Unlock the Power of Concurrent Planning – 5 Best Practices

Victoria Klimova

Published Jun 29, 2023

The Future of Supply Chain Planning is Concurrent

Concurrent planning can bring significant benefits to supply chain management. By enabling real-time visibility and collaboration, concurrent planning can improve response time, agility and cost optimization. It can also enhance accuracy, resilience and on-time delivery – all of which are critical for achieving high customer satisfaction.

Concurrent planning involves coordinating different planning activities and processes across the business simultaneously, rather than sequentially. This approach allows cross-functional teams to share data seamlessly, understand the impacts of changes immediately, and adjust plans accordingly. It also facilitates inputs from various external sources, including suppliers and customers, which can help synchronize schedules and improve planning accuracy.

Natural disasters, pandemics and other disruptions can challenge supply chain planning. With concurrent planning, companies can model different scenarios and probabilities and simulate possible outcomes, enabling them to better understand the potential impact of various events and disruptions on their supply chain. And by analyzing historical data on the occurrences of disruptions and their effects, planners can identify potential risks and develop contingency plans that position them to respond quickly to unexpected events.

How Cloud-Based Solutions like Kinaxis RapidResponse Drive Change

Cloud-based planning solutions with algorithms and machine learning elements, such as Kinaxis RapidResponse, can further enhance concurrent planning. These solutions provide real-time visibility and data for all business functions involved in the supply chain lifecycle, enabling collaboration and more precise and realistic integrated business plans.

To make the most of Kinaxis RapidResponse, companies should consider the following best practices to improve their supply chain performance with concurrent planning:

1 Ensure data accuracy and visibility: The tool relies on accurate real-time data to generate insights and recommendations. Companies should ensure that their data is up-to-date, accurate and visible to all relevant stakeholders.

2 Collaborate across departments: Concurrent planning involves collaboration across different departments, including sales, operations, finance and supply chain. To gain a holistic view of their supply chain and make more informed decisions, all relevant stakeholders must be involved in the planning process.

3 Use advanced analytics: Kinaxis RapidResponse includes advanced analytics and machine learning capabilities that can provide insights into complex supply chain problems. Companies should leverage these capabilities to identify trends, forecast demand and optimize supply chain performance.

4 Monitor performance metrics: To ensure that their supply chain meets its targets, companies should track and monitor real-time performance metrics such as on-time delivery, inventory levels and production efficiency. This can be done using RapidResponse’s dashboards and reporting capabilities.

5 Continuously improve: Concurrent planning is an iterative process that requires continuous improvement. Leverage RapidResponse to test different scenarios, evaluate performance and identify areas for improvement.

By improving transparency, collaboration and responsiveness, concurrent planning can help companies navigate disruption, reduce costs, and deliver exceptional customer experiences. Those that adopt concurrent planning early are likely to gain a competitive advantage.

F. Robert Jacobs

Professor Emeritus of Operations Management

Operations and Decision Technologies

Indiana University, Bloomington

jacobs

812-219-5088