White Papers

You can access a full portfolio of inspirational white papers written by Oliver Wight Partners, with the very latest insights and advice for achieving best practice business excellence.
Click on the relevant category below to view our white papers.

 

 

Integrated Business Planning

Product & Portfolio

Demand Management

People & Change Management

Strategic Planning

Integrated Tactical Planning

Supply Chain Management

Digital

Enterprise Business Planning

Managing Uncertainty

Integrated Business Planning

Integrated Business Planning for High Performance Businesses

Integrated Business Planning is a common-sense process that delivers spectacular results.

Successful S&OP through Integrated Business Planning

Sales and Operations Planning can enable any organization to streamline its activities and boost profitability - but only if it is properly understood and implemented.

Transitioning from Sales and Operations Planning to Integrated Business Planning

Read this white paper to discover where your company is on the maturity of S&OP and the real benefits of transitioning from S&OP to Integrated Business Planning.

Don't fall for fake news; a buyer's guide to Integrated Business Planning

All around the world we are noticing a worrying trend: people being sold Integrated Business Planning (IBP) when what is delivered is simply traditional S&OP under a different name.

Using Integrated Business Planning to bring your sustainability strategy to life

While aligning business operations with environmental stewardship has been discussed for decades, it has never been as critical as in the current global context. 

Deploying Strategy with Integrated Business Planning – Management Business Review

This paper provides an overview of the fifth step in the Integrated Business Planning (IBP) process – The Management Business Review (MBR) – and its significance in shaping the future direction of the business and what it takes to be effective.

Deploying Strategy with Integrated Business Planning – The Integrated Reconciliation Review

This paper considers the role of the fourth step in the IBP process, the Integrated Reconciliation Review (IRR). In the IRR, the unresolved issues from the previous three steps are filtered and, where they cannot be addressed, prepared for escalation to

Doom looms or opportunity awaits

Discover how your organization can harness procurement and purchasing to maintain profitability in an uncertain world.

Deploying Strategy with Integrated Business Planning - Connecting Strategy to Execution

This white paper demonstrates the principles of connecting strategy to plans and execution in each business function using IBP as the means of deployment.

Assumptions Management Part 2: Structural Integrity

In part one of this white paper, we covered the 10 keys to effective assumption management. Part two investigates the structures and frameworks available to source and stimulate the thinking behind a company’s plans.

Navigating the decision: behavior, empowerment, and integration to support the information revolution

The higher up you go in most organizations, the more unreliable & challenging the information that drives decision making becomes. In this paper, we outline why leaders need to focus on business alignment to deliver a decision-making strategy that works.

From complexity to simplicity: The power of aligning people, process, and technology

Integrated Business Planning (IBP) helps organizations take a holistic view of their operations. It’s not about just co-ordinating every function around a well-defined strategy.

Assumptions Management Part 1: Controlling your future in an uncertain world

In this paper, we outline 10 keys to effective assumption management.

Five key factors to speed up your successful IBP journey: Intelligent solutions meet your integrated process.

In this paper, we outline five key steps to enabling a more integrated, sophisticated, and cost-effective IBP integration.

Gehen Sie Fake News nicht auf den Leim.

Überall auf der Welt lässt sich zurzeit ein besorgniserregender Trend beobachten: Kunden wird Integrated Business Planning (IBP) verkauft, geliefert aber wird einfaches, traditionelles S&OP unter falschem Etikett.

Transformer son S&OP en IBP

Beaucoup d'entreprises ne retirent pas tous les bénéfices potentiels de leur processus S & OP, car ce dernier n’a pas évolué au fil des ans et reste un simple équilibrage demande / supply. Oliver Wight a fait évolué le processus vers la Planification Inté

Navigating Uncertainty: Is Your IBP Process Fit for the Future?

Planning future performance is an integral part of most companies’ operations today – longer-term strategic planning, medium-term business planning, and annual operating planning and budgeting.

Scenario Planning Trigger Points – Creating an Integrated Response to Scenarios

Scenario Planning is crucial to the response and recovery to changes in our environment. This has always been true and is talked about everywhere in business planning today.

