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Mat
Mathew Tolley

Mathew has over 15 years of experience in the public and private sector, advising senior executives on technical solutions in operations and supply chain, from design and development through to system implementation. This experience has been gained in sectors including hospitality, distribution, retail, telecommunications, fast-moving consumer goods, pharmaceutical products, food processing, after-market parts, and the Australian Defence Force (ADF).

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Tim Fagan

Tim has over 10 years experience in collaboratively working clients to find the right technology solution to meet their unique needs. With a background in tactical solution development, best of breed system implementation, system requirements definition, multi-language programming, (plus an undergraduate and postgraduate in Mechatronics) Tim has the expertise to support clients navigate their supply chain technology journey.

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Supplier DIFOT & Credit Tracking

SC Analytix’s PTC Servigistics solution optimises your service parts supply chain

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Inventory Planning Software

Review forecasted demand, uplift ordering and inventory management discipline. Effectively manage service and cost.

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Monitor and record supplier fulfilment performance. Automatically distribute targeted communications to internal teams.

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Unlock continuous improvement opportunities and improve responsiveness through visibility of operational performance

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Plan for peak periods of demand, optimise workforce capacity and roster investment to meet service and cost targets.

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Best-of-Breed Inventory Planning System Implementation

Leverage the potential of market leading inventory planning and optimisation capability.

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Production Kitchen Planning & Recipe Management

SC Analytix’s PTC Servigistics solution optimises your service parts supply chain

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Operational Asset Tracking

Maintain operational visibility of assets across the network, ensuring continuing capability exists and mitigating investment risk

Our Partnerships

SC Analytix’s PTC Servigistics solution optimises your service parts supply chain

Delivering solutions for complex logistics problems

A single platform for supply chain orchestration

Helping companies fulfil their customer's promises, GAINS is the supply chain performance optimisation company

AutoStore develops order fulfilment solutions to help businesses achieve efficiency gains within the storage and retrieval of goods.

Cloud Based Transport Management System for Agriculture

Zycus is the leader in Source-to-Pay (S2P) solutions, pioneering the world's first Generative AI powered platform that helps procurement achieve 10X speed and efficiency

Precision Economics focuses on the delivery of tailored economic and quantitative work, especially in situations where existing tools are unable to answer the questions under examination

Informed 365 offer Cloud Based Solutions to Efficiently Manage Your and Your Supply Chain’s Environmental and Social Performance

Mushiny provides proven robot intelligent warehousing solutions for warehousing users, regardless of industry origin

Create unified strategic supply and demand, production, merchandising, and operations planning decisions with the RELEX AI-based platform

Coupa conquers complexity by delivering intelligent insights across supply chain, procurement, and finance

Featured Articles

Technology
March 15, 2025

Developing Effective Functional Briefs for Supply Chain & Procurement Technology

A functional brief isn’t just a bit of paperwork—it’s the blueprint that ensures your tech fits your business like a glove.

In today’s cut-throat global market, Aussie and Kiwi businesses are under pressure to keep their supply chains humming and procurement processes sharp. The secret sauce? Top-notch technology solutions like Procure-to-Pay (P2P) systems, Advanced Planning Systems (APS), Warehouse Management Systems (WMS), and Transport Management Systems (TMS). These tools can turbocharge operational efficiency, slash costs, and lift service delivery to new heights. But here’s the catch: getting them right depends on nailing down a cracking functional brief.

A functional brief isn’t just a bit of paperwork—it’s the blueprint that ensures your tech fits your business like a glove. Whether you’re rolling out a P2P system to streamline purchasing, an APS to nail demand forecasts, a WMS to sort out your warehouse, or a TMS to get goods moving faster, a solid brief keeps everything on track. Without it, you’re risking costly stuff-ups, delays, and tech that doesn’t deliver.

This article dives into why functional briefs are a must, breaks down what goes into them, and zooms in on specifics for P2P, APS, WMS, and TMS systems. Plus, we’ll show how Trace Consultants can help Aussie and Kiwi organisations smash it out of the park.

