Uncertainty is an inherent factor that affects all dimensions of supply chain management activities. Demand volatility and supply disruptions have reached unprecedented levels in the past couple of years – becoming more the “new normal” than a trend likely to go away. Supply chain leaders are challenged to navigate these turbulent waters to drive resiliency and innovation.
Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) is critical for balancing demand and supply in line with business objectives; a process that is by nature highly collaborative, though often challenging for many companies. Firefighting and struggling to respond quickly and efficiently in the face of constant challenges has a negative impact on supply chain and business performance. Spreadsheets and outdated approaches are common barriers, as they don’t deliver the flexibility and capabilities required to make informed decisions or to keep pace in today’s uncertain times.
For S&OP to deliver its full potential, cross-functional communication is crucial. There must be strong data support and alignment across the multienterprise supply chain.
With an eye on reaching financial goals and better business outcomes, the S&OP strategy needs to focus on enabling teams to make better data-driven decisions through enhanced visibility, cross-functional collaboration and agile orchestration across the ecosystem. Success lies in the ability for your organization to connect planning, execution and finance into a single strategy.
This infographic provides a visual guide for navigating the S&OP journey – from typical challenges to ways to address them, and what you can achieve by evolving and revamping your strategy.
Let’s start by identifying some common obstacles your company may be facing, followed by the key steps to find better ways to synchronize demand and supply, and the capabilities to make the best operational trade-off decisions that aim to reduce risk and maximize business opportunities.
View this guide to discover how you can drive more business value from the S&OP process and propel your business forward.
