Elsa Fernandez, Management Consultant in Tomball, TX, United States
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Elsa Fernandez

Verified Expert  in Management Consulting

Sales Operations and Demand Planning Expert

Tomball, TX, United States

Toptal member since April 1, 2024

Expertise
Commercial FinanceFinancial ForecastingFinancial ModelingBudgeting ConsultingFP&A
Bio

Elsa is an experienced sales and operations (S&OP) and demand planning expert focused on strategic long-term growth through business intelligence data. She excels in strategic management and problem-solving and shows strong leadership—managing global clients and improving supply chain efficiency by enhancing revenue and inventory productivity. Elsa's expertise ensures the alignment of sales forecasts, production plans, and inventory levels for accurate demand forecasting and risk minimization.

Career Highlights

Senior Demand Planning Manager, Latin America
Abbott Laboratories
Demand Planning Manager
Danone
Demand Planning Manager, Mexico
Abbott Laboratories

Education Highlights

Bachelor's Degree
Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey

Case Studies

Expertise

  • Data Modeling
  • Demand Planning
  • Five-year Projections
  • Inventory Management
  • Planning
  • Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP)
  • Sales Planning
  • Sales Projections

Work Experience

Independent Consultant

2020 - PRESENT
Independent
  • Helped startups in sales projections and analysis. This included a popsicle project and a black kitchen restaurant.
  • Assisted small and mid-size startups with feasibility analysis and strategic planning, working with top-level investors and stakeholders across multiple sectors.
  • Prepared reports and projections based on this analysis, evaluated current capital expenditures, established and analyzed profit plans, identified financial performance trends, and provided improvement recommendations.
Focus areas: Five-year Projections, Revenue Projections, Sales Projections, Excel 365, Microsoft 365, Sales Planning, Forecasting, Sales Forecasting, Data Modeling, Data Analysis, Organizational Analysis, Microsoft Excel, Power Pivot, Structure, Financial Modeling, Revenue & Expense Projections, Financial Forecasting

Senior Demand Planning Manager, Latin America

2012 - 2020
Abbott Laboratories
  • Implemented a market share forecasting process considering days on hand in Mexico, Peru, and Central America. Introduced the sell-out model, leveraging client data in Chile and Ecuador.
  • Managed KPIs effectively, monitoring metrics crucial for organizational success. Analyzed KPI data with precision, identifying areas for enhancement and promptly implementing actions—driving continuous improvement and ensuring sustained growth.
  • Conducted a thorough analysis of inventory levels, in-house and across channels, to ensure an efficient supply chain—significantly reducing days on hand across the board.
  • Developed several in-house Excel tools to increase demand planning structure efficiency for reporting purposes.
Focus areas: Demand Planning, Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP), Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Inventory Management, Supply Chain, Excel 365, SAP, Power Pivot, Microsoft 365, SAP BusinessObjects (BO), Five-year Projections, Market Demand, Revenue Projections, Sales Projections, Sales Planning, Forecasting, Sales Forecasting, Data Modeling, Financial Modeling, Data Analysis, Organizational Analysis, Microsoft Excel, Reporting, Best Practices, Change Management, Training, User Adoption, Structure, Revenue & Expense Projections, Financial Forecasting, Data Engineering, Data Analytics, Commercial Strategy, Commercial Finance

Demand Planning Manager

2011 - 2012
Danone
  • Managed $600 million of sales projection for around 600,000 SKUs.
  • Improved the forecasting accuracy of KPIs by item, line, and total.
  • Implemented the Forecast Pro tool—improving the overall forecasting and planning process with several iterations.
Focus areas: Planning, Demand Planning, Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP), Five-year Projections, Excel 365, SAP, Power Pivot, Microsoft 365, SAP BusinessObjects (BO), Inventory Management, Supply Chain, Revenue Projections, Sales Projections, Sales Planning, Forecasting, Sales Forecasting, Data Modeling, Data Analysis, Organizational Analysis, Microsoft Excel, Procurement, Reporting, Best Practices, Structure, Financial Modeling, Revenue & Expense Projections, Financial Forecasting, Data Engineering, Data Analytics, Commercial Strategy, Commercial Finance

Demand Planning Manager, Mexico

2007 - 2011
Abbott Laboratories
  • Established a demand planning process based on sell-out information considering the days on hand for around $100 million in sales per year.
  • Improved the overall forecasting accuracy for the assigned country.
  • Built a distressed inventory tool, which helped process and reduce $1.4 million in products to expire.
Focus areas: Demand Planning, Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP), Inventory Management, Five-year Projections, Excel 365, SAP, Power Pivot, Microsoft 365, SAP BusinessObjects (BO), Supply Chain, Revenue Projections, Sales Projections, Sales Planning, Forecasting, Sales Forecasting, Data Modeling, Data Analysis, Organizational Analysis, Microsoft Excel, Procurement, Reporting, Best Practices, User Adoption, Structure, Financial Modeling, Revenue & Expense Projections, Financial Forecasting, Data Engineering, Data Analytics, Commercial Strategy, Commercial Finance

FP&A Snacks Chief

2004 - 2007
Mondelez International
  • Implemented Oracle Financial for the snacks business successfully.
  • Participated in aligning the process for the annual budget, streamlining all areas involved.
  • Executed ways to track the earnings variance analysis to understand the assumptions behind the forecast.
Focus areas: Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Planning, Excel 365, Oracle Financials, Microsoft 365, Financial Modeling, Data Analysis, Organizational Analysis, Microsoft Excel, Reporting, Best Practices, Budgeting, Structure, Revenue & Expense Projections, Financial Forecasting, P&L Forecasting, Data Analytics, Commercial Strategy, Commercial Finance

Education

1999 - 2023

Bachelor's Degree in Industrial Engineering

Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey - Monterrey, Mexico

Skills

Finance

Five-year Projections, Forecasting, Commercial Finance, Financial Modeling, Budgeting, P&L Forecasting, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Data Analysis, Revenue & Expense Projections

Output Software

Microsoft Excel

Data & Analysis Software

Power Pivot

Industry Expertise

Higher Education

Other

Excel 365, Structure, Demand Planning, Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP), Sales Projections, Planning, Sales Planning, Sales Forecasting, Data Modeling, Reporting, Data Engineering, Data Analytics, Commercial Strategy, Microsoft 365, SAP BusinessObjects (BO), Market Demand, Inventory Management, Supply Chain, Organizational Analysis, Financial Forecasting, SAP, Oracle Financials, Revenue Projections, Procurement, Best Practices, Change Management, Training, User Adoption, Power Query, Microsoft Power BI, Testing

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