Demand and Supply Integration: The Key to World-Class Demand Forecasting

6. Performance Measurement

In Chapter 2, “Demand Forecasting as a Management Process,” I introduced the phrase, “What gets measured gets rewarded, and what gets rewarded gets done.” Although I would like to claim 100% credit for this sublime piece of wisdom, I cannot, in good conscience. I first heard it from my colleague Tom Mentzer, and we used it extensively in our 2004 book.¹ This phrase complements, and expands upon, the phrase attributed to Peter Drucker, or maybe Edwards Deming that I also quoted in Chapter 2: “If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.” I made the point then that because demand forecasting is a management process, like any other, it cannot be properly managed if it cannot be properly measured. For this reason, a book ...