Recording webinar ‘S&OP and Planning Execution’

Companies urgently need to improve their Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP) process. Instead of clutching at long-term forecasts, they must improve their short-term agility.

Companies are facing increasing pressure on their S&OP process due to factors such as technological advancement, new channels, lower margins and ever-changing customer demand. Decision-making is slow in the traditional integrated planning process, with the time span dictated by the monthly or four-weekly cycles, and in the case of integration between local, regional and global processes, it can sometimes take even longer. However, the unpredictability of customer needs means that faster decision-making is necessary. Retailers in particular are unwilling to wait until the end of a cycle.

Leadership crucial in Integrated Business Planning

A growing number of companies that have implemented S&OP are now taking the next step towards Integrated Business Planning (IBP). This means that the likes of the Finance and Strategy departments are joining their Sales, Marketing and Production colleagues at the meetings, and the discussion is now also about money rather than just volumes. Experience has shown that this step can be harder than many people think. “It’s impossible to achieve the most advanced stage of IBP maturity without leadership.”