Why Functional Briefs Are a Big Deal

The supply chain and procurement game in 2025 is a complex beast. Businesses are juggling unpredictable demand, far-flung suppliers, tricky regs, and customers who want it all yesterday. Tech like P2P, APS, WMS, and TMS promises to cut through the chaos, but only if it’s tailored to your setup. That’s where functional briefs come in—they’re the glue that holds the whole shebang together.

A functional brief spells out exactly what you need, how your processes work, and what you want to achieve. It’s the difference between a system that sings and one that flops. Take a P2P rollout, for example. Without a clear brief, you might end up with a system that can’t talk to your accounting software, misses tricky approval steps, or ignores Aussie tax rules. Cue the headaches, rework, and a bigger bill than you bargained for. A proper brief stops that nonsense in its tracks by setting the scene upfront.

For businesses Down Under and across the Tasman, where supply chains stretch across big distances and diverse markets, a functional brief is gold. It ensures your tech investment pays off—whether that’s saving a few quid, speeding up deliveries, or keeping suppliers onside.

Key Ingredients of a Functional Brief

Putting together a ripper functional brief takes a bit of nous. You need to blend big-picture goals with nitty-gritty details. Here’s what every brief needs to cover, no matter the tech.

1. Crystal-Clear Business Goals

First things first: what’s the point of your tech? You need to pin down the big wins you’re chasing. These goals tie your system to the company’s game plan and give you something concrete to aim for. Common ones include:

  • Cutting Costs: Trimming procurement spend, logistics bills, or operational fat.
  • Better Stock Control: Dodging stockouts, overstocking, or stuff going out of date.
  • Smoother Supplier Relations: Making onboarding, tracking, and teamwork with suppliers a breeze.
  • Sharper Demand Forecasts: Nailing what customers want to keep stock and production on point.
  • Slick Transport: Dropping freight costs and boosting delivery reliability.

Make these goals specific and measurable. A retailer might want to shave 15% off stock holding costs in a year, while a manufacturer might aim to cut transport times by 20%. Having these targets locked in gives your brief a clear finish line.

2. Proper Process Mapping

A functional brief isn’t just about the “what”—it’s about the “how.” You’ve got to map out your current processes and sketch the future you’re aiming for. This means getting stuck into the details.

Process mapping is about laying out every step—like how a purchase order gets raised or how goods hit the road. It spots the clangers: bottlenecks (e.g., slow supplier sign-offs), double-ups (e.g., entering the same data twice), and manual faff (e.g., paper-based checks). The aim is to:

  • Find the Snags: Pick out where time, cash, or effort’s going down the drain.
  • Spot Automation Wins: Highlight jobs a system could take off your hands.
  • Sort Out Roles: Make it clear who’s doing what and how teams work together.

Say you’re mapping a warehouse’s picking process. You might find workers are trekking too far because the layout’s a mess. A WMS could fix that with smart routing. By comparing today with tomorrow, your brief makes sure the tech tackles real issues.

What to Tackle in Functional Briefs

Different tech needs different focus areas in a functional brief. Here’s the lowdown on P2P, APS, WMS, and TMS, plus how Trace Consultants can lend a hand.

Procure-to-Pay (P2P)

P2P systems take the hassle out of buying stuff—covering everything from raising a request to paying the bill. A top-notch brief should nail:

  • Approval Workflows: Set up sign-off steps that match your setup (e.g., managers, finance crew).
  • Supplier Onboarding: Tools for checking, adding, and keeping tabs on suppliers.
  • Contract Management: Features to store, track, and renew deals.
  • Compliance Checks: Stick to internal rules and Aussie/Kiwi laws (e.g., GST, anti-bribery).
  • Spend Insights: Dashboards to see where the money’s going.
  • Integration: Link up with ERP and finance systems like Xero or MYOB.

A P2P brief might also call for an easy-to-use interface to get everyone on board—key for avoiding pushback. Skip these details, and you’re asking for trouble.

