The Worst Advice We’ve Ever Heard About Demand Planning

You are currently viewing The Worst Advice We’ve Ever Heard About Demand Planning

It is no secret that demand planning is a process that many businesses go through to remain successful. It allows for the creation of forecasts that will help the business manage their inventory levels. This is beneficial because the business can then use this information to align their inventory levels along with the fluctuation of demand that is placed on a particular product.

Because it is so important, there are multiple strategies that businesses can rely on when it comes to demand planning. As with all other types of strategies, some are better than others. There are also those strategies out there that wind up working against the company instead of for them. When you are choosing your strategy, be sure to avoid these instances of bad advice.

You Should Use One Strategy for All Your Products

There are actually several factors that go into deciding the best strategy to use for any given product. Business leaders should examine things like geographical location as well as the industry in general. While this information may be consistent between some products a company offers, there are also times when each product should be treated individually.

Trying to place all your products into a one size fits all kind of model is dangerous and will not provide the right type of information that is truly valuable. Instead, you should always look at your products individually in order to determine what the true demand for the product will be in the near future.

You Should Think of Demand Planning as if it Were a Program

This is a trap that many businesses fall into. Oftentimes, we tend to look towards the future and wish that we could speed to success instead of going through the process. This is the same issue in some companies that are looking to implement demand planning. They are focused on getting it up and running quickly.

Instead of taking this approach, it is always best to focus on creating a demand planning project that is ran well. While we all want to begin being successful quickly, demand planning is something that should take some time to implement. It is not a program that has certain steps that you must follow in order to be completed. Take the necessary time to carefully analyze the information that you are receiving so that you can gain the best amount of quality data. This will allow you to make the best decisions in regard to your inventory.

If You Plan Correctly, You Won’t Fave Surprises

Planning is an important part of the entire process. But, no matter how well you do plan, there will always be something that occurs unexpectedly. To help balance this, you should always have a backup or contingency plan. The most important thing to remember is that there will be surprises and that you must plan for every scenario possible.

In order to plan for surprises, always make sure that you are in a position that makes you flexible. For example, you may find that you need to have a plan to find alternate materials than what you normally use to create your products. Having this plan in place and being able to execute it quickly can help you to manage the times when supplies are out of stock or limited from your traditional supplier.

Don’t Put Your Faith in Statistics

Statistics aren’t really all that exciting. However, they definitely have their place in the business industry. In fact, most businesses out there aren’t really using statistics to the best of their ability. Instead, they simply glance at the numbers and carrying on with their daily lives.

Statistics are very powerful. Businesses who have the ability to drive the company towards improvement are those that are the most profitable and successful. Also, when you rely on statistics to make changes to your demand planning strategy, you will find that it is extremely easy to measure the value that is added from your changes. So, along with your forecast information, be sure to review statistics that are related to your industry and your products when making changes to your strategy.

Your Plan should be complicated in order to provide the most Value

Some mistakenly believe that in order for something to work the best way that it must be complicated. This couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, demand planning will work much more efficiently if you are able to keep your processes and strategies simple.

The most important thing with any demand planning process is that the strategy that you choose is geared towards your specific company. Take a look at the amount of support that you will need as well as the amount of information that is already available. You can then choose a strategy that will help work with your company in the best capacity.

Focus on Only One Product at a Time

It is true that you should look at each product individually. However, it is also true that you should focus on all your products rather than just one or a handful of your most popular items. You never really know what you are missing with other products when you choose to rely on this method. When a company only focuses on certain products, they may find that their success is not as great as they had expected.

Instead, you should take more of a 360 approach when it comes to demand planning. Look at the various elements of your entire business and look for changes that you can make to improve each of them. Some companies have found that by making some simple changes with some of their lesser performing products that they were able to greatly improve the success of the entire company.

Final Thoughts

Demand planning is critical for companies that are looking to create historical sales information. With this type of information, forecasts can be created that reflect the company’s customers as well as statistical information about the company as a whole. This information can then be used to collaborate with the customers in order to create products that will appeal to them and that will be available when demand is high.

There are plenty of things that a business can do incorrectly when it comes to demand planning. For this reason, it is always best to rely on a specialist to help with the goals that your company has in place. Choosing a partner for this venture is something that you should consider if you are looking to truly gain control over your inventory and the demand for that inventory.

When choosing a company to help you with this mission, be sure to choose one that has experience within your industry. You should also look for a company that takes the time to learn about your company and what is most important to you. This type of company will be the best option when it comes to receiving the value that you deserve to receive.

To learn more about MaxQ and what we have to offer to our customers, be sure to contact us. With our solutions, you will find that your business is able to receive all the information that it needs to rise to the top.

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.