By: Mike Reed
Since Oliver Wight originated sales and operations planning (S&OP) in the early 1980s, it has become the business management process of choice for thousands of organizations all over the world. Over the years, S&OP has continued to evolve well beyond its original purpose as a mechanism for aligning demand and supply on a monthly basis. For a significant number of companies the process is now much more about strategic deployment and management. This is Integrated Business Planning (IBP), often referred to as advanced S&OP, and it recognizes the much greater level of integration of processes right across the organization.