To discuss S&OP, let's start with the concept, what exactly is S&OP?According to the dictionary definition of APICS:
S&OP is a tactical plan that enables managers to strategically guide business operations and achieve a sustained competitive advantage.
S&OP is able to put together marketing plans for innovative and existing products that meet customer needs.
Bring together and integrate all your business plans.
Align requirements, and new product initiatives in detail and overall dimensions, and connect with all business initiatives.
S&OP] is a clear statement of the company's near-to-medium-term plan that covers perspectives sufficient to plan resources and support the annual business planning process. When executed properly, it links the strategic plan of the business to its execution and reviews performance measures to achieve continuous improvement.
S&OP performs one of the most important functions: it is a powerful tool that enables employees to communicate with the organization
Communication denotes the act of sharing ideas and listening to the ideas of others in order to facilitate discussion and thus reach a consensus among a group of people. The power that this can bring to the organization. Employees connect and talk to each other on a daily basis through **, emails, face-to-face conversations, meetings, etc. These communications may not be valuable because they do not respond to the employee's ability to confirm whether the employee is involved or not.
All aspects of S&OP's execution are focused on communication and thus consensus. A well-functioning process must promote open and effective communication. As a moderator or participant in an S&OP meeting, it's your responsibility to ask tough questions – and you're not offended when a difficult question is received. Asking questions and taking on challenges are a must, S&OP considers different areas of the business and brings them together on a single roadmap.
If you're just starting out with the S&OP process, you need to include strong communication tools in the process. If, in the course of participating in S&OP, you find that an exception is causing the process to stall (or perhaps never start completely), then you need to see how the communication dynamics and information are shared. Examining the conversation at the meeting is a great place to start, which allows participants to practice listening skills and participate in consensus-building. If people talk to each other, not to each other, then this problem has to be addressed.
Change is achieved by listening, and by talking to those who disagree