Ask the Expert - S&OP or SIOP - What's the Difference?

In our “Ask the Expert” series, Doug the S&OP expert answers the most frequently asked questions about S&OP. Doug addresses the risks that can arise by focusing on the Inventory in SIOP, rather than the “and” in S&OP. Inventory is important, but it is only one buffer that can assist the S&OP process; lead time and upside flex are also important. Putting Inventory in the name puts an emphasis on it, which sometimes ends up guiding the whole process for a company.
Instead, calling the process S&OP allows companies to pivot their attention to the essence of S&OP: balancing supply and demand. Once this is the main priority, accountability, responsibility, and ownership can then be assigned, and any imbalances can then be managed with those three buffers.
Leave your S&OP questions in the comments or write us an email at [e-mail]
Watch our other Ask the Expert videos in our playlist here: • Ask the S&OP Expert
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[@rogersim40]

Excellent justification. Getting an 'I' between the S and O pretty much shifts the order of importance more towards inventory, which shouldn't be the case. Supply and Demand must be at the core of SC planning.

[@DBMSystemsLTD]

I couldn't agree more. As you can tell from the video, it is an important buffer and decision as part of the process, but it's only one of the tools at your disposal for balancing the S & O and helping the organization make strategic decisions. If you haven't already, you can take our "Clarity Compass" to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of your S&OP process. You can find it here claritycompass.dbmsys.com/ Thank you for the feedback!

[@joshuabanks2066]

Great overview !

[@DBMSystemsLTD]

Thank you!