Trace Consultants knows P2P inside out. We help define workflows, sort integration headaches, and keep compliance tight, ensuring your system delivers bang for your buck.

Advanced Planning Systems (APS)

APS tools sharpen your supply chain game with better forecasting, planning, and stock management. A brief for APS should cover:

  • Forecasting Tools: Pick the right models (e.g., stats-based or AI-driven).
  • Demand Sensing: Use live data like sales or market shifts.
  • Network Optimisation: Balance production, distribution, and stock across sites.
  • Scenario Planning: Run “what-if” tests for stuff like supplier hiccups.
  • Integration: Hook into ERP, CRM, and other systems.
  • Real-Time Insights: Track key stats like forecast accuracy or stock levels.

A fruit grower might need an APS that factors in weather for seasonal demand—miss that in the brief, and you’re short-changing the system.

Trace Consultants are APS pros, guiding you to pick and tweak systems that lift planning precision and efficiency.

Warehouse Management Systems (WMS)

WMS is the backbone of a slick warehouse, sorting stock, space, and staff. Your brief should hit:

  • Stock Tracking: Real-time visibility and serial number checks.
  • Layout Optimisation: Tools for smart storage and slotting.
  • Picking and Packing: Automate sequences or batch jobs.
  • Cross-Docking: Shift goods straight from in to out.
  • Labour Tracking: Monitor performance and task splits.
  • Integration: Sync with logistics and transport systems.

A retailer might need a WMS for quick online order turnarounds—spell that out, or you’ll get a vanilla system that doesn’t cut it.

Transport Management Systems (TMS)

TMS keeps logistics humming by optimising routes, carriers, and costs. A brief should include:

  • Route Planning: Factor in traffic, fuel, and drop-off times.
  • Carrier Management: Tools to pick and rate transport providers.
  • Load Optimisation: Fill trucks and cut empty runs.
  • Live Tracking: Updates for you and your customers.
  • Freight Billing: Automate invoices and cost checks.
  • Integration: Tie into warehouse and ERP systems.

For an Outback distributor, a TMS brief might prioritise road-and-rail combos—details that make it work for local quirks.

How Trace Consultants Can Pitch In

Writing a ripper functional brief takes know-how, a fresh eye, and a solid grip on supply chain tricks. That’s where Trace Consultants comes in. We help Aussie and Kiwi businesses by:

  • Mapping Processes: Digging into your setup to spot wins and woes.
  • Setting Future Goals: Turning big ideas into tech specs.
  • Benchmarking: Using industry smarts to keep you ahead.
  • Sorting Integration: Nailing the tech hook-ups for a smooth run.
  • Getting Teams Onside: Aligning everyone for a win.

With Trace, your brief becomes a weapon to unlock tech potential. Check out our Services page for more.

Nailing Your Functional Brief – The Road to Success

A cracking functional brief lines up your tech with your goals, cuts risks, and locks in wins like cost savings and faster service. A dodgy one? That’s a recipe for headaches and wasted cash.

So, are your briefs up to scratch, or could they use a tweak? If you’re on the fence, Trace Consultants has your back. Get in touch today to make your next tech move a ripper.

Asset Management and MRO
March 15, 2025

Optimising Your Automotive Parts Supply Chain: Strategies for Enhanced Efficiency and Competitive Advantage

Explore key strategies to enhance your automotive parts supply chain performance, reduce lead times, manage inventory efficiently, and see how Trace Consultants can guide your transformation.

Australia and New Zealand's automotive sectors are among the most demanding and complex environments for effective supply chain management. With vehicles constantly evolving in complexity and consumer expectations around rapid repairs and service responsiveness higher than ever, supply chains managing automotive parts are under pressure to perform reliably and cost-effectively.

In this article, we'll explore the critical strategies and best practices to optimise automotive parts supply chains, focusing on how organisations can significantly enhance service delivery, reduce operating costs, and manage inventory more efficiently. We’ll also highlight how Trace Consultants can support your organisation in transforming supply chain operations to achieve lasting competitive advantages.

