Selecting and implementing a new planning application is a difficult task. Success goes beyond adopting the latest technologies; it involves ensuring your processes are right; your data gets fixed; and the tool is aligned with the capabilities of the planning team. In my experience, the key to success is the planner - the spender of your money and the executor of your strategy.
Understanding the Planner's Vital Role
The success of any planning initiative relies on the planner who navigates the intricacies of forecasting, supply lead times, safety stocks, segmentation, policy setting, and replenishment. The planner is not merely a user of technology but a problem-solver, necessitating a profound understanding of the business, the intricacies of the solution, and mastery of planning methodologies. Unfortunately, the harsh reality is that most planners never undergo formal training on a methodology and are left to figure it out on their own.
My advice is that more critical than selecting a tool, is choosing a methodology and then ensuring all your planners are trained on how all the processes and calculations work.
Striking a Balance with Technology
While advanced technologies that are all configurable and driven by AI are alluring, their incorporation must be approached with caution. AI can offer incredible insights, but I have not witnessed it entirely replacing a planner. Adding overly complex technologies on top of an already complex problem is difficult to maintain and can lead to a black box scenario where planners disregard the system because they cannot grasp the answer, irrespective of the elegance and accuracy of the mathematics.
My advice is that when choosing a tool, the focus should not be on the fanciest and most configurable technology but on empowering planners with suitable technology that enhances their capabilities without overwhelming them and MOST importantly guides them through the process and gives them easy access to all the information they need.
A Move Back to Pragmatism in Planning
The technologies available in supply chain planning are evolving at an incredible pace. But in selecting tools, companies need to be pragmatic. Success will come from first getting the basics right. The approach needs to start with methodology selection and planner training. Then the selected tool needs to allow your planners to easily (1) identify and fix bad data points, (2) follow a process (3) fine-tune the policy settings, and (4) have access to all the data they need to make the best decision. Once these foundations are in place which can take months or even years, then you will be ready for AI and more reconfigurability, because, then and only then, will your planners be ready.
My advice is that the true value of technology lies not in its configurability or sophistication but in its ability to seamlessly integrate your data with your existing processes and empower your planners to follow an agreed process and make great decisions every day. This sorts of solution are harder to create than bolting on some new flashy AI.
Think flow,
Kevin Boake
