If you have any knowledge of Demand Planning, I am sure that you have heard the following: “Demand Planners are like meteorologists, they rarely get credit for doing the job correctly and they’re only noticed when they get it wrong.” Even so, the bottom line is that there are serious and costly ramifications which can occur if these decisions are wrong. For this reason, the demand planning position can be one of the most important and visible in the company. It is a great place to impact many areas of business and gain corporate approval. It is best to take a positive approach and be an agent for fact based decision making. Using this approach, along with good communication skills, is a great avenue to gain the knowledge and build relationships that will prepare you for success and lead you along a career path with much variety.

Demand Planning is Transferable To Any Industry

Demand Planning touches every aspect of the business and the impact can make this person a valuable asset very quickly. It requires broad business knowledge and detailed customer interaction. Also, it is a functional area that has the ability to transfer these skills to any industry. It involves working with several areas of the business simultaneously and provides an excellent opportunity to tap into the  knowledge of others. Also, working in cross functional teams can be very rewarding by providing a lot of variability to the job and making it more pleasurable.
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Demand Planning Is A Collaborative Process That Provides Visibility, And Opens Doors

It is a collaborative process which aids in developing many relationships through the internal organization, as well as, customers and other suppliers. It is a highly visible position which can lead to new and exciting projects. Along with the knowledge to be gained from these groups, the relationships become an asset for your forecasting success and in turn your career path. Also, it can be very rewarding to work with other people to help them attain their goals and reach a collaborative decision that will benefit the entire company. A successful demand planner must become a leader in fact based decision making and a champion for change.

The Required Leadership In The Role Is a Challenge

Along with business knowledge and relationship building, leadership skills are also an asset to a successful demand planner. A successful demand planner uses the knowledge gained and is able to interact with customers, managers, sales representative, marketing, pricing and supply chain colleagues. Becoming a good communicator is imperative to collaboration among internal and external customers. This will enable the demand planner to guide various groups in terms that make sense to them and to reach consensus among the group. All of these things together help the demand planner to provide the best forecast possible which in turn will become a huge advantage for both the company and the demand planner.

Ultimately, a bad forecast leads to bad corporate decisions and the loss of career possibilities. Take the positive approach using business knowledge, building relationships and leading your colleagues to collaboration. Pave the way for fact based decisions that will benefit you and your company. Don’t become a victim and fall for the curse. I have learned over the years to approach my career and my life with gratitude and a “can I help you” attitude. This will take you farther than any expertise on any day. Curse or Blessing, well maybe it was best defined by the Beatles, “I get by with a little help from my friends.”

Sylvia Starnes
Demand Planning Leader
Continental Tire

Education in the demand planning arena is a critical part of achieving improved results. We here at Continental Tire are always looking for ways to increase our forecast accuracy and improve our customer relationships; IBF is one of our main sources for doing so. Over the years, it has been my experience that the more demand planning education that a forecaster has the better. During my career I’ve seen very few people move into higher education seeking to prepare for a career in demand planning. Most are promoted into the position and a good foundation is needed to prepare for the road that lies ahead.

Many managers have purchased and implemented forecasting software while the needs of the workforce are an afterthought. This should never be the case! While attending the IBF Leadership and Best Practices conference in Orlando last week, I heard one of the speakers say that we need to train our demand planners to understand what is inside the “black box” and how it works. This was a profound statement for me. This brought back several horrifying situations that I have had to displeasure to observe. Nothing is more embarrassing than to be sitting in a meeting and someone asks one of your direct reports how they came up with the numbers….and here it comes….. the dreaded answer: “the system gave it to me”! Once again, the BLACK BOX made my head spin around backwards.

It is management’s responsibility to give these professionals the foundation they need once they have been promoted into the demand planning arena. I have found that many managers think that just because the person has been successful in other areas they will just “catch on”. This is a huge leadership blunder. Here at Continental Tire, we require that all demand planning staff become a Certified Professional Forecaster through IBF. The book written by Dr. Chaman Jain, Fundamentals of Demand Planning and Forecasting, is a great avenue to understanding the foundation of the dreaded Black Box. It is written with many years of experience which is a wealth of knowledge for any demand planning professional.

