Brita's Prophecy Implementation - Database Structure
A prototype database was produced and iteratively refined. It contained details of all Brita's customers and products, but no actual data, in order to help define the most helpful database structure for the users. This process was quick, but let users see the actual system they would be using, and allowed the team to verify the formulae, recalculations and analyses available.
A single database spanning three years of history and two years of forecasts was decided upon, with forecasts developed by month. In addition, ‘month to date’ data could be read in on a daily basis and compared to the forecast. This way, an early warning could be obtained on short-term variances from forecasts.
The decision was made to model the forecasts from volumes, through standard prices and costs, promotional price reductions and discounts (percent or absolute) through to gross margin. Therefore, the profitability of each customer/product combination through time could be modelled, trended and analysed.A complimentary set of ‘Budget’ facts was created so that sales to date and forecasts for the rest of the year could be compared against budgets. Again, this gave managers the ability to monitor and compare achieved sales/forecasts, identify the sources of gaps and be able to take appropriate action.
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