The Politics Of Forecasting In Sales And Operations Planning

THE POLITICS OF FORECASTING IN SALES AND OPERATIONS PLANNING By Chris Whisenant The key players of politics in corporate America are the Executive Branch (Senior Management), the Legislative Branch (Sales and Marketing), and the Judicial Branch (Finance) … to win the support of Finance you must show cost, average selling prices and margins … one-number forecasting is the key to the success of S&OP process. Overcoming corporate politics can be a big obstacle when forecasting for a sales and operations planning (S&OP) process. In a corporation, each area of operations closely resembles the three branches of the U.S. Government — Executive, Legislative, and Judicial. Unfortunately, like government politics, corporate politics can hinder your ability to address quickly and efficiently the company’s goals. When it comes to S&OP, it is a challenge to keep the three branches in sync. Without collaboration, the result will be a broken S&OP process. Forecasting professionals are caught in the middle as they try to balance individual needs against what is best for the company. The goal of S&OP is to continuously balance demand, supply, distribution, and financial plans to achieve ...