Business Planning, Finance, Supply Chain & Retail Glossary

A
Assortment Planning
The process of selecting which products to offer, where to offer them, and in what variety to meet customer demand and optimize sales and margins.

B
Budgeting
The process of creating a financial plan that defines expected revenues, costs, and investments over a specific period.

C
Cash Flow Forecasting
The process of estimating future cash inflows and outflows to manage liquidity and ensure financial stability.

Continuous Planning
Continuous planning is an approach that replaces static planning cycles with ongoing updates to forecasts and plans.

D
Demand Forecasting
The process of predicting future customer demand using data, trends, and analytical models.

Demand Planning
The process of forecasting customer demand and aligning business operations to meet it efficiently.

Driver-Based Planning
A planning method that uses key business drivers, such as volume or price, to build financial and operational plans.

F
Financial Modeling
The process of creating structured representations of financial performance to evaluate decisions and forecast outcomes.

Forecasting
The process of predicting future business performance based on historical data and assumptions.

FP&A (Financial Planning & Analysis)
The function responsible for budgeting, forecasting, and analyzing financial performance to support decision-making.

I
Integrated Business Planning (IBP)
A cross-functional planning process that aligns supply chain, operations, and financial plans within a unified framework.

Inventory Management
The process of tracking and controlling stock levels to ensure efficient storage, movement, and availability of inventory.

Inventory Planning
The process of determining optimal inventory levels and replenishment strategies to meet demand while minimizing costs.

M
Merchandise Planning
The process of planning product sales, inventory, and financial performance to align retail strategy with business targets.

O
Open-to-Buy (OTB)
A retail planning method used to determine how much inventory can be purchased within a defined budget and time period.

P
Predictive Planning
The use of data, analytics, and machine learning to forecast outcomes and improve planning decisions.

Planning Automation
Planning automation uses technology to streamline and automate planning processes such as budgeting and forecasting.

R
Retail Forecasting
The process of predicting future retail sales and demand at product, store, or channel level.

Retail Planning
The process of aligning demand, inventory, pricing, and merchandising decisions to optimize retail performance.

Rolling Forecast
A continuously updated forecast that maintains a constant forward-looking time horizon.

S
Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP)
A process that aligns demand and supply plans to balance customer demand with operational capacity.

Scenario Planning
The process of modeling different possible future outcomes to support decision-making under uncertainty.

Supply Chain Planning
The process of aligning demand, supply, production, and inventory decisions across the supply chain.

Supply Planning
The process of determining how to meet demand through production, procurement, and distribution planning.

V
Variance Analysis
The process of comparing actual performance against planned or forecasted results to understand differences and their causes.

X
xP&A (Extended Planning & Analysis)
A cross-functional approach to planning that connects financial and operational plans across the organization.