Why Automotive Parts Supply Chain Efficiency Matters

The automotive industry is incredibly competitive, with efficiency in parts supply chains often determining customer satisfaction and financial performance. Delays or inaccuracies in parts availability can lead to prolonged vehicle downtime, impacting customer satisfaction, dealership profitability, and overall business reputation.

For automotive organisations, achieving excellence in their parts supply chain can mean:

  • Reduced downtime and improved service responsiveness
  • Efficient inventory management and reduced holding costs
  • Increased profitability through better purchasing strategies
  • Stronger relationships with distributors and manufacturers

To achieve these outcomes, automotive organisations must proactively optimise their supply chain practices. Here's how:

Demand Forecasting and Inventory Optimisation

Effective demand forecasting is foundational to any high-performing automotive parts supply chain. Accurate forecasting ensures the right parts are available at the right time, significantly reducing downtime and improving customer experience.

Automotive parts demand can be highly variable and influenced by seasonality, new model launches, recalls, or emerging technologies (such as electric vehicles). Leveraging advanced forecasting tools and predictive analytics can improve accuracy and responsiveness significantly.

How Trace Consultants Can Help:

Trace Consultants offers expert guidance in implementing advanced forecasting solutions tailored for automotive parts distributors and dealerships. Our team helps you identify appropriate forecasting models, integrate AI-driven predictive analytics, and customise systems to suit your specific requirements, ensuring improved demand visibility and reduced forecasting error.

Optimising Inventory Management

Efficient inventory management is critical, especially considering the complexity of managing thousands of automotive SKUs. Optimised inventory management helps balance cost efficiencies with high availability, preventing both stockouts and excessive inventory holding.

Effective inventory management strategies include:

  • Inventory Optimisation Tools: Implementing advanced systems to maintain optimal stock levels.
  • Demand Segmentation: Categorising products based on demand frequency and criticality.
  • Vendor-Managed Inventory (VMI): Improving alignment and transparency with suppliers to manage inventory collaboratively.
  • Inventory Rationalisation: Reducing slow-moving parts and obsolete stock, freeing capital, and improving warehouse efficiency.

How Trace Consultants Can Help:

Trace Consultants specialises in implementing practical inventory optimisation solutions. We support automotive organisations in selecting and deploying sophisticated inventory systems, combined with data-driven strategies to streamline inventory management.

Enhancing Supply Chain Visibility

Real-time visibility across the automotive supply chain is vital. Improved visibility enables proactive decision-making, faster response to disruptions, and reduced risks associated with unpredictable events.

Enhanced visibility means being able to track parts from suppliers through distribution centres to dealerships or customers. Effective visibility also facilitates more proactive supplier management, ensuring responsiveness to fluctuations in demand or supply disruptions.

Visibility can be improved through:

  • Real-time tracking and monitoring systems
  • Integrated ERP and WMS solutions
  • Predictive analytics to foresee potential disruptions

How Trace Consultants Can Help:

Trace Consultants can assess and implement integrated technology solutions, such as cloud-based platforms and real-time analytics tools, providing clear end-to-end visibility to support timely and effective decision-making.

Strategic Procurement and Supplier Relationships

Procurement within automotive supply chains significantly impacts cost efficiencies and service reliability. Strategic procurement practices can help manage supplier risk, enhance purchasing leverage, and achieve economies of scale.

Key procurement strategies include:

  • Consolidation and rationalisation of suppliers
  • Leveraging scale in procurement
  • Strategic sourcing and contracting to improve cost-effectiveness
  • Establishing long-term partnerships to ensure supplier reliability and flexibility

How Trace Consultants Can Help:

Trace Consultants supports automotive clients in designing and executing robust procurement strategies, offering strategic sourcing reviews, spend analysis, and supplier benchmarking. Our approach ensures organisations gain the best commercial outcomes while maintaining supply chain resilience.

Streamlining Warehousing and Distribution

Efficient warehousing operations and a strategically designed distribution network ensure automotive parts arrive at the right location, on time, and in the most cost-effective manner.