This book prepares the demand planning professional to become a Certified Professional Forecaster through The Institute of Business Forecasting. This process consists of three exams for CPF and two additional exams for advanced segments. This certification can be the difference between a functional demand planning group and an exceptional demand planning team. I challenge all managers and leaders in demand planning to use this opportunity to educate their team and in turn accelerate key performance measures. Many thanks to Dr. Chaman Jain for sharing his knowledge in such a powerful way and for preparing many for a career in demand planning.

Moral of the story…. don’t let your team get caught in the black box. Take the time to educate.

Sylvia Starnes CPF
Senior Demand Planner
Continental Tire, The Americas, LLC

Sylvia Starnes recently presented at the 2014 Best Practices Conference at Disney’s Yacht & Beach Club Resort.  Sylvia serves as Senior Market Planner for Continental Tire. She holds a BA in Business Administration from Montreat College.  Sylvia is a Certified Professional Forecaster, (CPF) with IBF and Certified in Production and Inventory Management, (CPIM) and Supply Chain Professional, (CSCP) through APICS. Sylvia has 15 years experience in forecasting/demand planning and 10 years experience in logistics/warehouse management. She specializes in building customer relationships and demand planning collaboration.

Sylvia Starnes

Over the years, I have been asked this question many times and there are multiple thoughts on the matter. However, as a practitioner, I have a realistic, hands-on, down in the dirt, approach to the answer.  Having worked in three different manufacturing industries, I have seen several different ways the demand planner is hired and developed: 1) Outside hire with experience, 2) Internal promotion, 3) Graduate Intern, and 4) a Warm Body. Hiring managers tend to get caught up in the hiring process but the avenue of hire is not as important as the specific skills and attributes that enable a person to become a successful demand planner.

How Long Does it Take To Develop A Demand Planner?

Do you need an experienced employee? The first question to ask yourself is, do you have time to develop an internal candidate? It is my experience that it takes a minimum of one year to develop a demand planner. The first and most important qualification is the ability to analyze the situation, make knowledgeable decisions and influence others by getting their buy-in.   In today’s world of customer collaboration, soft skills are just as important as the mathematics and statistical background of a demand planner.The ability to lead by collective collaboration is a must.  In consensus forecasting, this individual should pave the way through the many silos within the organization.

Analytical Skills Are Key in Demand Planning, But That’s Not All

How important are analytical skills? Of course, a good mathematic background is essential; but the ability to make the numbers tangible for others is a key ingredient. The demand planner must be able to analyze the data and use the data to communicate effectively.  All too often I see demand planners who can’t get their head out of the numbers long enough to build the bridge. When conflicts arise and the pressure for a decision is necessary they get caught in analysis paralysis. Effective communication skills and the confidence to deliver the message are critical.  This individual must be able to see the small details and the big picture and know which is needed and when.
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Advanced Computer Skills As Standard

Good computer skills are the glue that will hold it all together.  Even though we say that our systems are totally integrated, we know that most of us have a little more digging in the details to do. Advanced Excel skills such as Vlookups, Pivot Tables, and Macros are necessary to link all the data together. A demand planner must be able to understand the hierarchy process of the industry and connect the necessary data. Presentations and communication will flow much better if the demand planner has the skills to develop and analyze the data which will be used to tell the story to multiple levels of management and customers.

Newcomers To Demand Planning: Expand Your Knowledge of Supply Chain

Supply Chain knowledge is the foundation for the demand planner.  A degree in Business, Engineering, Logistics or 5 years of demand planning experience tends to provide a high-quality start.  Moreover, I have found that most people think they understand basic supply chain theory; however, that could not be further from the truth. Most have only been exposed to a small segment of supply chain knowledge that can lead to poor planning and decision making.  The most fundamental part of building the knowledge necessary is to require the demand planner to have or obtain advanced training in the discipline of forecasting and supply chain. A professional certification is a huge benefit when linked to continuing education courses (CECs). Without this foundation, many will continue to operate within the silos which blind the supply chain view of the entire organization.

In closing, I have been in the forecasting field for close to 20 years and these are my observations, in an effort to learn more…please provide your feedback. What Makes A Good Demand Planner? Maybe you think it is snails and puppy dog tails?

Sylvia Starnes
Market Planning
Continental Tire