Supply chain planning aims at predicting future requirements to balance supply and demand. From a strategic perspective, companies have to take into account available capacity in their network, required flexibility to react to demand signals or risks, and aim for alignment between departments to effectively plan their supply chains.

The extended supply chain needs to be fully integrated to allow leveraging all available assets and deliver maximum value against optimal costs. Companies should thus build integrated planning processes ranging from long term strategic planning, over tactical sales & operations planning, to the operational day-to-day planning.

Deloitte’s Supply Chain Planning practice assists clients with end-to-end supply chain planning vision definition, process development, supply chain flexibility, service/repair planning, system implementations, performance metrics, analytics, organization design, and change management.

Topics in the spotlight

The Future of Planning Series 

In 10 years’ time, planning will be a whole different ballgame. Now is the time to start preparing – in terms of technology, talent, and organisation. In a series of 3 articles, we share our views on the future of planning.

Part I | How 5 megatrends will disrupt your supply chain planning

Part II | Technology will truly start supporting supply chain planners

Part III | How to attract and retain planning talent in the future?
 

Integrated business planning can bring finance and supply chain into alignment

Integrated Business Planning monetizes traditional volume-based planning and focuses beyond local demand-supply balancing, allowing to manage towards the organization’s corporate objectives by deploying assets with a focus on maximizing return.
 

Typical pitfalls in inventory management

The EOQ formula is often used in practice but it may not necessarily lead to a minimal lead time, thereby potentially resulting in an increased safety stock.