Getting the Most From Integrated Business Planning

This series of thought leadership articles has been carefully selected to help you assess the value of your Integrated Business Planning (IBP) process.

From Disorder to Agility

Read expert views from Oliver Wight and SAP and discover how to turn business disruptions into opportunities, thrive in difficult circumstances, and become a market disruptor yourself.

Boost Performance - Connect Strategy and Execution through Integrated Business Planning

Many companies struggle to bring their corporate strategies to fruition. They simply fail to execute.

Business Transformation in Global Organisations - Lessons learned and successes earned

Transforming a business in one location can present many challenges, so imagine how challenging this might be at a global level.

Who Owns Inventory? Stop the Blame Game

People frequently ask: Who owns inventory? They see inventory created as the result of actions or lack of execution by different functions of the company.

Unlocking The Potential - Harnessing the power of your people

This collection of articles is written by Oliver Wight Partner, Stuart Harman, and Managing Partner, Mike Reed, who have thirty-five years and twenty years of experience respectively.

Too Important to Fail: How to Ensure Improvement Projects Drive Sustained Success

I am at the point in my professional career where I have enough experience – and humility – to look back at what I have learned while leading and being a member of project teams.

Process Ownership

The benefits of being agile, flexible, and responsive in business today need little explanation. Continual change is vital to adapt to market needs and meet customer demand efficiently and profitably. Change management programs can bring huge gains.

Achieving Oliver Wight Class A Business Excellence Certification

Remember the good old days when managing a business was easy? Neither do we. Yet today, more and more business leaders complain about increasingly demanding customers who want lower prices, faster responses, and more product and service options.

Why Annual Planning Should Be a Significant Non-Event

Companies wedded to traditional annual planning and budgeting processes face significant risk of “losing” in the increasingly dynamic global marketplace.

The Day Exuberance Trumped a Proven Process

This white paper is about ensuring that Integrated Business Planning is adding value to the business.

Sustainable High Performance and Profitability

This white paper introduces and describes the steps necessary to start on the journey to Sustainable High Performance and Profitability and how to do it in a holistic manner.

Show me the money. The Role of Finance in Integrated Business Planning

One of the key differences between Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP) and Integrated Business Planning (IBP) is that IBP includes far more robust financial integration.

Retail rebooted: How to remain competitive in the 21st century

In the face of increasing consumer demands, a competitive market has become cut-throat, prompting today’s retailers to review and re-plan their future strategies today, in order to succeed tomorrow.

Re-examining Sales and Operations Planning/Integrated Business Planning Success

Sales and Operations Planning, and its evolution, Integrated Business Planning (IBP), is now the management process of choice in many leading organizations. It has proven to be a significant value driver.

Process Sustainability: the test of all good transformation programmes

Once a company deploys a transformation program and has achieved its goals, there is nothing more to do, right? Wrong. The best organizations have successfully maintained continual improvement through a sustainability plan.

People Watching: HR’s Role in Integrated Business Planning

Despite the increasing adoption of IBP and its general acceptance as ‘the way to run a business’, we still see instances where plans from certain functions in an organization are being left out. A key example is Human Resources (HR).

Our CEO is Losing Patience

Frustrated with Your Company’s IBP Process? Read this white paper. Oliver Wight Partner, Crystal Lee recalls the day a professional friend asked for help. “Our CEO is losing patience,” he told her.

One of a Kind; How Middle-Market Companies Leverage Integrated Business Planning

This white paper explains how middle market companies are developing financial discipline and managing and sustaining the right growth. It’s a proven process that is not reserved for only big companies.

Managing Vulnerabilities and Opportunities with Integrated Business Planning

In the dynamic business environment of today, organizations need to have an effective tool for managing risk and contingency.

Linking CPFR with Integrated Business Planning

Leading companies continue their migration towards best practices and emerging technologies as they strengthen their supply chain, both within their own corporation and externally with their trading partners.

Is your S&OP or IBP Process Delivering the Results you Expected?

In this white paper, Oliver Wight Partners share their thoughts on challenges that some Sales and Operations Planning or Integrated Business Planning processes encounter.

