Demand Planning and Management

As market conditions for many consumer products get more and more competitive, consumers are less willing to wait for a product to be available for purchase when another product with similar features is available at a similar price. At the same time, companies are being driven to get more and more creative with cost cutting measures which, in many cases, increase the time required to produce a given product. The combination of these and other market conditions have driven the gap between the customer order lead time (loosely defined as the time a customer is willing to wait for a given product once they have decided to purchase it), and the production lead time (loosely defined as the time required to procure materials, produce, and deliver the product) to grow continually wider. In short, customers have grown less patient, and will favor a product that is readily available over one they have to wait for given the two products are similar. Therefore, it is critical for companies to have enough product on the shelf to stay ahead of customers, to ensure the highest potential revenue opportunity for their products.

Following are the specific Demand Planning and Management service offerings provided by Plan4Demand:

Service Offering Value to Client
Demand Planning – is the process to create a forecast to meet future market demand. The process includes collaboration with marketing/sales for capturing promotional and new product introduction information. Plan4Demand can provide assistance in this area using our diagnostic tool kit, package selection templates, system implementation skills and organization/change management skills. An effective demand plan will enable companies to make the right product at the right time for the right location. This will improve order fill rates, reduce inventory and increase profitability.
Demand Management – is the process that involves balancing demand and supply between demand and supply planning cycles, The process includes collaboration with marketing/sales/supply/finance to manage pricing, inventory and margins. Plan4Demand can provide assistance in this area using our diagnostic tool kit, package selection templates, system implementation skills and organization/change management skills. Incorporating supply capability into the Demand Management process, companies can have the total supply chain view for demand requirements and supply capabilities to fulfill customer needs and to reduce the supply chain costs.
Demand Shaping – is the process to influence demand in order to match planned supply. The process includes re-shaping perceptions, altering expectations and sometimes re-focusing consumers on alternative products if problems in meeting demand. Plan4Demand can provide assistance in this area using our diagnostic tool kit, package selection templates, system implementation skills and organization/change management skills. By influencing or re-shaping customer demands e.g. promotion, marketing events, companies can be more profitable and secure or increase market share.
Demand Data Analysis – Many organizations are swamped by many years of internal historic data in sales and shipment. In addition, many external data are available, such as POS, Industry trends, etc. It is challenging to determine how leverage the data for better forecasting results. Plan4Demand can provide analysis to determine what data would be useful and how to use them for forecasting. Proper use of internal and external data will result in better forecasting results, allowing companies to rapidly adapt to trends increasing customer service and reducing inventory.
Key Performance Indicatory (KPI) Targeting – Many organizations struggle with how to measure their effectiveness within the Demand arena. Plan4Demand will assist company to determine What the right time lags to be measured, what other key measurements should be considered. This offering enables an organization to identify and manage how demand impacts other key performance measurements areas.