S&OP - Stop Looking For Consensus On Achieving A Single Number!
The term "consensus" is often misinterpreted. The process of driving to Consensus is more important than achieving a single number that everyone agrees on.
Driving to Consensus also results in the discovery of many challenges that need resolutions - this makes the Sales and Operations Planning process more effective. The S&OP process is not about consensus - every one agreeing on the Plan. In fact, if you have an easy Consensus in your S&OP, it may not be a working process.
S&OP is about conflict resolution - go in every month to understand where the conflict is. Highlight demand-supply imbalances that need to be analyzed, discussed, and resolved with potential solutions either demand-driven or supply-driven.
One of the worst practices I have seen is the Sales Team and the Supply Chain Team discussing the differences between the Sales Forecast and the Supply-chain forecast put together by the Supply Planning team. Consensus on the wrong forecast between the wrong parties...
Feel free to download a brief presentation on S&OP building blocks. - Click here
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