Planning for uncertainty is every business planner’s nightmare, but if there’s one thing that the Covid-19 pandemic has taught us, it’s always to expect the unexpected. Like the weather, market conditions can vary immensely, and even a lengthy spell of sustained growth can be interrupted by outside influences over which businesses have zero control. Continue reading “How To Plan For Demand In An Uncertain Market”
Are You Ready For The Rebound? Planning For A Post-Lockdown Surge in Demand
The global Coronavirus pandemic that emerged in January 2020 has cratered demand worldwide for essential and luxury goods, services, and trade-able items.
As a dreaded ‘Black Swan’ event, COVID-19 has meant that many industries have had to scrap and revise years of demand projections. The Bank of England now predicts a contraction of c.-13% by Q4 2020, the worst yearly recession on record since 1706 and the worst ever recorded in real terms (FT, 7th May 2020).
Continue reading “Are You Ready For The Rebound? Planning For A Post-Lockdown Surge in Demand”
What Can COVID-19 Teach Us About Demand Forecasting and Planning?
The COVID-19 outbreak that has paralyzed the UK has had tragic, damaging consequences for almost everyone alive today. However, it is also a rare, positive opportunity to learn and gather new information about behavior during an exceptional time.
Learning lessons from COVID-19 allows us to become far more resilient and better prepared for the next ‘Black Swan’ event that hits us as a society. Strengthening supply chains means that people as a whole are better protected from psychological, economic, and health shocks such as COVID-19. Excellent forward planning can help preserve businesses and open up opportunities for growth in challenging times.
Continue reading “What Can COVID-19 Teach Us About Demand Forecasting and Planning?”
Supply Chain Management For Spikes In Demand
The recent COVID-19 crisis has highlighted how peaks in consumer demand can occur with little warning, with hand sanitiser, toilet roll, pasta and flour amongst the products that have disappeared from the shelves of the world’s supermarkets as a result of panic buying. But spikes in demand don’t only occur when a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic sweeps the globe, so manufacturers should be aware of the possibility for unexpected peaks and troughs to occur with little warning, with pressure on the supply chain vulnerable to extremes of weather, celebrity endorsements and shortages of raw materials, among other factors. Continue reading “Supply Chain Management For Spikes In Demand”
How Demand Forecasting Can Help Your Business
Markets in almost every sector are changing more quickly than ever, and a combination of this and increasingly volatile demand can make it hard to maximise your sales potential. Demand forecasting is a crucial tool in achieving this effectively, allowing your team to work as efficiently as possible in turning your employees’ hard work into increased profits. Continue reading “How Demand Forecasting Can Help Your Business”
Reflex Planning: A Reliable Forecasting Method For Effective Production Planning
Maximising efficiency in production is the key to maximising efficiency in your business as a whole. Reflex Planning’s software allows you to model and compare a variety of scenarios to see clearly how specific changes will affect your supply chain. The cost-effective modular packages let you maintain minimal obsolescence and avoid common problems such as stock-outs. Continue reading “Reflex Planning: A Reliable Forecasting Method For Effective Production Planning”
How To Accurately Forecast Sales
One of the most common misconceptions in sales is that demand forecasting is complex. It’s actually quite straightforward – but it isn’t easy. With the right approach and the right tools, though, you can succeed in forecasting demand and maximising your profits. Continue reading “How To Accurately Forecast Sales”
Why Is Sales Tracking So Important?
Measuring the performance of your sales team is crucial to maximising your chance of winning deals, and the right sales tools can make that task easier, quicker, and more effective. You’ll be looking to pinpoint both what’s working and what isn’t, and to have accurate, consistent and reliable data to draw on. Continue reading “Why Is Sales Tracking So Important?”
Preparing Your Annual Budget – Why Now Is The Time To Invest In A Forecasting Solution To Make 2020/21 Your Best Year Yet!
Demand forecasting can play a key role in the success or failure of your business by helping you to produce – and stick to – your annual budget. Therefore, it’s crucial that you’re using the correct tools for the job. Invest in our demand planning and forecasting software now and you could make 2020/21 a year to remember. You’ll be in a position to: Continue reading “Preparing Your Annual Budget – Why Now Is The Time To Invest In A Forecasting Solution To Make 2020/21 Your Best Year Yet!”
How To Plan Your Stock For Halloween – Don’t Give Your Customers A Fright!
Halloween is becoming a bigger deal in the UK every year, so maybe you experienced a significant sales peak as the autumn nights drew in last year. Did you perform as well as you wanted to? If you don’t want your customers or your bank manager to be horrified at your performance, you’ll need to be prepared. How can you make sure that you’re ready for this Halloween in 2020? Continue reading “How To Plan Your Stock For Halloween – Don’t Give Your Customers A Fright!”