Discussion Prompt:
In this week’s Discussion chose a discussion topic from the following list (lifted from Sanders, p. 157):
1. Identify a nontraditional business event, such as forecasting demand for T-shirts following the Super Bowl, or the amount of relief aid needed following an earthquake. What do you think would be the best way to forecast such an event—qualitative or quantitative—and why? What are the implications of forecast error on supply chain management?
2. Think of a product you have recently purchased. How many different forecasts do you think the retailer had to make in order to decide how much product to stock? What are the consequences for that particular retailer if they had over-forecast versus under-forecast?
3. Imagine that you are starting an online retail business. What type of forecasting model would you use to decide how many different products you will be selling? Would you use the same forecasting model after you have been in business five years? Why or why not?
Identify an example where large errors would be extremely costly. Which forecast error metric would be best for this environment?
Identify the differences between the two methods of collaboration discussed in the chapter: CPFR and S & OP. How are they similar, and how are they different? Explain the differences in the organizational objectives they are trying to achieve.
