Planningstuur

Planningstuur is a term used in Dutch-speaking organizations to describe the governance framework and set of processes that steer planning activities across the organization. It encompasses the methods, roles, and decision rights required to create coherent demand, supply, and production plans aligned with strategic objectives.

Its scope typically includes sales and operations planning (S&OP), capacity planning, inventory policy, master planning, and scheduling, as well as the regular review and adjustment cycles that keep plans feasible and current.

Key components are the planning governance body (often a planning steering committee or equivalent), defined roles and responsibilities, planning horizons, cadence of planning cycles, escalation paths, and documented guidelines for data quality and decision-making criteria.

The planning process generally proceeds through data gathering, scenario analysis, forecast reconciliation, capacity and constraint checks, risk assessment, and plan approval. Outputs include unified plans, resource allocations, and exception reports, which are communicated to execution teams for implementation.

Benefits cited for an explicit planning steering process include improved alignment between demand and supply, higher forecast accuracy, better service levels, and more efficient use of resources. Potential drawbacks are bureaucratic overhead, dependence on timely data, and the need for active participation from multiple functions to avoid misalignment.