
IBF's world-leading consulting services focus on improving People, Processes, Analytics, and Technology to advance your S&OP and demand planning capabilities to a mature level. Our team of world-renowned consultants includes former VPs of Demand Planning and VPs of Supply Chain from multi-billion dollar companies who will guide you in implementing industry-leading best practices. If you aim to enhance cash flow, forecast accuracy, customer service, inventory turnover, and EBITDA through effective business planning, your transformation journey begins with IBF.
With IBF’s 4 decades of experience in business planning support, and its extensive knowledge base, IBF is in a unique position to add value to companies and drive transformational change. IBF is trusted to provide an unbiased, independent view of companies' planning and analytics capabilities. And although IBF provides services to support companies in their technology/software selection with its knowledge of the many planning systems available, we are not affiliated with any one software vendor, unlike many consultancy firms.
Demand Planning & Forecasting Assessments:
- Capability & Maturity Audits: Evaluate existing demand planning and forecasting processes, tools, and talent to identify current strengths and improvement areas.
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Benchmarking & Gap Analysis: Compare your practices against industry best practices and top-performing organizations to highlight key gaps and actionable recommendations.
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Technology & Tool Evaluation: Identify the systems and solutions best suited for your business model and data requirements, ensuring you invest in the right platforms.
Demand Planning Consulting:
- Process Redesign & Optimization: Refine your forecasting workflows to ensure greater accuracy, speed, and agility.
- Inventory & Service Level Optimization: Balance inventory levels against service targets to minimize stock-outs and excess inventory.
- Team Training & Skill Development: Develop your planning team’s capabilities through tailored workshops, certification programs, and on-the-job coaching.
S&OP/IBP Consulting:
- Global S&OP/IBP Framework Design: Implement a unified, end-to-end planning framework that aligns commercial, supply chain, and financial functions.
- Proprietary Benchmarking and S&OP/IBP Maturity Assessment: Identify your current level of S&OP maturity and get specific recommendations across People, Process, Analytics and Technology
- Scenario Planning & Risk Mitigation: Utilize advanced techniques to proactively manage uncertainty, allowing you to adapt quickly to market shifts and disruptions.
Forecasting Consulting:
- Advanced Predictive Analytics & AI Integration: Incorporate machine learning and statistical models to improve forecast accuracy and reduce bias.
- Tailored Forecasting Methodologies: Select and apply forecasting approaches that best fit your product mix, demand patterns, and industry environment.
- Continuous Forecast Improvement: Establish a closed-loop feedback system to refine model parameters, update assumptions, and enhance forecast reliability over time.