• Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Supplier Directory
  • SCB YouTube
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Logout
  • My Profile

  • CORONAVIRUS
  • LOGISTICS
    • Air Cargo
    • All Logistics
    • Express/Small Shipments
    • Facility Location Planning
    • Freight Forwarding/Customs Brokerage
    • Global Gateways
    • Global Logistics
    • Last Mile Delivery
    • Logistics Outsourcing
    • LTL/Truckload Services
    • Ocean Transportation
    • Rail & Intermodal
    • Reverse Logistics
    • Service Parts Management
    • Transportation & Distribution
  • TECHNOLOGY
    • All Technology
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Cloud & On-Demand Systems
    • Data Management (Big Data/IoT/Blockchain)
    • ERP & Enterprise Systems
    • Forecasting & Demand Planning
    • Global Trade Management
    • Inventory Planning/ Optimization
    • Product Lifecycle Management
    • Sales & Operations Planning
    • SC Finance & Revenue Management
    • SC Planning & Optimization
    • Sourcing/Procurement/SRM
    • Supply Chain Visibility
    • Transportation Management
  • GENERAL SCM
    • Business Strategy Alignment
    • Education & Professional Development
    • Global Supply Chain Management
    • Global Trade & Economics
    • HR & Labor Management
    • Quality & Metrics
    • Regulation & Compliance
    • SC Security & Risk Mgmt
    • Supply Chains in Crisis
    • Sustainability & Corporate Social Responsibility
  • WAREHOUSING
    • All Warehouse Services
    • Conveyors & Sortation
    • Lift Trucks & AGVs
    • Order Fulfillment
    • Packaging
    • RFID, Barcode, Mobility & Voice
    • Robotics
    • Warehouse Management Systems
  • INDUSTRIES
    • Aerospace & Defense
    • Apparel
    • Automotive
    • Chemicals & Energy
    • Consumer Packaged Goods
    • E-Commerce/Omni-Channel
    • Food & Beverage
    • Healthcare
    • High-Tech/Electronics
    • Industrial Manufacturing
    • Pharmaceutical/Biotech
    • Retail
  • REGIONS
    • Asia Pacific
    • Canada
    • China
    • Europe
    • Latin America
    • Middle East/Africa
    • North America
  • THINK TANK
  • WEBINARS
    • On-Demand Webinars
    • Upcoming Webinars
  • PODCASTS
  • VIDEOS
  • WHITEPAPERS
Home » Top Technologies to Improve S&OP

Top Technologies to Improve S&OP

February 6, 2019
Ryan Sullivan & Mercy Harper, SCB Contributors

At its core, sales and operations planning (S&OP) has one simple goal: Allocate resources to match supply and demand. But that's easier said than done.

S&OP is often stymied by unreliable data, information silos, and scheduling challenges. Technology solutions promise to improve and streamline the process, and most organizations expect to invest more in S&OP tech in 2019. 

S&OP technology has evolved from a priority to a necessity. A recent APQC survey found that 76 percent of those surveyed expect to invest more in S&OP tech in 2019 compared to 2018, and 69 percent say that technology is a critical part of their S&OP process. Respondents pointed to several drivers of the imperative to adopt S&OP tech: better data management, the ability to derive actionable insights from data, and the need to achieve multidimensional goals.

Cloud computing and collaboration tools are the most widely-used technologies in the S&OP process, and with good reason: these technologies bring big benefits at a minimal cost. One of the main strengths of cloud computing is the ability to increase storage and processing power on demand without the delay and expense of acquiring hardware that is often only needed for short periods of time. Cloud also helps organizations integrate data from disparate sources, thereby improving the transparency and scalability of S&OP. The vast majority (94 percent) of organizations surveyed by APQC use cloud in their S&OP processes. Collaboration tools like Slack, Basecamp and Office 365 are also popular technology enablers for S&OP. These tools improve productivity and give leaders quicker insight into resource availability. APQC found that 64 percent of organizations use collaboration tools for S&OP.

Analytics is also gaining traction in S&OP. Used by 52 percent of those surveyed by APQC, analytics tools turn “big data” into actionable insights for demand forecasting, price management, inventory management, scenario modeling and market trend analysis. AI and IoT take this a step further by tracking inventory, expenditures, key performance indicators and disruptions in real time. However, these technologies are not yet widely used for S&OP: 26 percent of respondents use IoT and 21 percent use AI.

Supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) software allows organizations to monitor and control manufacturing and production processes with little human input, freeing up employees for value-added work. This technology promises great benefits but can also create security vulnerabilities. Cyber criminals know one way to disrupt an organization is to attack its SCADA system. Only 41 percent of those surveyed report using SCADA. This is unsurprising, given that APQC also found that reliability and security are organizations’ foremost concerns about implementing new technology. SCADA is a must-have for large manufacturers, but smaller organizations often choose to avoid its potential risks.

To successfully integrate any technology into S&OP, supply chain leaders will need to define use cases, selection criteria, and potential implementation barriers. Despite most organizations’ willingness to invest, APQC found the biggest obstacles to adoption are budgetary constraints and a lack of consensus about how to move forward. Supply chain leaders will need to reach across the organization to secure budget and buy-in.

The Outlook

Low-cost, user-friendly, and easy-to-implement technologies like cloud and collaboration tools are commonplace in the S&OP space. However, there is a bigger gap between the haves and have-nots when it comes to the leading-edge technologies—such as AI, IoT, and SCADA—that are most relevant for achieving truly effective, streamlined and strategic S&OP. Companies are prepared to make technology investments in 2019, and supply chain leaders must capitalize on this crucial moment of opportunity. 

Ryan Sullivan is a research analyst at APQC. Mercy Harper is a writer at APQC.

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED VIDEOS

Sales & Operations Planning
KEYWORDS S&OP Sales & Operations Planning Sales And Operations Planning
  • Related Articles

    i2 Technologies, Oracle and Demand Solutions Named Top S&OP Vendors by Aberdeen Group

    Top 5 Reasons S&OP Belongs in the Cloud: Integrating Cloud S&OP With ERP vs. Customizing ERP for S&OP

Ryan Sullivan & Mercy Harper, SCB Contributors

More from this author

Wake up to live
“Supply Chains in Crisis”
updates and the latest Supply Chain News!

Subscribe to our Daily Newsletter

Timely, incisive articles delivered directly to your inbox.

Popular Stories

  • Warehouse worker

    Why Higher Wages Alone Won’t Solve the Supply Chain Labor Shortage

    Warehousing
  • Adidas

    From Sneakers to Teslas, China Lockdowns Upend Global Supply Chains

    Coronavirus
  • Mobile App

    Podcast | Companies Are on a Shopping Spree for Supply Chain Software

    Technology
  • Medical drone

    Amazon May Be Proof That Delivery Drones Aren’t Practical

    Last Mile Delivery
  • ESG Guide

    Confronting the ESG Imperative in Supply Chains

Digital Edition

Scb may 2022 sm

2022 Supply Chain ESG Guide

VIEW THE LATEST ISSUE

Case Studies

  • 3PL Doubles Productivity With Robots to Fulfill Medical Supply Orders

  • E-Commerce Company Cuts Order Fulfillment Time by 40%

  • Fashion Retailer Halves Fulfillment Time With Omichannel Automation

  • Distributor Scales Business by Integrating Warehouse Automaton Software

  • Fast-Growing Fashion Brand Scales E-Commerce Fulfillment With Whiplash

Visit Our Sponsors

Yang Ming Alithya Barcoding
Blue Yonder BNSF Logistics Generix
GEP GIB USA GreyOrange
Here Honeywell Intelligrated Inmar
Keelvar Kinaxis Korber
Liberty SBF Locus Robotics Lucas Systems
Nvidia Old Dominion Parsyl
Redwood Logistics Saddle Creek Logistics Schneider Dedicated
Setlog Holding AG Ship4WD Shipwell
Tecsys TGW Systems Thomson Reuters
Tive Trailer Bridge Vecna Robotics
Whiplash    
  • More From SCB
    • Featured Content
    • Video Library
    • Think Tank Blog
    • SupplyChainBrain Podcast
    • Whitepapers
    • On-Demand Webinars
    • Upcoming Webinars
  • Digital Offerings
    • Digital Issue
    • Subscribe
    • Manage Your Subscription
    • Newsletters
  • Resources
    • Events Calendar
    • SCB's Great Supply Chain Partners
    • Supplier Directory
    • Case Study Showcase
    • Supply Chain Innovation Awards
    • 100 Great Partners Form
  • SCB Corporate
    • Advertise on SCB.COM
    • About Us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact Us
    • Data Sharing Opt-Out

All content copyright ©2022 Keller International Publishing Corp All rights reserved. No reproduction, transmission or display is permitted without the written permissions of Keller International Publishing Corp

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing