Route to Market & Supply Chain Blog

Our mailbag is expanding ... Sire To S&OP or not to S&OP: That is the question: Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer The claims and errors of outrageous sales forecasts Or to make plans against a sea of market uncertainties, And by opposing end…

In the past week I have met two Sales Directors from blue-chip FMCG companies to discuss an assessment review of their RTM network. Surprisingly, neither Director was interested and gave a remarkably aligned reason for this rejection. “All this does…

From Monty Python to S&OP via integrated supply chain planning to forecasting and related issues, and a conclusion shared by our two protagonists that S&OP is not really necessary, we received the following in our mailbag ... Dear Mike, I have been…

The recession rumbles on and on and on. Greece, then Ireland; who is next in line for a heavy duty IMF/EU bale out? Should Spain become the next country to hit the financial wall that would send a few shock waves around Europe. So why is Interim…

Dear Mr. K Ite, Thank you for your very short note highlighting some minor points; I can see you are a little aggrieved. On behalf of Santa I will attempt to minimise your apparent unease with the S&OP process in the context of the small print in…

Dear Santa, I refer to the recent blog article, "Santa & Opening Presents; Why S&OP is Invaluable at Christmas". As I mentioned in the consultation process just prior to S&OP implementation, I was prepared on behalf of our members to support the…

Last time we started a debate entitled “Is S&OP really necessary?”. Our protagonists are REGINALD, the CEO of a multinational FMCG company and JACEK the new Head of Supply Chain Development at the same company.Both do not believe that S&OP is really…

“Dashing through the snow In a one horse open sleigh…” How many of you actually started to sing then? Yes, the festive period is fast approaching and the biggest and best Supply Chain in the world is almost ready to activate. There is no way Santa…

Having met the protagonists, let’s see if S&OP is really necessary. First, let’s remind ourselves of the players: REGINALD is CEO of a multinational FMCG company.He does not believe that S&OP is necessary for his business and expressed his views in…

Ok, I will admit to something. I started my career as an R&D type who helped bring FMCG products to the market. Nobody really knew how a product made the transition from bench top and pilot plant testing to the supermarket shelves. Somebody must…