T.F. Wallace - leading professional in Sales & Operations Planning, Sales Forecasting, and Master Scheduling

Here are some related sites that you may find helpful. These are all people and organizations whom we know, respect and trust. - Tom & Bob

APICS: The Association for Operational Management is the professional society that is closest to Sales & Operations Planning, and it holds a strong and growing position in overall Supply Chain Management, It has several excellent certification programs, including the recently introduced CSCP (Certified Supply Chain Professional). Bob and Tom together have over 70 years of APICS membership, and are strong supporters of the association. We speak frequently at APICS events, at both the national and chapter level.

Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals describes supply chain management as a set of processes that "integrates supply and demand management within and across companies." We endorse that and we applaud CSCMP's efforts in this area. Formerly the Council of Logistics Management, the organization recently changed its name to reflect its broadened mission. CSCMP is probably the most "member friendly"professional organization active in the supply chain field.

The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport is the professional body for everyone in the logistics, passenger transport, transport planning and related industries and is dedicated to supporting, developing and representing all specialisms at all stages of career development. Membership of CILT, which is represented in more than 30 countries across the world, gives you the tools you need to realise your ambitions and progress throughout your career, by keeping you informed of the latest news and information as well as by providing comprehensive opportunities for continuous professional development.

The Institute of Operations Management is somewhat the APICS counterpart in the United Kingdom. This is a very active organization, providing frequent educational events and publications. Its periodical, Operations Management, is published six times per year and is a fine piece of work. The IOM has special interest groups in the following fields: Healthcare and Pharmaceutical Forum, Globalisation, Outsourcing and Offshoring Forum, IT in Operations Forum.

The Institute of Business Forecasting is widely regarded as a premier provider of information on a very difficult process: sales forecasting and demand management. In addition, the IBF is now active in related fields: Sales & Operations Planning and Collaborative Planning, Forecasting, and Replenishment (CPFR). The IBF publishes the Journal of Business Forecasting targeted for practitioners, and also offers a certification in Business Forecasting, supported by education and training sessions.

Fast Track CPIM is a service that enables people to learn - quickly - what they need to know to pass all five of the CPIM certification exams offered by APICS. The courses are designed and led by Jerry Kilty, an extremely knowledgeable professional and a long-term active APICS member. Jerry offers courses that can be taken either on-line or in the classroom in the Tampa/St. Pete area. If you're in a hurry to get your CPIM certification, this is to our knowledge the best resource around.

The Sales & Operations Planning Benchmarking Consortium at Penn State is a networking group that brings industry leaders in S&OP together with academics to focus on "best practices" in S&OP, demand planning and forecasting, collaboration, and supply planning. Member companies communicate and share information through benchmarking discussions, group break out sessions, and presentations. Membership in this group can be especially valuable to companies doing well with S&OP and striving to improve. The consortium is facilitated by the Center for Supply Chain Research at Penn State.

As a Distinguished Fellow with the Center for Operational Excellence at Ohio State, Tom feels very good about how the Center has developed over the years. The growth has occured in both the number of companies served and in the range of services provided. Member companies have found that affiliation with the Center provides significant benefits.

Bill Belt is an American who's lived in France for many years; as such he's fluent in French as well as English. Bill has a fine track record of making companies successful with Executive S&OP as well as the ERP/MRP II processes. He's also very active in Lean Manufacturing.

John Dougherty is a long-term colleague, and one of the most effective consultants around in the demand/supply space. John has writte a book: Sales and Operations Planning: Best Practices, containing case studies from a dozen or more companies. It's available now.

Chris Gray has also been a colleague for quite a long time. He has expertise in the operational aspects of balancing demand and supply, and possesses deep knowledge about the software side. Chris has developed a series of Excel-based S&OP spreadsheets which are available on a no-charge, shareware basis.

Phil Heenan is a colleague from "down under" whom we've known for nearly 20 years. He was a key player in a number of highly successful implementations of S&OP. Phil is a leader in Australasia APICS and has a consulting company that specializes in Class A Sales & Operations Planning.

Danie Vermelen, based in Auckland, heads up Smart Chain Consultants and the Kaizen Institute of New Zealand. As such,he is active in consuling for supply chain managemet including S&OP and in continuous improvement processes. Danie has been a leader in the establishment of the Council of Supply Chain Management (CDCMP) in New Zealand.

Michael Webb, President of Sales Performance Consultants, Inc., specializes in helping companies that are struggling with unreliable marketing and selling processes. His approach recognizes that, in many respects, the sales process is not dissimilar from production. Michael is a leader in applying Lean and Six Sigma to sales and marketing.

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