Critical considerations include:

  • Warehouse Network Optimisation: Ensuring warehouses are strategically located to minimise transportation costs and maximise responsiveness.
  • Warehouse Automation: Investing in automation and robotics to increase accuracy, reduce labour costs, and improve efficiency.
  • Transport Management Systems (TMS): Optimising transport networks to enhance delivery performance and reduce transport costs.

How Trace Consultants Can Help:

Trace Consultants delivers comprehensive warehouse and transport optimisation solutions, working closely with automotive businesses to strategically design warehouse networks, enhance operational efficiency, and optimise logistics and transport strategies.

Mitigating Risks and Improving Compliance

Automotive supply chains are increasingly complex, making them vulnerable to risks, including supplier disruptions, regulatory compliance issues, and economic uncertainties.

Strategies for risk mitigation and compliance include:

  • Supply chain diversification
  • Regular benchmarking and performance monitoring
  • Compliance with sustainability and modern slavery regulations
  • Transparent supplier relationship management practices

How Trace Consultants Can Help:

Trace Consultants offers thorough benchmarking and auditing services to help automotive organisations identify, manage, and mitigate supply chain risks. We also assist organisations in achieving compliance with evolving regulations around sustainability, modern slavery, and ethical sourcing.

Implementing Robust Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP)

A robust Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) process helps automotive businesses align demand forecasts, inventory levels, production schedules, and procurement activities.

Key elements include:

  • Collaborative demand planning
  • Integrated supply and demand forecasting
  • Scenario planning to manage disruptions proactively
  • Data-driven decision-making through advanced planning systems

How Trace Consultants Can Help:

Trace Consultants has extensive experience establishing effective S&OP frameworks, helping automotive organisations to better align operations, manage inventory effectively, and respond rapidly to changes in market conditions.

Why Partner with Trace Consultants?

Trace Consultants are supply chain specialists, deeply experienced in navigating the challenges faced by automotive organisations in Australia and New Zealand. Our approach combines advanced analytics, tailored solutions, and hands-on implementation support, helping your organisation achieve measurable improvements quickly.

Key services we offer include:

  • Comprehensive Supply Chain Diagnostics
  • Network Optimisation and Strategic Reviews
  • Inventory and Procurement Optimisation
  • Technology assessments and implementations (including Microsoft Power Apps and predictive analytics)
  • Change management and capability building to ensure sustainable improvements

By collaborating with Trace Consultants, automotive organisations benefit from strategic insights, actionable recommendations, and dedicated support, ensuring transformation projects deliver tangible, lasting results.

Ready to Optimise Your Automotive Supply Chain?

Optimising your automotive parts supply chain isn’t just about reducing costs—it's a strategic move to boost your competitive advantage, enhance customer satisfaction, and future-proof your operations.

How prepared is your organisation to transform your automotive parts supply chain? Reach out to Trace Consultants today to discuss how we can help you achieve supply chain excellence.

Planning, Forecasting, S&OP and IBP
March 13, 2025

Refreshing S&OP and IBP in 2025: A Strategic Edge for ANZ FMCG and Manufacturing

Supercharge your S&OP and IBP in 2025 with Microsoft Power Apps and forward-looking strategies for ANZ FMCG and Manufacturing. Trace Consultants shares expert insights.

For Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) and Manufacturing companies in Australia and New Zealand (ANZ), Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) and Integrated Business Planning (IBP) are vital for staying competitive in 2025. As supply chains face volatility—from fluctuating consumer demand to logistical disruptions—a refreshed S&OP and IBP process can align your teams, cut costs, and boost agility. At Trace Consultants, we’re committed to helping ANZ businesses transform these processes into strategic assets that deliver results.

This article explores how FMCG and Manufacturing firms can refresh their S&OP and IBP, focusing on key enablers like technology (e.g., Advanced Planning Systems and Microsoft Power Apps), executive support, and a single set of numbers. We’ll explain why good S&OP should be forward-looking, assess trade-off decisions, and deliver actionable insights, and show how Power Apps can supercharge your workflows and reporting. Finally, we’ll highlight how Trace Consultants can guide you through this journey with tailored solutions.

