Category: Career Map

Top-tier companies that are successful in meeting demand with supply and maximizing profitability more than likely have a Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) process that is actively managed. S&OP has grown into a major business process in order to manage the balance and trade-off between conflicting preferences of the supply and demand side of the supply chain. It is one of the most critical business processes used to achieve “best in class” performance for companies to consistently outperform competitors. The S&OP process integrates demand, supply, and financial planning into a forward-thinking plan based on input from the organization’s key functional areas, including sales, marketing, manufacturing, distribution, and finance. S&OP links strategic plans to operational plans and strives to develop the most beneficial product portfolio and product mix to maximize sales and profit. The best S&OP processes include superior cross-functional participation and engagement from across the organization, working as a team with a specific person in the role of owner. Similar Job Titles: Sales Planning/Planner Supply Planning/Planner Demand Planning/Planner Demand/Supply Forecasting

In order for a company to stay on top of its game, it needs to be constantly looking at ways to perform more efficiently. Current processes need to be analyzed and changes made where improvements will optimize the organizational performance. A Continuous Improvement Specialist has this responsibility. A Continuous Improvement Specialist analyzes a company’s processes and makes suggestions on how to improve them, working with the Operations and Supply Chain teams in recognizing opportunities, making and implementing changes, and sustaining improvements. This position is most often found, but not exclusively, in a manufacturing company.

The Procurement Specialist is an integral position in facilitating the timely delivery of goods and services while keeping costs as low as possible.. Employees specializing in procurement manage vendor relationships and oversee order placement.

A store can’t sell merchandise if it doesn’t have the supply to meet the demand. It is critical to track and manage what is needed and what is available at all times. This is the responsibility of the Supply Chain Planner.

Demand Planning is the process that forecasts and manages consumer demand. This process works across many functional areas in a company in order to minimize excess and obsolete inventory, while mitigating out-of-stocks and supply chain disruptions.