Diego Soliveres

At the Gartner Supply Chain Planning Summit in Denver, Scott Luton caught up with Rob Haddock, a seasoned supply chain practitioner and advisor with Demand Chain AI, to discuss the persistent planning challenges organizations face—and why maturity, discipline, and optimization still matter more than buzzwords. Demand Chain AI blends consulting services with advanced supply chain technologies, focusing on optimization across trade promotion management, demand sensing, supply planning, and detailed production scheduling. Haddock’s role centers on helping organizations strengthen business processes—particularly sales and operations planning (S&OP), performance reporting, and the practical application of technology to improve execution on both the demand and supply sides.   A Practitioner’s Perspective on Planning Gaps Haddock’s perspective is shaped by decades spent inside large, sophisticated supply chain organizations. Early in his career, he worked within an iconic, global beverage company where advanced planning environments were already in place—though, in hindsight, he admits those tools were sometimes underutilized. Today, Haddock spends much of his time working with small and mid-sized organizations that haven’t been as fortunate. In many of these environments, planning maturity is still low, foundational practices are missing, and—unsurprisingly—Excel remains the primary planning tool. “Basic business practices that have been around since the 1990s…

Most organizations talk about visibility—but few truly achieve it. Are you one of them? In today’s fast-paced, disruption-prone environment, having real-time visibility across your supply chain isn’t a luxury—it’s a necessity. Yet, fewer than 10% of companies surveyed can say they have end-to-end insight into their supply chain operations. So what’s standing in the way? And more importantly—how do you overcome it? “Understanding the Foundation of Visibility” is the first whitepaper in a powerful new series by NCS Partners, designed to help supply chain leaders break down silos, align teams, and turn fragmented data into actionable insight. Download this white paper to learn how to: Identify the five most impactful focus areas for building end-to-end visibility Align leadership and secure cross-functional buy-in to drive transformation Build a clear vision and roadmap to avoid common visibility pitfalls Integrate distributed data sources to enable real-time, actionable insight Promote continuous improvement and communication across teams   Whether you’re just beginning your visbility journey or ready to refine your approach, this foundational guide offers expert-backed strategies used by top-performing organizations.   Download the “Understanding the Foundation of Visbility” white paper here to learn more