Understanding Concurrent Planning vs. Cascaded Planning
Traditional cascaded supply chain planning operates in silos, with each function optimizing its own area without considering the impact on the entire supply chain. This outdated model leads to misalignment, inefficiencies, and operational blindness. On the other hand, concurrent planning takes a holistic view of the entire planning network, aligning data in real-time to ensure changes in one part trigger corresponding adjustments throughout the chain. By unifying plans across all time horizons and granularities, concurrent planning empowers planners to comprehend past, present, and future impacts seamlessly.
Unlocking the Benefits of Concurrent Planning
Concurrent planning revolutionizes supply chain agility, enabling rapid responses to volatile market conditions. Planners gain the ability to proactively forecast, evaluate alternatives, right-size inventory, and enhance cross-team collaboration. The key benefits include improved agility in reacting to unexpected events, proactive planning to prevent disruptions, elimination of functional silos leading to more informed decisions, and shortened planning cycles due to real-time updates across the chain.
The Power of Integrated Technology in Concurrent Planning
Concurrent planning is not just a technique but a synergy of technology and methodology. Leveraging advanced supply chain planning and execution technology, concurrent planning employs cloud services, in-memory databases, what-if scenarios, digital twins, predictive analytics, and more to interconnect strategic and tactical aspects of the business seamlessly. With these integrated technologies, companies can enhance their forecasting accuracy, identify supply-demand misalignments, optimize inventory levels, and streamline S&OP processes for improved efficiency and accuracy.