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Our last article identified the key characteristics required to have an effective Executive S&OP process, particularly around the design of the monthly cycle. In this article, we will dive into the best steps to follow for an Executive S&OP presentation.
The structure and information presented in the Executive S&OP meeting is critical to an effective process. The Executive meeting is limited to one to two hours each month, so you need to make it count. Think of each family presentation as a “story” about what is going on in that family. Telling the story requires a focused, predictable, data driven presentation to keep the meeting on track and drive decision making. What is covered in this article is the recommended core of the Executive presentation.
These are the key elements of an effective Executive S&OP presentation:
Data should be organized and presented by family. This means sales, operations, supply chain, and engineering (new products) data should be presented at the same time for each family. Avoid having sales present demand data for all families, then switching to operations for all of the supply data. This will make it difficult to connect the demand and supply pictures for each family. You may provide a brief summary across the business at the beginning or the end of the meeting, however it is important that the balanced S&OP plan is presented by family.
The presentation should be prepared and distributed at least 24 hours before the meeting. Doing this will provide the participants (in particular your Senior Executive) time to review and familiarize themselves with the data. If the data follows a standard format across the families and from month-to-month it will be easy to review, understand the “story” for each family and prepare questions. If everyone comes prepared to the meeting, meetings will be more efficient and drive better decisions.
Follow a consistent format for each family. Using a standard presentation means participants can focus on what is being presented without having to translate data from different chart formats as you move through the families. Consistency on what is presented for each family will also increase accountability and engagement as everyone understands what is expected and what is presented. We recommend using the 5-Section Sheet to consolidate family data and get to the core of what is happening in the business.
The core of the presentation should at least include the following elements. Other slides may be required to cover such items as new product introductions or key sales initiatives, but the following should be covered.
The balanced family plan – the single version of the truth. We recommend using the 5-Section Sheet to present this core data for each family. This will provide a full view of the bookings, shipments, backlog, production (supply), inventory, and capability. It should cover the past (for validation), present (for accountability), and future (for execution and strategy).
Family Characteristics or Family Definitions: This includes some description of what is in the family, demand segmentation, lead-times, buffer strategy (Inventory Targets, lead times), key measurements, and accountability. You may not cover this slide, but documenting these characteristics will keep everyone on the same page. This is especially critical as new members join your team.
Documentation of Risks and Assumptions: These provide the background behind the plan numbers. Learn more about risks and assumptions.
Measurement of last month’s performance compared to plan. Out of tolerance performance should drive to root cause analysis. Performance should be measured for bookings, shipments, and production.
Identification of decisions required. Not all families will require decisions, but we recommend having a placeholder slide for each family.
The Executive S&OP presentation is just one of the key elements that make your S&OP a more effective process and help increase executive engagement. See the Executive S&OP: Best Practices to get a full picture of what an ideal process should be like.
You also can watch our related video, Good S&OP: Executive Presentation , which expands on implementing these points into your S&OP process.
Not quite sure how to incorporate these best practices into your S&OP process? We can help! Reach out to us. We can help you unlock the power of S&OP in your organization.
DBM Systems provides organizations with the coaching and tools to quickly start and sustainably run an effective S&OP process. Through the Virtual Accelerator process, you can implement a Executive S&OP process in just six months.
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