Question

Please answer the following questions below.

1. Who needs to be involved in preparing forecasts?
2. How has technology had an impact on forecasting?
3. Ben has heard from some of his customers that they will probably cut back on order sizes in the
next quarter. The company he works for has been reducing its sales force due to falling demand and
he worries that he could be next if his sales begin to fall off. Believing that he may be able to convince his customers not to cut back on orders, he turns in an optimistic forecast of his next quarter sales to his manager. What are the pros and cons of doing that?

Answer 1

Who needs to be involved in preparing forecasts?

In order to make accurate forecasts when preparing them all aspects of the business should be involved. This includes representatives from the operations, sales, marketing, and finance departments of the organization and to ensure that all aspects are looked at members from not just the upper management of the company but the mid to lower levels as well should be involved as they have insights into the business also. Just because upper management are the ones who usually do the longer term thinking for the company does not mean they are the only ones who know what the best course of action is.

How has technology had an impact on forecasting?

With technology constantly changing and continuously evolving it has made significant impacts on all manners of life. In terms of forecasting, technology has been able to make these predictions more accurate as all different information can be easily logged and used to help determine more precise details for future business. Technology has been able to save valuable time and resources when it comes to forecasting by aiding in foreseeing potential opportunities or threats and allowing for companies to respond faster and more efficiently.