Consumption-Based Forecasting and Planning: Predicting Changing Demand Patterns in the New Digital Economy Reviews

This book is thought evoking and germane to topics facing today’s forecasting professionals. Charlie advances demand forecasting thought leadership through supplementing traditional statistical forecasting with machine learning. Moreover, he makes the concepts relevant to a large audience of practitioners through examples of practical application. This is a must-read for those looking to effectively augment and improve demand forecasts.

Benjamin Martin, Ph.D.
Chief Analytics Officer
Hanesbrands Inc.

In Consumption-Based Forecasting and Planning,Charlie draws on his extensive experience in forecasting and technology to emphasize why pivoting from a supply-centric to a true consumer demand method is necessary for success in today’s digital economy. A must-read for forecasting practitioners and decision-makers, this book stresses the impact of digital disruption on consumer behavior and provides a framework to apply advanced analytics and machine learning to improve forecast responsiveness. Consumption-Based Forecasting and Planning will compel you to envision the future of demand forecasting with a renewed focus on the consumer.

Glenn Keltner, Ph.D., Manager
Demand Planning Development
Nestle Purina Petcare

Charlie Chase provides an extremely relevant guide for companies trying to navigate uncertainty and disruption. As a CPG and analytics industry thought leader, Charlie makes clear where planning departments and IT organizations need to focus to give them a competitive advantage in managing increasing complexities in the digital era. This book will help planning leaders who feel their traditional forecasting methods are no longer adequate to keep pace with shifting consumer demand but may be overwhelmed by how to pivot. Charlie provides practical examples for where planners should be taking advantage of downstream data and AI/ML to create more real time, consumer-driven plans."

Meredith Cannon,
Director Integrated Business Planning
Campbell Soup Company

In this unusual time of disruption, ‘Anticipating’ what consumers want in what quantity and at what price point is the corner stone of success. Since the reaction time is not in days but in mere hours, ‘Decisioning’ need to be based on intelligent automation. This book, full of real-life data, anecdotes, and personal experience of the author, unravels the secret sauce for digital supply chain decision making. The publication will be very useful for practitioners, on both sides of the digital divide, implanting the digital nodes in their complex process and interfacing with the human nodes.

Nilmadhab Mandal
Global Data Science Lead II
Analytics Delivery and Advisory II
Mondelez International

Consumption-Based Forecasting and Planning by Charlie Chase just arrived in time. Covid-19 has dramatically exposed us to sudden shifts in consumer behavior, unexpected consumption patterns and preferences. Whether you are in retail or running a consumer goods business, you have certainly been confronted with the challenge of how to identify the future needs in these unpredictable times when historical patterns are no longer a good enough base for future prediction. The book brings forward the concept and importance of anticipatory forecasting, based on real-time data signals such as point-of-sale (POS) and other syndicate data, price, sales promotions, economic and other data sources.  I commend the author for writing a business book on statistical approaches in a simple and highly readable manner.

Andrea Takacs
VP of Integrated Supply Chain Processes
Carlsberg Group