Training - Demand Planning, Supply Planning, and Sales and Operations Planning Software

Demand Planning, Supply Chain, and Continuous Improvement Training

Overview

For nearly 10 years, Cadent Resources, Inc. has helping clients enjoy significant gains in operating performance by employing a Teach - Do methodology of making operational change and driving performance. We are proud to offer a series of intuitive courses that bring our practical style of learning and continuous improvement to your company.

We teach each course around a specific business objective, opportunity, or problem. We present a concept, work an exercise, and then apply the learning to address your specific issue. Participants get practical experience immediately and thus retain the material at a much higher rate. Additionally, the cost of our training may be offset by locally available public training funds.

We offer three training formats tailored to fit your specific company and needs:

Two Hour Executive Briefing: Providing your management team a refresher on an old concept or providing an introduction to something new
One Day Mini Course: A quick start version of the material for a team that will facilitate and manage themselves beyond the training. Training on the material is provided during the first half of the session. During the second half, we will provide a half day of facilitation to get the team going.
Two to Four Day Expanded Course: This is the full Teach-Do course. The length of the course is dependent on the complexity of your specific objective, opportunity, or problem the course will address.

Call us at 866-865-2714 to learn more or submit your questions via our Contact Us form.

Course Descriptions

Lean Manufacturing: We have all heard and used the term “Lean” bandied about. Do we really understand it and the impact it can have on reducing costs and improving effectiveness in our Supply Chains. In this course, we cover the principles of Lean Supply Chains and the management challenges and pitfalls to make the transformation to a lean operation. The cover covers a short history of Lean including the Ford basis and the Toyota Production System refinement of the process based on the continual elimination of waste which drives quality and cycle time improvements. The bulk of the course is then dedicated to the tools of Lean including the 5S’s, Cadent Resources version of Value Stream Mapping, Pull-Systems (Kanbans), and Mistake Proofing. This course should be taught in the Teach-Do method launching a lean transformation in your operation.

Forecasting: Forecasting is the foundation of all supply chain planning activities. This course covers the basic statistical forecasting models and metrics. The emphasis is to develop a solid base forecast based on which special events and promotions can be added or subtracted. We will also cover the major pitfalls and classic errors. Topics include moving averages, seasonality, exponential smoothing, regression, and an overview of auto-regressive integrated moving averages. Tools and tips will be provided to determine the aggregation level at which the forecast should be done. We will use our DemandCaster software in the course to provide the participants with real world examples scenarios using

Inventory Management: Inventory management is heart of what we do at Cadent Resources. This course covers make-to-stock vs. make-to-order (push vs. pull systems), ABC classification, excess & obsolete, and basic inventory calculations for replenishment quantities, trigger points, and safety stock using historical data for demand and the various lead times. While the basics are presented at an SKU level, DemandCaster is used to illustrate how inventory is planned and management on a large scale in a complex SKU environment. DemandCaster is used to show how hierarchical inventories can be managed including those in collaborative customer-supplier relationships.

Quality Control: Quality control was all the rage in the 1980s and 1990s. At Cadent Resources, we believe that the focus has waned in the 2000s to the point where a refresher is needed. This course is designed to be this refresher. It covers the management of Quality Control, Incoming Inspection, Statistical Process Control, Quality Improvement, Design of Experiments, and Supplier Quality Management. Each topic includes a the basic purpose, overview of the methods, and presentation of select tools. This course is one that can be customized to fit your particular needs.

Statistics for Supply Chain Management: Every Supply Chain professional is challenged with an overwhelming mass of data. This course helps turn that data into information you can act and react on. In this course, we teach the basics of probability and statistics. We discuss the concept of Statistical Thinking and how variation is present in our supply chain processes. The focus is on how contingency tables, linear regression, simple design of experiments, and non-parametric methods such as box and whisker diagrams can be used to make better decisions. All analysis is done in Excel the tool everyone has on their PC. Real world supply chain examples are used in the exercises.

Design of Experiments: This is a specialty course covering both Classical and Taguchi Design of Experiments. While it can certainly be taught idependently, we suggest that it follow the courses in Quality Control and Problem Solving/Process Improvement as DOEs are more advance Problem Solving/Process Improvement Tools. We teach the basics of designing experiments using full or partial factorial designs, analyzing such experiments using Analysis of Variance in Excel or using Box-Whisker Diagrams, and using the Taguchi method to incorporate several response variables into the design and analysis.

Problem Solving/Continuous Improvement: We have our own Problem Solving/Continuous Improvement method and course. It is for companies that want something basic that works, an alternative to the expense and rigors of Six Sigma. It is a return to basics. One of our clients has even dubbed this “Six Sigma Light.” This course emphasizes the Plan - Do - Check - Act Cycle and the basic tools used to define the problem, evaluate the current condition, determine the root cause, determine & implement the counter-measures, and develop & implement a control plan to hold the gains.

Supply Chain Physics: This highly energetic, entertaining, and motivational course is based on our unique concept of Supply Chain Physics. At any given time, any supply chain is subject to its own laws of physics, the Laws of Supply Chain Physics. First and foremost, a Supply Chain Leaders need to know these laws and communicate the limits they impose to the entire organization. Secondly, as opposed to the real world, Supply Chain Leaders can change and improve their physical world. This course provides a basis both of these and is a perfect kickoff to a leadership meeting or strategic planning session. This course is offered in a one or four hour version only.

Custom Designed Courses: If you have a training need and it is Supply Chain related, we can probably design a course to fit the need. Please contact us to discuss your specific training needs and business challenges.