This is what happens in the video
You can split a demand forecast in Business Central by location, variant, salesperson, customer, country, and dimension, and then send each part to the person responsible for it. This lets you distribute forecasting work across many roles instead of maintaining one large spreadsheet yourself.
When the responsible people send their forecasts back, you import them directly into Business Central. You can either add the imported figures to the existing forecast or replace them per customer, per country, or by any other filter you used.
This removes the need to consolidate everything in a central Excel sheet before importing it every third month. Instead, you build and update the forecast through the people who know each part of the business best.
Splitting the forecast by role in Business Central
A demand forecast does not have to be one monolithic file. In Business Central you can break it down along the dimensions that matter to your business. That includes splitting it per location, variant, salesperson, customer, country, and dimension. Because you can filter on this information, you can hand out the right slice of the forecast to the right person.
If you operate in ten different countries, for example, you can export the relevant forecast to each of the ten responsible people. They create their own forecast for their part of the business and send it back to you.
Consolidating forecasts directly in Business Central
When the forecasts come back, you import them straight into Business Central. There is no need for a manual consolidation step in a separate tool. Two options are available when you import:
- Adding the imported numbers to the existing forecast.
- Replacing the existing numbers per customer, per country, or by whichever filter you applied.
This means you avoid keeping a big Excel sheet somewhere just to gather all the forecasts before importing them, which is the kind of work that often piles up every third month.
A more flexible forecasting strategy
By distributing the forecast to different roles and importing the results directly, you get a more flexible way to create and update your forecast. The people closest to each location, customer, or country contribute their own input, and you keep the whole picture consolidated in one place in Business Central.
Q&A
How can you split a demand forecast in Business Central?
You can split it per location, variant, salesperson, customer, country, and dimension. You can also filter on this information so each person receives only the relevant part of the forecast.
How do you consolidate forecasts from several people?
You import their returned forecasts directly into Business Central. You can either add the imported figures to the existing forecast or replace them per customer, per country, or by any other filter you used.
Do you still need a central Excel sheet to gather forecasts?
No. Because you import each part directly into Business Central, you no longer need to consolidate everything in a separate Excel sheet before importing it.
Who should create the individual forecasts?
The people responsible for each part of the business, such as the person in charge of a specific country, create their own forecast and send it back to you for consolidation.