Integrated Business Planning in Developing Markets

Integrated Business Planning is fast becoming the management process of choice in successful businesses. However, business leaders in developing markets often question the suitability of the process for volatile, fast-changing, or high-growth environments

Integrated Business Planning for Effective Decision Making

Today, Integrated Business Planning sits at the heart of many organizations as the management process that runs the business, covering all the core functions from product development and operations, to sales, marketing, and finance.

Integrated Business Planning (Advanced S&OP) Class A Behaviors in a Matrix Environment

This white paper focuses on the principles and behaviors required to successfully operate Integrated Business Planning in a matrix environment.

Integrated Business Planning - Retail's Therapy

The retail industry is a difficult terrain to navigate. Following years of tough, frankly bleak conditions, at last, the retail market is showing positive signs.

IBP: At Your Service - Integrated Business Planning lessons from Retail, Medical and Scientific organizations

A number of more “traditional” manufacturing & distribution-based organizations are struggling to successfully deploy S&OP and IBP.

How Good Is Your Sales and Operations Planning/Integrated Business Planning Process?

The magic to successful S&OP/IBP is that regular, routine realignment and synchronization of all functional plans brings simultaneous improvement in those functional areas and that many organizations are not getting the available bottom-line results.

Functional Transformation Integrated Business Planning Through the Eyes of the CFO

Nancy Reynolds has served as Chief Financial Officer for several companies. She knew that sometimes the financial organization was called the “Watch Dog.” That did not bother her.

Five Simple Questions - How to get the best from your S&OP or IBP process

Oliver Wight has developed a series of five questions – simple ‘must-haves’, which can be used in each of the five Integrated Business Planning (IBP) review meetings to ensure they address the key issues facing the business in a standardized way.

FastTrack Methodology

FastTrack implementation methodology requires behavior change which can be achieved through a better understanding of Integrated Business Planning.

Critical Success Factors in IBP Implementation

More and more companies are discovering the power of Integrated Business Planning (IBP) in allowing senior management to plan and manage the entire organization. So what makes for an effective IBP implementation?

Avoiding Atrophy in Your Planning Process

In this white paper, we define Integrated Business Planning and Integrated Planning and Control and outline the causes of a decline in the business planning processes that can lead to atrophy.

Aggregate Planning

This white paper details Robert Hirschey’s experience in using aggregate planning to keep executives “out of the weeds” and focused on the “big picture.”

ABC for Integrated Business Planning

This white paper looks at how ABC analysis is the perfect tool for formalizing processes, focusing on the things that matter most, and establishing clarity across the business.

Unshackling your organisation through business decompression

In the 21st century, organizations are under more pressure than ever before to deliver growth and increased margins.

Get Rhythm: The Operating Cadence of Integrated Business Planning

When Integrated Business Planning does not yield the expected results, look at the schedule and cadence of the process. In this new white paper, Eric Deutsch and Timm Reiher answer frequently asked questions about the cadence of IBP.

Marketing's Role in the Integrated Business Planning Process

The white paper underscores why the marketing group is a critical stakeholder within Integrated Business Planning and how marketing impacts product management and business development.

Scenario Planning: A necessary skill to drive better decision making in IBP

In this white paper, we provide insights on how to best utilize Integrated Scenario Planning as a decision-making tool for agile response and rapid recovery during and after a crisis.

Product & Portfolio

Part 1: The IBP advantage: a roadmap for marketing and product teams to collaboratively deliver success

In today’s dynamic business landscape, the role and integration of marketing and product teams has become a critical success factor in achieving organizational success.

Part 4: The IBP advantage: a roadmap for marketing and product teams to collaboratively deliver success

In this final part, we will focus on why brand growth principles and marketing campaigns need to be integrated and managed through the portfolio steps of Integrated Business Planning (IBP).

Part 3: The IBP advantage: a roadmap for marketing and product teams to collaboratively deliver success

Welcome to part three of this white paper series. We are going to spend some time looking at the role of innovation and the benefits a clear innovation strategy and execution framework can deliver to unlock portfolio growth.

Part 2: The IBP advantage: a roadmap for marketing and product teams to collaboratively deliver success

While many organizations perform a regular deep dive portfolio performance review, at some point, it’s important to ask why, and what does it actually achieve?

