Project Management and the Sales and Operations Planning (S & OP) Tool: Implementation Project in a Low Predictability Environment

Abstract

The sales and operations planning (S&OP) tool aims to integrate and share information in order to balance the demand and production process, being the main challenge for its implementation when organizations are immersed in a low predictability environment. The present work analyses a project to create and implement a S&OP process in a food retail organization with low predictability and perishable items and has as main objective to present how project management can contribute to the successful implementation of the tool of S & OP in an organization with unsophisticated and uncertain demand forecast, as well as a fragile organizational culture in relation to the establishment of assertive relationships between the areas. The analysis resulted in the identification of five decisive factors for the implementation of the S & OP tool in an environment of low predictability: information technology, cross-functional integration, top management participation, operation buy-in and, finally, the creation of a new S & OP area in the company.