Eric Wilson, CPF, Author at Demand Planning

Image of Chinese banknote with man wearing face mask

The Impact of Coronavirus On Your Forecasts

Eric Wilson, CPFFebruary 25, 2020

Managing demand variability is one thing but a global pandemic? That’s a whole different story. If you thought forecasting sales and understanding consumer behavior was hard enough, how do we make sense of a full-blown humanitarian disaster? The C... Read More...

AnalyticsModels & Methods1 Comment 0

Image of pair of glasses in front of a computer screen,

Should I Use Open Source Instead Of Demand Planning Software For Forecasting?

Eric Wilson, CPFFebruary 19, 2020

You’re not going to get advanced modeling like machine learning in Excel. Excel can’t handle large data sets either, making it clunky and problematic. And when you start feeding it multiple SKU’s or a whole lot of different variables, running all the... Read More...

Advanced AnalyticsAnalyticsSoftware & SystemsTechnology3 Comments 0

The Differences Between Descriptive, Diagnostic, Predictive & Cognitive Analytics

Eric Wilson, CPFJanuary 20, 2020

Thanks to Big Data, computational leaps, and the increased availability of analytics tools, a new age of data analysis has emerged, and in the process has revolutionized the planning field. With the explosion of data and the increasing desire to leve... Read More...

Advanced AnalyticsAnalyticsSoftware & SystemsTechnology0 Comments 0

Demand Planning Predictions For 2020

Eric Wilson, CPFJanuary 7, 2020

As forecasters, we rely on data to look at the past and use models to provide insight into the future – this is not one of those times. The following, rather, is what we refer to in the planning field as a qualitative forecast – unscientific and with... Read More...

Advanced AnalyticsAnalyticsPeopleSoftware & SystemsTechnology1 Comment 0

Overcoming The Challenges of Big Data

Eric Wilson, CPFDecember 17, 2019

We can no longer ignore data. Now that we have begun to define it and find new ways of collecting it, we see it everywhere and in everything humans do. Our current output of data is roughly 2.5 quintillion bytes a day and as the world becomes ever mo... Read More...

AnalyticsData0 Comments 0

Image of laptop screen with text 'Predictive analytics'

Predictive Analytics & Probabilistic Planning

Eric Wilson, CPFNovember 18, 2019

What if we not only knew what the forecast will be for an item for the next period, but also understood a range of potential outcomes for that item? What if we didn’t just have a number, but we also had a list of drivers that contributed to many p... Read More...

Advanced AnalyticsAnalytics3 Comments 1

How To Present Forecasts Properly

Eric Wilson, CPFOctober 2, 2019

When people talk about the forecasting/predictive analytics process, there is one crucial part we tend to miss out – the presentation. It is like running a marathon where we pour our blood sweat and tears into training, then in the race, we stop at ... Read More...

CollaborationCompetencies/SkillsPeopleProcessS&OP1 Comment 0

Differences between forecasting and predictive analytics

Differences Between Demand Forecasting & Predictive Analytics

Eric Wilson, CPFSeptember 19, 2019

For many companies and demand planners, predictive analytics seems revolutionary. To others, it is just a more advanced version of normal demand planning. The concepts of behavior predictions can be traced back to the year of 1689 and many of the new... Read More...

Advanced AnalyticsAnalytics0 Comments 1

Forecasting models underfitting overfitting

5 Tips to Reduce Over and Underfitting Of Forecast Models

Eric Wilson, CPFSeptember 2, 2019

When it comes to forecasting models, there is no one size fits all. And with different inputs, methods, and parameters, how do you choose the right one, and once you have a model, how do you evaluate it? Predictive modeling works on a feedback pri... Read More...

Advanced AnalyticsModels & Methods0 Comments 0

Forecaster’s & Planner’s Guide To Data

Eric Wilson, CPFAugust 26, 2019

In supply chain and operations, raw materials are substances that are used in the manufacturing of goods. They are the commodities to be transformed into another state that will either be used or sold. For algorithms or predictive models, data is th... Read More...

AnalyticsDataPredictive Analytics1 Comment 0