What is the Demand Review (DR)?

Definition and Core Objective

The Demand Review (also known as the Demand Management Review or DMR) is the second step in the monthly Integrated Business Planning (IBP) process. It serves as the primary forum where the commercial management team—Sales, Marketing, and Product Management—reaches a consensus on the unconstrained view of future demand.

The central goal is to generate the Unconstrained Demand Plan. This represents what the business believes it can sell based on market conditions, commercial capabilities, and customer needs, without yet factoring in internal supply constraints. It is a statement of market opportunity, not supply feasibility.

Scope: Aligning Commercial Strategy

The Demand Review is not a sales meeting about hitting this month's numbers. It is a strategic review focused on the medium- to long-term horizon (typically 4 to 24 months).

It transforms the commercial strategy into a "to-do list" of actions required to influence demand. To build a robust plan, the review integrates three layers of inputs:

1. Quantitative Data: Statistical baselines generated from historical sales, corrected for outliers (e.g., one-off promotions or disruptions).

2. Portfolio Inputs: Volume assumptions for New Product Introductions (NPI) and phase-outs, derived from the preceding Portfolio Review.

3. Commercial Drivers (The 4 Ps): Strategic assumptions regarding Product, Price, Place, and Promotion.

Crucially, this review documents Assumptions, Risks, and Opportunities (AROs). By explicitly stating why the numbers are what they are (the assumptions) and quantifying potential upside/downside (risks and opportunities), leadership gains a transparent view of the plan's reliability.

Strategic Context: Strategy vs. Execution

A common failure in Demand Reviews is "Short-Termism"—spending 80% of the meeting discussing the next 30 days.

In a mature IBP process, the Demand Review focuses strictly on medium to long term horizon (4–24 months).

• Strategic (Demand Review): Focuses on shaping future demand, market trends, and closing gaps to the annual budget.

• Tactical (Demand Execution): Focuses on the immediate 0–13 week horizon. This is managed separately via Integrated Tactical Planning (ITP) and processes like Demand Sensing and Abnormal Demand management.

Separating these horizons ensures that the Demand Review remains forward-looking and strategy-driven, rather than reacting to daily order volatility.

The Simulation Advantage

Traditional Demand Reviews often rely on a "single number" forecast that hides volatility. If the commercial team assumes a price increase will not impact volume, that assumption is locked in until the next month.

Simulation-based Demand Planning allows commercial leaders to stress-test these assumptions before the review.

• "What if the competitor lowers prices by 10%?"

• "What if our new product launch captures only 5% market share instead of 15%?"

SIMCEL enables teams to run these commercial scenarios in real-time, instantly showing the impact on Gross Revenue and Margin. This turns the Demand Review from a negotiation over "sales targets" into a data-driven analysis of commercial risk and financial opportunity.

About SIMCEL

SIMCEL unites your planning processes into one seamless platform. Whether you're optimizing inventory in Supply, refining forecasts in Demand, aligning financial strategy in Finance, or driving sustainability in Carbon—SIMCEL empowers your team to simulate, visualize, and align every decision across the business. Say goodbye to silos and hello to truly integrated, agile planning.