Supply Chain Planning Archives

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With Brexit Looming, New Supply Chain Requirements Emerge

4 September 2019

On October 31st, the United Kingdom will leave the EU, with or without an exit deal. This, combined with the 2019 EU election results that changed the political landscape, opens speculation regarding this alternative reality, and what requirements it would[...]

20 August 2019

Supply Chain Planning BPO: What’s Driving It and Should You Get On Board?

You know that great feeling you get when you have an expert getting the job done? More and more businesses are hopping on the outsourcing bus and letting the experts take the wheel to drive supply chain planning processes. Several[...]

8 August 2019

Robots in the Building: The Positive Influence of AI for Supply Chain Planners

Have you looked at a job listing for a supply chain planner recently? The planner’s role has expanded to include a combination of technical skills and communications and interpersonal skills. A recent, typical job ad for a demand planner lists[...]

11 June 2019

Five Things You Need to Know about Inventory Optimization in the Digital Age

With all the buzz around digital transformation, someone peering in from outside supply chain may assume most businesses have already digitized essential tasks like inventory planning. The reality is that this transformation takes time and a change of mindset. It’s[...]

28 May 2019

Points to Ponder from the Gartner Supply Chain Executive Conference…and One Unanswerable Question

“What was once considered disruption now becomes strategy”. This line from the opening keynote got me thinking about the continuous evolution of markets and customer expectations. What seemed like a breakthrough just a few years ago is now mainstream. Keep[...]

14 May 2019

The Absolut Company: Balancing Service and Inventory Creates a Delicious Mix

The world’s #2 selling vodka brand leaves nothing to chance when it comes to quality and sustainability. Here’s how they teamed up with ToolsGroup partner Optilon for a seamless supply chain planning process. With continuously shifting consumer preferences and brands[...]

12 April 2019

How to Make Supply Chain Complexity Work to Your Advantage

With supply chain complexity increasing at an unprecedented rate, perhaps the biggest challenge for businesses is figuring out how to navigate this uncertainty to deliver service profitably. Amazon sells more than 3 billion products through 11 different country marketplaces globally.[...]

2 April 2019

Should You Outsource Demand Planning?

Outsourcing non-core business processes has been a time-tested way to cut costs while improving performance. Initially companies focused on functions like Finance and HR. But now they have started outsourcing supply chain business processes like demand planning, allowing them to[...]

19 March 2019

How Supply Chain Planning Can Create Profit in a Declining Market

When a business finds itself in a declining market, failing to stay in lock step with customer demand poses an existential threat. Trends and other market forces that impact commercial opportunities need to appear on the planning radar. Therefore, traditional[...]

5 March 2019

Supply Chain Planning in Emerging Markets: Four Points to Remember

Supply chain planning in emerging markets is different. And while each market can be unique, we found a few repeating themes in our own experience and from sources including Gartner and our customers Procter and Gamble (P&G) and Cipla Medpro.[...]

19 February 2019

Mid-Market Companies Leapfrogging Supply Chain Planning Maturity Stages

Is the latest technology enabling some mid-market companies to leapfrog supply chain planning (SCP) stages of maturity? The evidence suggests that it is. Publicly, analysts are still cautioning mid-market companies not to aim too high. But in interviewing a number of[...]

22 January 2019

Which Supply Chain Planning Processes Should We Automate?

Now that more companies are embracing supply chain planning productivity and automation, many firms are asking which processes they should automate. Let's first address that question and then look at where this trend is heading in the future. Gartner says that the attitude towards supply[...]

Sales & Operations Planning Software S&OP provides the critical link between inventory, customer service and business performance by enabling cross-functional planning and bridging the gap between strategic planning and operational execution.

Promotions Planning Software Promotions Planning gives cross-functional teams the visibility to synchronize demand shaping campaigns and promotions with supply chain operations ensuring that inventory is in the right place to meet demand on a daily basis, right down to the store level.

Production Planning Software Production Planning provides unparalleled visibility, insight and control of the entire production lifecycle to improve efficiency and quality control, and service demand.

Inventory Optimization Software Inventory Optimization factors in multiple planning variables and probabilities to generate an optimal multi-echelon inventory plan for every item in a portfolio to achieve target service levels.

Allocation and Replenishment Software Allocation and Replenishment automatically calculates optimal inventory levels for both existing and new items to create a phased, time-series plan that achieves target service levels even in the face of demand variability and distribution complexity.

Demand Planning & Sensing Software Demand Planning & Sensing automates the creation of demand plans using machine learning and by incorporating detailed short-term demand signals and demand collaboration, it reduces forecast error and optimally deploys inventory.

Planning as a Service Planning-as-a-Service provides business-focused, technology enabled resources to help customers quickly achieve value from their SO99+ implementation. It accelerates time-to-value over a traditional implement and learn approach.