Laura Henderson Email & Phone Number

Fort Worth, Tx, Us

Fort Worth, Texas, United States

· Lead strategic supply chain planning and sales, inventory and operations planning (SI&OP), using OMP software, across 11 plants to sustain 6Mt production capacity, optimizing efficiencies and ensuring strategic project alignment· Identified the need for additional capacity investment initiatives in Texas, driving strategic expansion and optimizing operations to support long-term growth· Led cross-regional initiatives to redesign the supply chain, securing $10M in annual savings by idling an unprofitable plant and aligning operations with a low-cost facility, and achieved an additional $2M+ in annual savings through efficiency improvements· Innovated a shareable tool cross-company for identifying supply chain inefficiencies, enabling better decision-and cost-saving strategies across regional senior leadership teams· Developed a long-term market outlook and strategic plan to 2050, identifying competitive positioning and strategic opportunities to enhance market share, control costs and improve sustainability· Collaborated on the launch of a decarbonization strategy, serving as the pivotal link between senior leadership and technical teams, enhancing project delivery and alignment with corporate sustainability goals· Spearheaded strategic planning initiatives, conducting comprehensive market and competitor SWOT analyses, formulating company-wide priorities that influenced mid-to-long-term financial projections and established priorities across departments· Managed the evaluation and execution of mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures, overseeing business case development, financial modeling, due diligence, stakeholder alignment and negotiation of purchase agreements for seamless integration

Dallas/Fort Worth Area

· Led a supply chain analyst team in long-term strategic and sales, inventory and operational planning, coaching team on continuous improvement and collaboration while fostering talent development· Managed a $11M annual budget for a railcar fleet of over 2,000 units, optimizing fleet maintenance, lease negotiations, and repositioning across 9 rail-served plants, enhancing logistics efficiency and cost-effectiveness· Innovated in-house supply chain and logistics tools, including replacing a third-party reporting solution, resulting in significant cost and time savings while improving usability and accuracy for supply chain planning and sales forecasting· Developed a predictive tool in collaboration with analysts to optimize trucking resources, increasing fulfillment rates from 70% to 90% by analyzing historical demand variability· Formulated a comprehensive contingency plan for short-term plant closures and potential long-term recession impacts, mitigating risks and focusing on alternative sourcing and customer relationships during the COVID-19 outbreak· Justified nearly $200M in capacity investments and plant upgrades based on detailed sales forecasts and strategic assessments, securing board approval· Negotiated critical rail transportation agreements during significant supply chain disruptions, securing improved service levels through executive-level engagements· Directed an accounts payable team, ensuring efficient processing and payment for all freight providers, enhancing operational support for fleet management

Brussels Area, Belgium

· Led financial evaluations of global acquisition targets, leading cross-functional teams to analyze geological, operational, and commercial values, presenting strategic recommendations to executive leadership· Directed a comprehensive 15-year strategic planning process, quantifying financial outlooks and growth opportunities, including spearheading a major market study on limestone, developing country profiles, and assessing geopolitical impacts to inform organizational structure and growth strategies· Provided strategic market intelligence and competitive analysis, regularly delivering detailed competitor profiles and benchmark reports to the Executive Committee, enhancing strategic decision-making and market positioning

Fort Worth, Tx

· Led strategic supply chain network design and capacity audit, securing approval for an $80M capacity investment to establish a new production line after presenting a comprehensive business case to the executive committee· Collaborated on the launch of the company’s SI&OP process, mapping sales requirements, plant capabilities and costs, training regional teams, and ensuring effective integration of production and distribution strategies to meet sales demands· Developed and implemented standardized weekly and monthly Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) tools, improving forecast accuracy and operational alignment across 4 plants and 3 product lines, totaling 2.6M tons annual production· Enhanced railcar fleet utilization by analyzing sales demand and cycle times, optimizing fleet size and improving operational efficiency across multiple geographies

Plano, Tx

· Led production and distribution planning for over $15M in incremental sales across Tostitos, Cheetos, Rold Gold, and Multipacks, coordinating with 20+ plants and over 50 production lines to ensure 100% on-time launch of new products· Exceeded the on-time publication rate for new product launches to field teams by 14%, achieving an 88% success rate in 2010 through the development of efficient scheduling macros and enhanced team collaboration· Received a peer-nominated supply chain award for outstanding support and execution among a group of 15 corporate employees· Managed the publication of operational documents to plants and warehouses, aligning sales forecasts with regional supply chain capacities and procurement to ensure timely product testing and launches

Launched 30 new products in a 20-month timeframe. Developed testing strategies and engaged plant staff to ensure accurate assessment of new product production capabilities; managed post-launch quality testing and improvement

Managed a production team of 6 direct reports, overseeing test production runs, and maintaining stringent adherence to quality, food safety, and employee health and safety programs

Mba

Bs, Industrial Engineering

Summa cum Laude with 4.0 GPA. Outstanding Senior in Engineering and Outstanding Junior in Industrial Engineering.