Microsoft Demand Planner simplifies and improves the demand planning process. If a well-defined process for demand planning does not exist, it will assist in quickly establishing one.

It has the following key capabilities:

• Multi Dimensional Data Visibility
• Statistical Demand Forecasting
• Interactive Simulation Scenarios
• Partner and customer collaboration

With its Excel like look and feel, planners will feel at ease, comfortable with a tool that combines powerful planning and forecasting functionality with an intuitive, easy-to-learn user interface. Microsoft Demand Planner supports the demand forecasting process intuitively, without the effort, frustration and expense of developing your own “home grown” systems. Users can easily model (and easily modify) their business environment on the available axes and hierarchies. They can aggregate and disaggregate data in the three dimensional models with a few clicks, easily apply statistical algorithms and compare them. Additionally, users can easily share demand plans with multiple stakeholders, with easy distribution and consolidation that encourages collaborative planning.

Microsoft Demand Planner is natively integrated with Microsoft Dynamics AX. Information can easily flow back and forth between Microsoft Demand Planner and the ERP system. At installation time, data from predefined ERP tables are automatically imported into the Microsoft Demand Planner. Wizards are used to configure the tool and the information flow.

Effective integration between the demand planning tool and ERP system plays an important role in the effectiveness of the demand forecasting process.

• It reduces the planning cycle time, making it feasible to run the forecasting process more frequently, resulting in improved accuracy.
• All applications work on the “same” data, in an unambiguous way.
• It reduces deployment cost and time, putting businesses on their way to quick ROI.
• The “closed-loop” integration makes the generated forecasts available to other planning processes.

Microsoft Demand Planner is an easy-to-use, effective tool specifically designed to support the demand analysis and forecast generation process in the most natural way for planners.