U.S. President Eisenhower said “…plans are worthless, but planning is everything”.
Typically, in supply chain the word plan is used as a verb instead of a noun: plan instead of planning.
Having done planning:
There are, of course, more good things to say about plans and planning.
That being said, why isn’t a plan available more often? One that people understand and trust?
What I often hear is:
Eventually, planning runs more in the background. Adjusting and communicating in a timely manner to keep your supply chains moving, the strategic plan met, and your customers happy.
Not planning means you’ll be running around placing band aids on processes to get them running. Or expediting material because waiting to order material until after a customer order comes in doesn’t change lead times. Or different parts of the business will solve the same problem in different ways and both solutions will be activated leading to confusion and tying up product flow while things are sorted out.
And while more S&OP (Sales & Operations Planning) planning is being brought into companies, there is little knowledge of how to link it to the larger Integrated Business Planning and then into the strategic plans of the company. Strategic plans often don’t talk in supply chain performance language, so how can the two be connected?
Using a proven framework will help immensely. Innovation is allowed because you don’t have to keep reinventing the wheel on processes, metrics, alignment, transparency, agility, reliability, data, and more. The framework helps structure data delivery to where it is needed with standardized plan elements.
A plan that moves your company forward without the fits and starts a world without planning experiences.
You can learn more about aligning planning and the framework by clicking here.
You’ll learn about a framework that specifically includes strategic, tactical, and operational planning elements you can pick and choose from as you mature your planning processes. Here’s the link for information.
Luckily, plan really doesn’t have to be a 4-letter word.
#Plan #planning #supplychainplanning #trust #data #alignment #transparency #riskmitigation #supplychainframework #SCOR #CynthiaKalinaKaminsky #ProcessandStrategySolutions
Cynthia Kalina-Kaminsky, CEO of Process & Strategy Solutions, is a supply chain expert and transformation consultant, master instructor, and helps you connect supply chain performance to aligned operational, tactical, and strategic planning. To learn more, click here
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