Why Refreshing S&OP and IBP Matters in 2025

S&OP bridges sales, operations, and finance to balance supply with demand, while IBP integrates strategic and financial planning for a holistic view. For ANZ FMCG companies like Goodman Fielder or Manufacturing firms like Fletcher Building, these processes are critical to managing fast-moving SKUs or complex production schedules in a region with long lead times and seasonal fluctuations.

The ANZ Challenge

In 2025, ANZ supply chains face unique pressures: port delays due to cyclones, dairy export volatility, and shifting consumer preferences toward eco-friendly products. An outdated S&OP or IBP process can lead to stockouts, overstocking, or misaligned priorities—costing time and money. A refresh ensures your business stays responsive and aligned.

Key Enablers for a Successful S&OP and IBP Refresh

To make S&OP and IBP effective in 2025, ANZ firms need to focus on three core enablers: technology, executive support, and unified data.

1. Technology: Powering S&OP with APS and Beyond

The Role of APS

Advanced Planning Systems (APS) like SAP IBP, Oracle, or Kinaxis are foundational for S&OP and IBP. They enable real-time data integration, demand forecasting, and scenario planning—essential for FMCG’s rapid cycles or Manufacturing’s production schedules.

ANZ-Specific Tech Needs

ANZ’s geography demands tech that handles complexity, like forecasting for remote plants or managing delayed shipments. APS tools provide the visibility to simulate disruptions (e.g., a flood’s impact on logistics) and adjust plans dynamically.

How Trace Consultants Can Help

Trace Consultants excels in tech integration. We’ll evaluate your systems, recommend the best APS for your needs, and ensure it powers your S&OP/IBP process effectively.

2. Executive Support: Leading from the Top

Why Leadership Counts

S&OP and IBP succeed when executives champion them. In ANZ, where silos between sales and operations can disrupt FMCG or Manufacturing workflows, leadership buy-in aligns teams toward shared goals—whether it’s cutting costs or improving service.

Fostering Collaboration

Executive support means prioritising regular S&OP meetings, encouraging data-driven decisions, and holding teams accountable. It sets the tone for a unified strategy.

How Trace Consultants Can Help

We’ll partner with your leadership to secure buy-in, designing S&OP/IBP frameworks that align with your goals. Our change management expertise ensures executives lead effectively, driving adoption across your organisation.

3. One Set of Numbers: A Single Source of Truth

The Value of Unified Data

Conflicting data—like sales forecasts differing from finance budgets—undermines S&OP and IBP. A single set of numbers ensures everyone works from the same playbook. For Manufacturing, this aligns production with demand; for FMCG, it matches stock to sales.

Overcoming ANZ Data Hurdles

ANZ firms often face fragmented data—think rural plants with delayed ERP updates. A unified platform, often powered by APS, eliminates discrepancies and builds trust.

How Trace Consultants Can Help

Trace Consultants will unify your data into a single, reliable source. We’ll create reporting dashboards that provide real-time visibility, ensuring your S&OP/IBP decisions are grounded in facts.

Leveraging Microsoft Power Apps to Supercharge S&OP and IBP

Beyond APS, Microsoft Power Apps offers a powerful way to enhance S&OP and IBP by integrating with existing ERP and APS technologies, automating workflows, and improving reporting.

1. Automating Workflows with Power Apps

Streamlining Processes

Power Apps lets you build custom applications that automate repetitive S&OP/IBP tasks—like data entry, approvals, or meeting prep—directly within your ERP or APS environment. For FMCG, this could mean automating stock updates during a promo; for Manufacturing, it’s streamlining production plan approvals.

ANZ Benefits

In ANZ, where teams are often spread across regions (e.g., a plant in Tasmania vs. a head office in Auckland), automation reduces delays and errors, ensuring S&OP/IBP cycles run smoothly.

How Trace Consultants Can Help

Trace Consultants will design and deploy Power Apps solutions tailored to your S&OP/IBP needs. We’ll automate workflows, integrating with your ERP and APS, to save time and boost efficiency.

