Q: Do I have to manually update the forecast for every customer and item? A: No. Confido generates forecasts automatically for all customers and items based on your configured model (sales forecast or best-fit statistical model). Your role as a demand planner is to review exceptions, refine models where needed, and apply targeted overrides — not to manually enter forecasts row by row. The system handles the heavy lifting; you handle the judgment calls. |
Q: How much shipment history do I need to run a statistical model? A: Generally, at least 4 months of clean shipment history is enough to start running basic statistical models. More history (12-24 months) gives better seasonal pickup and more reliable model selection. For new items or new customers with no history, use the Sales Forecast as your base until enough shipment history accumulates to switch to a statistical model. |
Q: Can I use different forecasting models for different customers? A: Yes — and this is by design. The model is configured independently at every level of the hierarchy. A common approach is to use the Sales Forecast for newer customers and items, and statistical models for mature, steady-state accounts. You can also set rules to automatically switch a customer from Sales Forecast to best-fit statistical once a minimum history threshold is met. |
Q: If a salesperson changes a promotion after I've locked the forecast, will it affect my demand plan? A: Only if you allow it to. You control the sync between the sales forecast and the demand plan. Before locking, you can turn off the automatic sync so no changes flow through. If a specific change needs to be incorporated after a lock, you can resync that one customer or item individually without affecting anything else. |
Q: Can we load a budget or AOP into Confido for comparison? A: Yes. A budget or AOP can be loaded as a separate forecast version at whatever level of granularity you have it (customer, item, total business). Once loaded, it appears as a comparison line in the reporting layer, so you can see live forecast vs. budget side by side and track variance over time. |
Q: How do we handle price changes that are expected to affect volume? A: You can apply a growth factor (which can also model decline) at any level to account for expected volume changes due to a price increase or decrease. For example, you could apply a -4% multiplier starting from the effective date of a price increase, scoped to specific items or channels. As actuals come in after the price change, the recommendations system will flag whether your volume assumption was accurate and help you refine it. |
Q: Can the demand plan be fed directly into SAP or another ERP for production planning? A: Yes, though the specific integration depends on your ERP setup. Confido can export the demand plan in a format compatible with your downstream system, feed it to a data warehouse for onward processing, or — where a direct integration has been configured — push it automatically to your ERP. The onboarding team will work with you to define the right export format and process for your supply chain workflow. |