How To Conquer Demand Planning for 2021
“No plan of operations extends with any certainty beyond the first contact.”
Wake up and conquer demand planning for 2021
It's October!! And you know what that means - you're beginning your planning cycle for next year. And how on earth do you even accomplish such a thing in today's environment? If there's one thing for certain, it is to execute that plan with absolute certainty, and to have the perspective and agility to move and pivot when you inevitably encounter the unexpected.
The hallmark of any business plan or operations plan bound for success is having a cadre of creative coaches to carry the load.
Prepare to fulfill your customers’ orders NOW
So let's talk for a minute about Demand Planning.
No matter what business you are in, having a clear forecast of what volume of orders you are expecting is absolutely central to your business. There are endless resources committed to the depths and varieties of demand planning, but who has time these days to do all of the research, all of the analytics, and figure out how to use all of the tools to fit your business?
KPI’s and a good coach are your secret weapons to conquer demand planning
Listed below are 3 simple steps to get started on your demand planning process. Remember that no matter how good your starting plan is, the most critical element is to have a process that is agile enough to adapt to our changing environment, and the tools to help guide your decisions.
KPIs - Understand what is important to you and why - you know you want to use your demand planning functionality and tools, and that it can help you and your team simplify your daily work, but how do you know if you are getting better?
a. Are you trying to have the best order fulfillment rate?
b. Best lead time?
c. Best on-time delivery?
d. Lowest inventory cost?
e. Least amount of inventory space? Getting clarity on what is important and deciding how you will measure your progress is paramount.
Get a coach - as a business owner or supply chain planner, you probably already have a good idea of what you want and what is possible. What you may not have is a ton of time for analytics and setting up your business processes and systems to achieve what you want. The budget is tight, and you can't just staff up with so much uncertainty on the horizon - you have important things to keep your focus on. Hire a coach who can learn your business and bring expertise in both the process and your business system. A coach will save you time and give you confidence in how to adapt your plan going forward.
Start today - Demand planning is not a one-and-done exercise. It is iterative, agile, and ever-
improving. It is about building habits around learning what is happening in your business, with your customers and your supply chain to meet their demands. Take the first step and commit to a regular cadence of review, learning, adoption, and progress.
That's it!! If we could offer a simple formula for building a successful demand plan, we'd love to have your insight on where this launchpad would fall apart. We haven't seen it fail yet and are committed to learning and adapting our ability to deliver this message effectively to those in need. Take care and happy planning!!
- Kevin Linehan, Partner | The Parker Initiative