Deploying Strategy with Integrated Business Planning - The Portfolio Review

Discover why the first step in the IBP cycle - the Portfolio Review - plays an important role in deploying an organization's strategy.

Integrating Product Management

One of the lessons to come out of the global recession is that effective management and control of the product portfolio are critical to sustained success. Regular innovation is vital for profitable growth.

Driving Excellence in Product Management

Establishing an excellent product management process requires integration of five primary process elements: strategy, product management, portfolio management, project management, and resource management.

Integrated Product Portfolio and Project Management: The art of new product demand planning

To ensure companies achieve the greatest value from their IBP process, the Portfolio Review must be effectively integrated with the Demand Review.

Healing Healthcare - transforming the drug life cycle

Big pharmaceutical organizations will tell you that innovation is at the heart of what they do. They all rely on robust research and disciplined development processes to bring new drugs to market in a cost­-effective way.

Product and Service Portfolio Rationalization

New products and services are vital to enable companies to open up new markets and attract new customers, by differentiating themselves from their competitors.

Demand Management

Deploying Strategy with Integrated Business Planning – The Demand Review

Demand should drive the business and advanced demand planning capability is essential in linking strategy to planning and execution via the IBP process.

Getting the Most From Demand Management

Read a series of articles written by our Partners who gained hands-on, real-world demand management experience in industry before joining Oliver Wight.

Ausblick ins Ungewisse

Lässt sich in diesem Umfeld verlässlich vorhersagen, wie das Geschäft in zwei oder drei Jahren aussieht? Diese Prognose ist schwieriger, aber auch wichtiger denn je. Ein robuster Integrierter Unternehmensplanungsprozess (Integrated Business Planning Proce

Bedarfssegmentierung

Segmentierung meint nicht nur die Reaktion auf unterschiedliche Bedürfnisse der Verbraucher von heute. Es geht darum, langfristige Trends zu erkennen, zu wissen, was Kunden wollen, noch bevor sie es selbst wissen. Es geht darum, rechtzeitig zu agieren und

Making the Case: The ROI of Demand Management

This paper shows how to evaluate and communicate the value of improving the credibility of the demand plan. Several templates are included to help in quantifying and documenting the return on investment.

Want to Execute Your Strategy and Improve Financial Performance?

This white paper tells the story of one company that links Demand Management to strategy via its IBP process – and one company that does not. The white paper contrasts the financial performance of the two companies.

Uncertain Outlook: Managing The Sales Management Process with Vulnerabilities and Opportunities

In this environment, predicting what the business will look like in two or three years' time is more difficult but more important than ever.

The Power of Insight - Statistical forecasting as part of integrated demand management

Success in today’s consumer-driven business climate depends on meeting customer demand as efficiently and profitably as possible.

Role of Technology in Demand Management

Crum and Palmatier write about best practice solutions that will improve overall business performance for supply chain partners and all functions within a company impacted by the demand management process.

Relationships - The key to Effective Demand Planning

Poor forecasts are often symptoms of poor customer relationships. This paper deals with the role of sales account managers in developing collaborative relationships with key customers.

Realising the full potential of demand planning - Part 2

Written by Oliver Wight Partner, Rod Hozack, and the final installment of a two-part series, this paper focuses on the importance of behavior to influence change, as well as identifying the actions to take to positively impact the long-term demand plan.

Realising the Full Potential of Demand Planning - Part 1

In this two-part series, we explore how the longer-term demand plan should play a more prominent role in businesses. This first part will deal with the key elements in setting up the demand planning and forecasting process.

Forecasting & Communicating Project Demand to the Supply Organization

This paper is designed to help demand managers and planners recognize different demand streams and how to treat them, identify, categorize, and review project demand, and how to forecast and communicate demand and develop "what if" scenarios.

Forecast Measurement and Evaluation

In this white paper, George stresses the importance of forecasting and why accuracy should be measured. You will find information on how to measure forecasts, what to expect, how to evaluate results, and how to handle inaccuracies.

Effective Demand Planning

Arguably, all successful business planning and supply chain optimization begins with effective demand planning.

