Lean Forecasting Begins With Lean Thinking On The Demand Forecasting Process

LEAN FORECASTING BEGINS WITH LEAN THINKING ON THE DEMAND FORECASTING PROCESS By Kenneth B. Kahn and John Mello Illustrates how lean principles can be readily applied to the fore- -casting endeavor, which potentially manifest a more effective and efficient process… three essential components of lean thinking are waste, flow and achieving economies… provides a guide for lean forecasting. Today, lean thinking is arguably a leading paradigm for managing operations. Accordingly, the application of lean thinking is found across a wide range of operational contexts in manufacturing and service industries. Lean terminology has been applied to various business contexts and processes, but it has not happened yet in the area of demand forecasting. Demand forecasting represents a crucial area of consideration as forecasts predicate many business decisions. We illustrate how lean principles can be readily applied to the forecasting context and potentially manifest a more effective and efficient process. LEAN THINKING BASICS The premise of lean thinking is the reduction in the level of input resources for a given level of output through the removal of waste from the system. To do this, ...