Oliver Wight partners with Manugistics

The unwritten rule that consultants preserve their independence by not cosying up with IT vendors is increasingly being flouted. Latest to embrace are Oliver Wight and Manugistics. Oliver Wight is the purveyor of S&OP (sales and operations planning) consultancy, training and methodologies that have brought manufacturers kicking and screaming to renowned Class A status. Manugistics is the advanced supply chain systems developer that’s been struggling recently – along with arch rival i2 – to differentiate itself from the increasingly competent ERP vendor community and to stay afloat when users’ sentiments increasingly prefer collaboration over what’s apparently centralised management. Nevertheless, the pair’s non-exclusive strategic alliance is a very good thing. Software alone has never been the answer when you’re dealing with an ERP system: much less when the scope is extended to supply chain synchronisation. Even with a good implementation partner, it’s asking a lot to succeed without serious consultancy and long term guidance and mentoring. First phase of the new alliance will be to joint S&OP education courses designed for the consumer goods industry, although Ron Kubera, Manugistics senior vice president, indicates that these will spread out to other sectors. The good news is that they will focus on people, processes and methodologies as well as technology to help companies work smarter, faster and more profitably. “S&OP is no easy task, and when it comes to supply chain management, alignment between all the functions of an organisation is critical to a business operating successfully,” says S&OP expert and senior principal of Oliver Wight Pete Skurla. “Our mission is to educate companies so they can better understand the processes involved to achieve optimal results within their supply chain.”