The importance of a long range, continuous forecast process If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed . Thanks for visiting! I have had some recent discussions with several colleagues about forecasting versus budgeted forecasting in recent weeks, regarding an article posted on the Supply Chain Expert Community titled: Forecasting Mistake #1 -- Forecasting to the Wall . In summary, the author is stating a common problem when it comes to forecasting: the forecast is seen primarily as a budgeting and financial tool, so it is not maintained and utilized to its full potential throughout the year to anticipate customer demand and reduce lead times and inventory. If a budget forecast is prepared for the current year, when the year is half over, we only have visibility for the next 6 months. This leaves all periods outside this window as a large unknown in the demand space, which forces the supply chain to 'guess' at future requirements. This forces companies to then rely on increased safety stock buffer points to reduce lead times to customers, or to avoid missed delivery dates, a key customer metric. All this adds cost or reduces customer satisfaction, leading to a deteriorating competitive position and a reduced bottom line. The question is, how can this situation be improved? The answer is: forecasting should be viewed as an important tool in meeting corporate goals for growth and profitability, not just as a budget exercise. In order to leverage forecasting as a