Sales & Operations Planning - Best Practices: Lessons Learned
John Dougherty:John has, since 1977, provided direction for manufacturers and distributors seeking to improve their management controls and productivity levels.  John instructs private, company-focused education sessions on many topics, including:  logistics, value/supply chain management, lean manufacturing, ERP and manufacturing resource planning (MRPII) for senior, functional and project management; sales and operations planning (S&OP;); sales planning, forecasting and demand management; distribution resource planning (DRP); master production scheduling (MPS); supplier management; plant scheduling; and inventory record accuracy.John has guided companies to successful improvements in their logistics, lean manufacturing, resource management and planning and control processes and systems through a process management approach, utilizing state-of-the-art software tools, including ERP systems.  Many of them have reached the coveted "Class A" or "World Class" level of achievement.  His experience spans the electronics, consumer goods, food, medical products, capital goods, construction equipment, pharmaceutical and chemical industries.Areas of expertise and emphasis include:Logistics, lean manufacturing, value/supply chain, ERP and MRPII implementation projectsCross-functional business plan reconciliation and management through sales and operations planning (S&OP;)Sales planning, forecasting and demand managementMaster production scheduling (MPS) policies and approachesDistribution resource planning (DRP)Supplier managementPlant schedulingInventory record accuracy in all environmentsIssues specific to flow/process and repetitive industriesTechniques for planning and scheduling, inventory control and analysis, and    purchasingSystem effectiveness audits leading to "remedial" and "fine-tuning" approaches to maximize system benefitsJohn was co-founder of Partners for Excellence, and has been a senior partner for fourteen years.  For nine years he was a Principal of The Oliver Wight Associates.  For five years he provided and managed consulting for two major software vendors.  Prior to that, the positions he held included:  MRPII Project Manager, Materials Manager, Production and Inventory Control Manager and Corporate Planner/Master Scheduler.John holds an MBA (Summa Cum Laude) from the Rochester (NY) Institute of Technology and a BS in Business Management from the University of Dayton (OH).John is certified at the fellow level (CFPIM) by the American Production and Inventory Control Society (APICS).  He is a frequent speaker at international, regional and chapter meetings of many professional and industrial groups and has published numerous papers and articles concerning Management Improvement and Control.  John is the co-author, with Chris Gray, of the book "Sales and Operations Planning - Best Practices".  He was co-editor of the Sixth Edition of the APICS Dictionary, and a six-year member of the Master Planning Committee of the APICS Curricula and Certification Council.Christopher Gray:Chris Gray has been at the forefront of applying proven manufacturing management methods and concepts for three decades.  Since 1979, he has helped more manufacturing and distribution companies resolve resource planning software issues than anyone else in the field.  He has been involved in the design and development of both resource planning and lean manufacturing software.  His ideas about resource planning software (MRPII and ERP) have influenced the design of nearly every major supplier in the field, and his concepts of how lean manufacturing can be supported by software have been used by the leading supplier of enterprise software to the automotive sector to develop a comprehensive lean manufacturing system.He has authored four books, over thirty in-depth software evaluations, and thirty publi