of individuals, society and the world. Sharing our mission will inspire your own growth, development and progress, in an environment which embraces difference, change and aspiration.
Cambridge University Press & Assessment is committed to being a place where anyone can enjoy a successful career, where it is safe to speak up, and where we learn continuously to improve together. We welcome applications from all candidates, regardless of demographic characteristics (age, disability, educational attainment, ethnicity, gender, marital status, neurodiversity, religion, sex, gender identity and sexual identity), cultural, or social class/background.
We believe better outcomes come through diversity of thought, background and approach. We welcome applications from people from all backgrounds and communities, actively seeking to employ people from a wide range of different communities.
Skills
Production PlanningSchedulingData AnalysisExcelPower BIStakeholder EngagementOperational Problem SolvingCapacity PlanningProcess ImprovementReportingRisk ManagementAutomationCommunicationManufacturing KnowledgeContinuous ImprovementForecasting
About Cambridge University Press & Assessment
We are Cambridge University Press & Assessment. We are a world-leading academic publisher and assessment organisation, and part of the University of Cambridge. We’re driven by a simple mission – to contribute to society through the pursuit of education, learning, and research at the highest international levels of excellence. Our team is one connected, global community, pursuing potential and moving forward, together. We will keep exploring, collaborating, and innovating to find bold new ways to spread knowledge, spark enquiry, and aid understanding.
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