Evaluate the purpose of forecasting and inventory management within operations management.

Interact with others in a professional manner using appropriate communication and presentation skills.

Tab 1: Interview Introduction

Interview

For this assignment, you will conduct an interview with a supply chain professional who has experience in forecasting and inventory management. The goal of this assignment is to gain a deeper understanding of how businesses use forecasting and inventory management to make informed decisions about their supply chain. 

Tab 1: Interview Instructions

Instructions:

Identify an individual who has experience in forecasting and inventory management. It does not need to be in a manufacturing/operations environment, but the environment requires the shipping or receiving of products. This could be someone you know personally or someone you find through professional networking sites such as LinkedIn. 

Contact the individual and request an interview. Explain the purpose of the interview and the types of questions you will be asking.

The interview does not require a face-to-face interview; a video interview on a platform like Zoom or Google Meet would meet the requirement. As a last resort, a phone interview may be used to conduct the interview. You should only record the interview with the participant’s permission.

Transcribe the interview and analyze the responses to each question. Look for common themes and patterns in the participant’s answers. 

Write a report summarizing the key insights you gained from the interview. Include an overview of the participant’s background and experience, a description of the questions you asked, and a summary of the participant’s responses. The interview does not need to follow the standard APA format, but the following format should be used. A title page and double space are a requirement for the report. Bullet statements can be used for the interview transcript. 

Conclude your report with an analysis of the insights gained from the interview. What did you learn about the role of forecasting and inventory management in supply chain management? What are the implications of insights gained for businesses that rely on forecasting and inventory management?

Question Set 1: (Forecasting)

• What forecasting method does your organization use, such as quantitative or qualitative, or mixed model (a combination of the two)?
• And which specific method is used, such as regression, Delphi, or another forecast method?
• Does your organization use an enterprise resource planning program (Oracle or SAP) to predict demand or forecast in the organization? Please explain.
• What are the most common mistakes that occur in generating a forecast?

Question Set 2: (Inventory Management)

• What warehouse management system does your organization use to manage inventory?
• If no warehouse management system is used, does the organization use a first in first out (FIFO) or last-in-first-out (LIFO) method of cycling inventory?
• Does your organization use any lean systems such as JIT, kanban, or kaizen in the daily workflow?

Question Set 3: (Supply Chain Disruptions)

• How does your organization manage disruptions in the supply chain?
• Describe the most recent disruption and what specific actions were taken to address the issue.
• Based on the organizational response, were the correct actions taken, or could something different could have been done to help minimize the impact disruptions to the end users?

To successfully complete this interview, review the rubric prior to the interview and ensure you complete all required elements. However, in general, you will be composing a 2-page meeting minute format summary of the interview, highlighting who you selected to interview, their contact information, the three responses, and any other follow-on questions or key points, and then close with a summary and your reflection on what you learned in relation to the course topics.

Reflection Summary

Deliverables:

• An interview report of a supply chain professional that analyzes the organization’s forecasting method, inventory management practices, along with an analysis of how the organization handles supply chain disruption, lesson learned/reflection summary.