Managing product introductions across the supply chain: findings from a development project

Purpose – The purpose of this article is to propose a planning process that takes into account that manufacturers of original equipment have products at different stages of the product‐life cycle, and utilizes sales and inventory information collected from distributors and retailers. Design/methodology/approach – The research paper describes the construction and testing of a planning process. Findings – Trials in a case company indicate that supply chain responsiveness can be improved in product launches using the proposed process. Supply chain efficiency in the maturity phase can also be improved. Research limitations/implications – The usefulness and effectiveness of the proposed process depend on the assumption that product mix changes can be modeled and point‐of‐sales and channel sell‐through data are available regularly and reliably. Practical implications – Modeling and monitoring the variant mix on the total market level can be used to improve supply chain responsiveness to mix changes in product launches. The introduction of this planning process reduces the need for planning in the sales units. Originality/value – The paper shows how the quality of variant forecasting for an original equipment manufacturer can be improved with access to channel visibility in the market introduction phase.