The Bee Hive

Enterprise Sales & Operations Panning: Synchronizing Demand,  Supply,  and  Resources for Peak Performance

By George E Palmatier with Colleen Crum

J.Ross Publishing

In their book Enterprise Sales and Operations Planning: Synchronizing Demand, Supply, and Resources for Peak Performance, George Palmatier and Colleen Crum invite the reader into the inner workings of Universal Products Company, a division of Global Products and Services, Inc. The reader gets to spy on a company, discover how it operates and learn abouot senior staff, and see how a company can be turned around. The story is not all rosy. A number of major internal problems surface early on and the book follows the hero, Mark Ryan, as he meets key individuals and faces major issues in his effort to fix those problems.

The problem Universal faces are typical of any manufacturing organization - numbers not being met, key customers demanding lower prices, and competition eyeing major accounts. It's easy to sympathize with Mark as he begins his odyssey of solving problems, saving the company, and resolving some issues on the home front.

Once Upon A Time

This book is written in the spirit of Goldratt's genre-creating book, The Goal. Rather than explain in textbook fashion how to execute Sales & Operations Planning, the authors put the concepts and techniques into the context of a story. This approach keeps the topic interesting and provides insight to the reader who is focusing on the instructional message as well as on the story. The secret to getting the most out of this book is to look out for that instructional message.

Readers interact with the subject and imagine how a similar situation would be handled in their organizations. Unfortunately, many of the bad things that happen are easily recognizable. The trick for readers is noting the good events and utlimately incorporating them into their own business processes.

The book provides a realistic picture of a modern-day organization. Palmatier and Crum know manufacturing, and have worked in companies like Universal products. They have many years of experience as consultants for the Oliver wight organization and possess extensive knowledge of Sales & Operations Planning as well as solid understanding of how manufacturing organizations work.

When Failing Is Funny

The proportions of the book dealing with the things that don't work in an organization are the most entertaining. Perhaps it is the fascination humans have with watching the misery of others that draws the reader into an organization's failures. Many of us seem to like reality shows, and this book provides a dose of reality as you watch the inner workings and politics of the organization from a safe distance. You wince when something goes wrong for the hero and smile when the light bulb finally shines. You get to be the proverbial fly on the wall.

The "Jonah" in this case is Ross Peterson, a man in his late forties who asks all the right questions. A kinder, gentler soul in the character of Nolan Drake frequently smoothes the feathers ruffled by Peterson. This twist of having more than one consultant helps with the story line and keeps the reader interested in how the consultants play off one another.

The book explores the thought processes of the consultants. These consultants are not portrayed as all-knowing omnipotent creatures who bestow knowledge on the ignorant and then disappear, but rather as intelligent people who can offer help because of their vast experience.

The book also provides an interesting perspective on how consulting organizations like Oliver Wight conduct a consulting engagement. It's like looking behind the curtain at the consultant's operation. Internal and external consultants can use this information to hone their skills and those hiring a consultant will gain insight into how the process can work effectively.