2. Enhancing Reporting Capabilities

Better Insights with Power Apps

Power Apps integrates with Power BI to create dynamic, user-friendly dashboards that pull data from your APS and ERP. This gives your team real-time insights—like demand trends or inventory risks—during S&OP/IBP meetings, making discussions more actionable.

ANZ-Specific Reporting Needs

ANZ firms need reporting that reflects local realities, like seasonal demand spikes or shipping delays. Power Apps dashboards can highlight these, ensuring your S&OP/IBP process is data-driven and relevant.

How Trace Consultants Can Help

We’ll build custom Power Apps dashboards that enhance your reporting, pulling data from your APS and ERP for a seamless view. Our solutions ensure your insights are clear, actionable, and ANZ-focused.

What Good S&OP and IBP Look Like in 2025

A refreshed S&OP and IBP process is a strategic driver, not just a meeting. Here’s what “good” looks like for ANZ FMCG and Manufacturing firms.

1. Forward-Looking: Anticipating the Future

Why Forward-Looking Matters

Good S&OP/IBP looks ahead, forecasting demand, risks, and opportunities. For FMCG, it’s predicting a summer beverage boom; for Manufacturing, it’s planning for a construction surge.

Forward-Looking in ANZ

In ANZ, this means preparing for disruptions—like a wet season delaying shipments—or opportunities, like a new trade deal boosting exports. Predictive analytics, enhanced by APS and Power Apps, keep you proactive.

How Trace Consultants Can Help

We’ll design your S&OP/IBP to be forward-focused, embedding predictive tools into your APS and Power Apps dashboards. Our S&OP Template Decks will guide your team through strategic discussions, ensuring plans are future-ready.

2. Assessing Trade-Off Decisions: Making Smart Choices

The Importance of Trade-Offs

S&OP/IBP should evaluate trade-offs: do you hold extra stock to avoid shortages, or cut inventory to save costs? For FMCG, it’s balancing shelf-life risks; for Manufacturing, it’s production costs vs. lead times.

Trade-Offs in ANZ

ANZ’s long supply routes amplify trade-offs—stocking more in Perth costs extra but ensures service during floods. Scenario planning in S&OP/IBP helps you decide wisely.

How Trace Consultants Can Help

Trace Consultants embeds trade-off analysis into your process. We’ll implement scenario tools in your APS and Power Apps, and provide training to assess options, ensuring decisions are balanced and informed.

3. Actionable Insights: Turning Data into Decisions

From Insights to Action

S&OP/IBP meetings often get bogged down in data—good ones deliver insights you can act on. For FMCG, it’s adjusting stock for a promotion; for Manufacturing, it’s tweaking schedules to meet a deadline.

Actionable in ANZ

ANZ firms need insights that address local challenges—like adjusting for a late harvest in Hawke’s Bay. Clear KPIs, powered by Power Apps dashboards, ensure discussions lead to outcomes.

How Trace Consultants Can Help

We’ll ensure your S&OP/IBP delivers actionable insights. Our Power Apps dashboards provide real-time, ANZ-relevant metrics, and our coaching helps teams turn insights into decisions that drive results.

Challenges of Refreshing S&OP and IBP

Revamping S&OP/IBP comes with challenges for ANZ firms:

1. Data Fragmentation

Siloed systems—like separate ERP for plants—create conflicting data.

2. Change Resistance

Teams may resist new processes or tools like Power Apps.

3. Resource Limits

ANZ’s tight budgets can constrain tech or training investment.

4. Regional Complexity

Long lead times and diverse demand add planning layers.

These hurdles are manageable with expert support.

Opportunities with a Refreshed S&OP and IBP in 2025

A modern S&OP/IBP process offers ANZ businesses:

  • Cost Efficiency: Align stock with demand to reduce waste.
  • Improved Service: Meet customer needs without overstocking.
  • Agility: Respond faster to market shifts.