Demand Sensing and Execution – Staying ahead of the consumer revolution

Today, the consumer market is a battleground, with brands fighting on all fronts to vanquish competitors. Winning is not easy.

Demand Segmentation

Segmentation is not just about responding to the varying needs of consumers today. It’s about anticipating long-term trends, thinking ahead of the game, and predicting what customers want, even before they do.

Demand Review - Tell the Story

We advise clients implementing Integrated Business Planning to understand and adopt a true aggregate planning process and redesign their Demand Review.

Demand Planning - Where Does it Fit in the Organization

Ron Ireland discusses the pros and cons of demand planning residing in the supply side of the business and its impact on accuracy. Read why the “Pull” method has become the method of choice over “Push”.

Demand Management - Lessons Learned

This white paper is based on the lessons learned by Oliver Wight Partners in helping companies, large and small, implement demand management processes over the past 20 years.

Demand Management - A sales and marketing process

In the consumer-driven business climate of today, the most successful organizations are those that can meet customer demand, as efficiently and profitably as possible.

Demand Control - An often missing link in a demand management process

This white paper defines demand control and the role of the Demand Controller, outlines the benefits of a good demand control process, and provides a compelling argument for why a demand control process should be in place.

Blind Spot - How Demand Management and Integrated Business Planning Are Used to Optimize Trade Spend Investment

Any company struggling to manage trade spend will find this white paper useful. It provides a case example of a company that optimized trade spend investment using Demand Management and Integrated Business Planning processes.

One Number Planning; The consequences and cure for misaligned plans

Forecasts are like opinions in many companies. Everybody seems to have one, and that’s a problem. In this white paper, we highlight how executive behaviors can make – or break – a company’s ability to plan and execute well.

Do people trust your demand plan? How reducing bias improves credibility and financial performance

All often, companies put in the effort to develop a consensus demand plan but don’t realize the benefits.

People & Change Management

Method to Meaning™: Why Complex Transformation No Longer Delivers

A visual guide to Oliver Wight’s Method to Meaning approach – insights from a presentation at Gartner’s Supply Chain Symposium 2025.

Managing Change

Change is difficult and painful for individuals and companies alike. It is also a fundamental part of staying in business. Nonetheless, there are ways of diminishing the grief and managing the process.

Managing People and Behaviours

To stay on top in today’s complex and competitive business environment it is more important than ever for organizations to keep improving performance and strive for business excellence.

Strategic Planning

Strategic Planning Bringing the Future Forward

Oliver Wight’s Lloyd Snowden explains why a robust strategic planning process is essential to ensure that decisions made today will be aligned with the future needs of the business.

Strategy in Action

Establishing a strategic direction and then deploying it, is fundamental for any company; easier said than done?

Connecting Strategy to Execution With Integrated Strategy Management

The president of a manufacturing company hated surprises, especially financial surprises. Jack had more than a decade of experience in leading companies. Yet, those companies rarely achieved their strategies as planned.

Strategic Planning - An Executive's Aid for Strategic Thinking, Development, and Deployment

In this white paper, George Palmatier discusses strategic thinking, development, and deployment including techniques for communication, alignment, and continuous evaluation of the strategic planning process.

Integrated Tactical Planning

Effective Execution of S&OP/IBP Plans through Integrated Tactical Planning

Many companies that have embarked on an Integrated Business Planning implementation still find senior managers being dragged into short-term tactical issues and problem-solving.

What are you doing 13 weeks from now?

David Goddard looks at how the 13-week Master Scheduling Review, and its transition to Integrated Tactical Planning, can support the short-term Integrated Business Planning (IBP) plan.

Supply Chain Management

Reduce, reuse, recycle – building a sustainable supply chain

Until a few years ago, if you’d asked any senior leader or executive the most important contributing factor to the ‘sustainability’ of their business they would most likely have answered that it was rate of growth and financial profitability.

The role of Supply Chain in the 21st century

In today’s fast-paced world, businesses are battling to win the short-lived affections of an increasingly fickle customer base, as consumer appetite for newer, better, and brighter offerings, cheaper and more quickly never seems to be satisfied.

