{"id":2297,"date":"2013-12-06T09:39:04","date_gmt":"2013-12-06T14:39:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/demand-planning.com\/?p=2297"},"modified":"2013-12-06T09:39:04","modified_gmt":"2013-12-06T14:39:04","slug":"what-makes-a-good-demand-planner-sugar-and-spice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/demand-planning.com\/2013\/12\/06\/what-makes-a-good-demand-planner-sugar-and-spice\/","title":{"rendered":"What Makes a Good Demand Planner? Sugar and Spice?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Sylvia<\/a>

Sylvia Starnes<\/p><\/div>\n

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.\u00a0 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.<\/p>\n

How Long Does it Take To Develop A Demand Planner?<\/h2>\n

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 <\/span>of one year to develop a demand planner<\/strong><\/a>. The first and most important qualification is the ability to analyze the situation, make knowledgeable decisions and influence others by getting their buy-in.\u00a0 <\/span>\u00a0In today\u2019s 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.\u00a0 In consensus forecasting, this individual should pave the way through the many silos within the organization.<\/p>\n

Analytical Skills Are Key in Demand Planning, But That’s Not All<\/h2>\n

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<\/span>.\u00a0 All too often I see demand planners who can\u2019t 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. \u00a0This 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<\/h2>\n

Good computer skills are the glue that will hold it all together.<\/span>\u00a0 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.<\/p>\n

Newcomers To Demand Planning: Expand Your Knowledge of Supply Chain<\/h2>\n

Supply Chain knowledge<\/strong><\/a> is the foundation for the demand planner<\/span>.\u00a0 A degree in Business, Engineering, Logistics\u00a0or 5 years of demand planning experience tends to provide a high-quality start. \u00a0Moreover, 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. \u00a0The 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<\/strong><\/a> 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.<\/p>\n

In closing, I have been in the forecasting <\/a><\/strong>field for close to 20 years and these are my observations, in an effort to learn more\u2026please provide your feedback. What Makes A Good Demand Planner? Maybe you think it is snails and puppy dog tails?<\/p>\n

Sylvia Starnes<\/strong>
\nMarket Planning<\/strong>
\nContinental Tire<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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.\u00a0 Having worked in three different manufacturing industries, I have seen several different ways the demand planner is hired and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2467,"featured_media":3836,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[82,271,255,263,62,41,65,66,162,34,68,260,273,35,36,76,248,81,251,236,264,37,274,73,74,270,258,38],"class_list":{"0":"post-2297","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-forecasting-and-planning","8":"tag-apics","9":"tag-apo","10":"tag-big-data","11":"tag-certification","12":"tag-collaborative-forecasting","13":"tag-data-cleansing","14":"tag-demand-forecasting","15":"tag-demand-management","16":"tag-demand-planner","17":"tag-demand-planning","18":"tag-executive-sop","19":"tag-finance","20":"tag-forecast-value-added","21":"tag-forecasting","22":"tag-ibf","23":"tag-ibp","24":"tag-innovation","25":"tag-inventory-management","26":"tag-marketing","27":"tag-metrics","28":"tag-new-products","29":"tag-sop","30":"tag-sale","31":"tag-sales-operations-planning","32":"tag-sales-forecasting","33":"tag-sap","34":"tag-siop","35":"tag-supply-chain"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/demand-planning.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2297"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/demand-planning.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/demand-planning.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demand-planning.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2467"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demand-planning.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2297"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/demand-planning.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2297\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demand-planning.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3836"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/demand-planning.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2297"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demand-planning.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2297"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demand-planning.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2297"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}