S&OP

One plan across sales, supply and finance.

S&OP in Horizon is a way of working across the modules: sales, supply chain, operations and finance review one plan, on the same numbers, from review to decision in one day. Gaps show up early, options come with their cost, and decisions are logged with an owner.

Start with Horizon InstantBook a demo
ReviewScenariosDecisions
November cycle
Example · next quarter, volume and value
Demand plan
412,000
€18.6M
Supply plan
398,000
€18.0M
Budget
405,000
€18.3M
Supply against demandGap −14,000 · −€0.6MGap −2,000 · −€0.1M
0Demand 412,000 units
Close the gap: extra shift on Line 2, weeks 2–4+12,000 units · €38,000 extra cost
DecideDecided · owner Supply lead
3steps

from review to decision in one day, on one shared plan

DemandSupplyExecutive
4teams

sales, supply chain, operations and finance on the same numbers

SalesSupply chainOperationsFinance
1plan

in volume and value, from one cycle to the next

UnitsEuros
STANDARD APPROACHA four-week cycle, every month One planevery month Week 1Week 2Week 3Week 4 Demand reviewSupply reviewPre-S&OPExecutive meeting WITH HORIZONFrom review to decision in one dayAll in one system, on the same numbers Demand reviewConsensus demand in volume and value, live from the planSupply reviewCapacity, stock and gaps, on the same numbersExecutive decisionOptions with their financial trade-offs, decided and logged Day 1Day 1Day 1 Faster cycles are possible, in real time. Most organisations keep amonthly cadence for the longer term: without a pre-S&OP,and without a weekly S&OP.
1 dayfrom review to decision in Horizon
Standard approach · four weeksDemand review, supply review, pre-S&OP, executive meeting
With Horizon · one dayDemand review, supply review and executive decision in one system
CadenceMonthly for the longer term, without a pre-S&OP or a weekly S&OP

What you can do

A monthly rhythm that ends in decisions.

Before the meeting

Gaps on the table, with options attached

  • Where demand, supply and budget disagree, flagged before the meeting rather than in it.
  • Every gap comes with options and their cost, so the meeting is spent choosing, not reconciling spreadsheets.
  • Units and euros in one view, so operations and finance talk about the same plan.
Pre-S&OP · open gaps
Example · 3 to decide
Q1 demand 3% above supply2 options: extra shift, build ahead in DecemberOptionsRetailer North launch moves to week 12Revenue shifts from February to MarchNotedStock above target at DC East€0.4M working capital, reduce in Q1DecideOPTIONS · Q1 GAP OF 12,000 UNITSA · Extra shift on Line 2, weeks 2–4€38,000B · Build ahead in DecemberStock above target

Business scenarios

Every scenario in volume, value and capacity

  • A new customer, a price change or a lost line: each scenario shown in volume, value and capacity.
  • Scenarios compared side by side with the current plan, built on the same demand, supply and capacity data.
  • What a scenario needs from supply goes straight to the supply review.
Scenarios · next quarter
Example
VolumeRevenueCapacity loadCurrent plan412,000€18.6M94%New customer438,000€19.8M101%Price +3%401,000€18.9M92%SCENARIO · NEW CUSTOMERCapacity over 100% in FebruaryTaken to the supply review with an extra-shift optionTo review

Decisions with an owner

Decisions logged, owned and carried into the plan

  • Every decision logged with owner and reasoning, and carried into the plan.
  • Demand planners, supply planners, finance and leadership each get their own view on the same plan.
  • Forecast accuracy, service level and stock tracked from one cycle to the next.
Decision log · November
Example
Extra shift on Line 2, weeks 2–4Supply lead · 14 NovIn planReduce DC East stock in Q1Finance · 14 NovIn planAccept new customer volume from MarchSales lead · 14 NovPendingKPIS · THIS CYCLE AGAINST LASTForecast accuracy84.2%Service level97.8%Stock€12.4M

Learn more

Learn more about S&OP.

Running S&OP that drives decisionsIBP vs S&OPWhat is integrated business planning?S&OP and IBP conceptsDemand planning

FAQ

S&OP, answered.

What is S&OP?

Sales and operations planning is the monthly process in which sales, operations and finance agree on one plan: what to sell, make and buy, in volume and in value, and which gaps to close and how.

Is S&OP a separate module?

Mostly not: S&OP is a process. Horizon supports it through its demand planning, supply planning and scheduling modules, on the same data and the same plan, with dedicated S&OP dashboards and decisions shown with their financial trade-offs.

What are the steps of a monthly S&OP cycle?

A demand review agrees the consensus demand, a supply review checks capacity, stock and supply against it, the pre-S&OP meeting puts the gaps on the table with options and their cost, and the executive meeting decides, with an owner for every decision.

What’s the difference between S&OP and IBP?

S&OP balances demand and supply in volume; integrated business planning adds the financial view and strategy. Horizon shows volume and value together, so you can grow from one to the other.

Who takes part?

Demand planners, supply planners, finance and the leadership team, each with their own view on the same plan.

Which KPIs does S&OP track?

Forecast accuracy, service level and stock, tracked from one cycle to the next, so the team sees whether its decisions worked.

How fast can we start?

Start with Horizon Instant: demand planning on your own data, up and running in less than 24 hours. The supply modules then build on the same data model.

Bring your plan together on your own data.

Start with Horizon Instant: demand planning on your own data, up and running in less than 24 hours.

Start with Horizon InstantBook a demo