Inventory as a Consequence - Improving supply planning

Too much inventory or not enough. It’s the eternal struggle at the heart of effective supply chain management, but it’s an equation organizations continually get wrong.

Deploying Strategy with Integrated Business Planning – The Supply Review

The Supply Review is the third step in the monthly Integrated Business Planning (IBP) process. It is where supply chain articulates its response in a forward-looking, time-phased plan within the context of well-defined tactics and strategies.

Supply Review – delivering value

In this white paper, we examine the role of the Supply Review in Integrated Business Planning and how to use it to add real value to your business.

Conception et Optimisation de la Supply Chain – Bâtir des relations entre les différents acteurs de la supply chain

Dans le contexte mondial actuel d’incertitude économique et d’accroissement continu de la concurrence, le client reste le roi. Bien que l’argent se fasse parfois rare, les clients demandent toujours un meilleur service, plus de valeur et des prix plus com

Avoid Being a ‘One Dimensional’ Business

Lloyd Snowden shares the importance of multiple concepts and explains why businesses must avoid being 'One Dimensional'.

Inventory Is Not a Problem; It is a Symptom An Executive Overview

The president of a client company asked the all too common question: “We have an inventory problem! We always seem to have too much, too little, or the wrong mix. What do we need to do differently?”

Supply Chain Design & Optimization - Building Supply Chain Relationships

Keeping your own business under control and simply relying on your customers and suppliers to do the same in today's business environment, is no longer sufficient.

Managing the Private Label Supply Chain

Today, most manufacturers are either already engaged in supplying private-label products, or wrestling with the decision as to whether they should introduce a private-label strategy.

Laying the Foundation - Six Steps to 95 Percent Inventory Record Accuracy

The world-class standard for inventory record accuracy today stands at 99.5 percent - as a minimum. The harsh reality is that most companies still are still struggling with inaccurate inventory records.

Kanban and Enterprise Resource Planning - The True Understanding of Lean

This white paper debunks the myths that Kanban and Enterprise Resource Planning are mutually exclusive. The authors explain how to use both together to create a demand-driven system that is responsive to demand volatility and uncertainty.

Gearing up for growth - Speed, agility and cost-efficiency; the future of the automotive supply chain

Fuelled by PPI compensation windfalls, attractive finance deals and shorter buying cycles (due to perceived savings from the efficiency of new cars), the automotive market, at last, appears to be on the road to recovery following six years of decline.

Framing the Problem Statement - Investments in the Extended Supply Chain Should Not Be Made Blindly

In this detailed article, Jim Matthews emphasizes the importance of determining the root causes of issues in order to develop appropriate solutions. Build trust, develop cross-operational teamwork, and enhance communication to restore customer confidence.

The Lean Enterprise

To become lean in business, we must remove fat or waste to leave just those activities that add value to either the external or internal customer. However, understanding what is of value and applying this to all aspects of a business is difficult.

Supply Chain Management - A Year in the Life

This collection of supply chain articles, written by Oliver Wight Partner, Kirsty Braines, was first published as an ‘Expert View’ series in the National Computing Centre (NCC)’s Conspectus magazine.

Digital

Digital Disruption - is your organisation ready?

In today’s environment, the pace of change is accelerating at a fierce rate; it took 38 years for radio to reach 50 million users, 13 years for television, three years for the internet, but just 19 days for the Pokémon Go app.

Healing Healthcare - Future-proofing your master data

Why does the healthcare industry struggle with data accuracy? We have a recurring scenario with many of our healthcare clients. It starts with their unshakeable belief that their data is accurate; ‘it must be, right. We're in a highly-regulated industry.'

Managing Uncertainty

Planning through stagflation. The role of agility and accountability in driving continued growth

Gaps in processes and poor utilization of resources can lead to inertia and decline. Organizations need to align, organize and adjust their operating models if they are to plan and execute effectively in the current volatile environment.

Analyze. Redefine. Transform. The art of creating a proactive, aligned strategy fit for future growth.

Many business strategies will have been rocked by the COVID-19 pandemic. The short and longer-term effects of this will be devastating for those that do not pivot and evolve strategies to capitalize on new opportunities. There is no going back.