For FMCG, it’s fresher products; for Manufacturing, it’s smoother production. With Power Apps enhancing workflows, 2025 is your year to lead.

How Trace Consultants Can Help ANZ FMCG and Manufacturing Thrive

At Trace Consultants, we bring proven expertise to ANZ’s FMCG and Manufacturing sectors. Here’s how we support your S&OP/IBP refresh:

1. Design

We’ll create an S&OP/IBP framework tailored to your business, aligning sales, operations, and finance.

2. Implementation Support

From APS and Power Apps integration to process rollout, we’ll ensure a seamless refresh.

3. Change Management

We’ll guide your teams through the transition, addressing resistance and securing buy-in.

4. RACIs

Our Responsibility Assignment Matrices (RACIs) clarify roles, ensuring accountability.

5. Reporting Dashboards

We’ll build custom dashboards—leveraging Power Apps and Power BI—for real-time visibility.

6. S&OP Template Decks

Our pre-designed S&OP Template Decks streamline meetings, focusing on forward-looking strategies.

7. Training

We’ll train your teams on S&OP/IBP best practices, including Power Apps usage.

8. Coaching

Our ongoing coaching ensures your S&OP/IBP matures, delivering actionable insights.

We work hands-on, turning strategy into results. With Trace Consultants, your S&OP/IBP becomes a competitive advantage.

Looking Ahead: Your S&OP and IBP Advantage in 2025

In 2025, refreshing S&OP and IBP—powered by APS, Power Apps, executive support, and unified data—sets ANZ FMCG and Manufacturing firms apart. Plan proactively, weigh trade-offs wisely, and act on insights decisively to stay ahead. For CFOs, it’s efficiency; for CSCOs, it’s alignment; for CIOs, it’s innovation.

Don’t let outdated processes hold you back. Contact Trace Consultants today. Let’s refresh your S&OP and IBP—because in ANZ, success demands better.

Why Planning your Loading Dock Is the Missing Piece in Your Logistics Strategy

Dock scheduling software, like Mobiledock, can optimise loading dock operations by managing delivery times, reducing bottlenecks, and aligning resources. This article explores the cost-saving benefits, such as labour reduction and improved efficiency.
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What Makes a Management Consultant Great vs. Good: The Shift Towards Specialisation

The difference between good and great management consultants lies in their ability to offer specialised, tailored solutions. Discover how Trace Consultants helps businesses succeed with a specialised approach across supply chain strategy, forecasting, warehouse design, and more.
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Interview with Shanaka Jayasinghe: The Critical Role of BOH Logistics in Designing Sustainable Hospital Facilities

By considering these logistics principles, we can build hospital facilities that ensure consistency in patient care, clinical outcomes, and efficient operations for staff and patients.
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Sustainable Changes to Operating Models to Support Large Scale Cost Reduction Programs: An Interview with James Allt-Graham, Partner of Trace Consultants

Discover sustainable strategies for cost reduction with insights from James Allt-Graham, Partner at Trace Consultants.
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Navigating the Future of Planning: A Conversation with Mathew Tolley on Software Selection Excellence

Dive into an exclusive interview with Mathew Tolley, where we unravel the secrets to successfully selecting advanced planning software.
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Australia's Defence Supply Chains: Acqusition may win battles, but only Sustainment can win a war.

Dive into the critical role of Australia's defence supply chains in ensuring military readiness. This blog explores the importance of sustainment over acquisition, delving into heavy asset management, MRO logistics, and the key attributes that secure a competitive edge in uncertain times. Learn how demand planning, service delivery, and innovative logistics execution keep the ADF battle-ready.
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Interview with Tim Fagan: Navigating IT Transformation in Australian Businesses

Join us in a conversation with Tim Fagan on how Australian businesses are improving supply chain performance and reducing costs through tactical IT changes and best of breed systems.
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Interview with Emma Woodberry: Driving Sustainability Through Supply Chain Optimisation

Join Emma Woodberry in exploring how retailers and manufacturers can enhance sustainability and reduce transport costs through strategic supply chain optimisation.
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