SCOT has evolved from a data sharing platform to a powerful resource for optimizing communication and supply chain management. One of the latest feature, Forecast Sharing, enables you to get a glimpse over Metro ordering needs, be prepared with the needed product stocks and ensure seamless deliveries to Metro. This article will guide you through the new Forecast Sharing page.

What is Forecast sharing?

With Forecast Sharing, you have access to Metro data projections in terms of sales (expected sales in Metro stores) and orders (planned to be placed by Metro to you).



The page shows analytical data coming into SCOT once a week, every Tuesday. The forecast data is available for a total period of the next 13 deliveries grouped by weeks, from the current week onwards. The analytics are defined at account level. 

As seen on the screenshot above, you can select the account you are interested in and use the available filters (Week Number, Article Variant details, Supplier Article details, GTIN, Category) to narrow down the results. Once the needed filters are applied, select Search.



The table shows all the units in buying bundle quantities. The data set for the 13-week period is analyzed to highlight any outliers (Orders that are significantly different from average volumes which are planned to be sold or ordered) in orange color.

Usually, all the data is defined based on country level. However, in Forecast Sharing, the access is defined on Account level tied to the account number in the screen. 

1. Order Forecast (OF)

2. Sales Forecast (SF)

3. Sales Forecast - Base and Promo Split

The accesses for all the accounts are managed by Metro Supply Chain teams and you can get in touch with your Metro representative to request or modify your access.


The Forecast Sharing page is divided into three sections: Order Forecast, Sales Forecast and Base/Promo Forecast Split.


1. Order Forecast


The Order Forecast section shows information related to Metro order plan.

In their planning system - based on planned sales to customers, stocks and some other parameters - Metro plans how much should order to cover their forecasted demand. This value, how much Metro plans to order from you, is displayed on this page.
 


Line chart 1:

This chart represents volume of all orders, it shows actual order volume in Business Units (BU) for current week and the historical data of last four weeks.

Example: In the above figure, for Week 19 the order volume is 36.3K and historical data until Week 16 is shown.

To view the required historical order volume of any supplier account for a certain week, you can select any of these search filters like Account / Week on top of the page and click on Search.



Line chart 2:


This chart shows the forecast of each article-variant-bundle-number. And the forecast details are the same as what is shown in the grid.

Total of 13 weeks - which is current week plus next 12 weeks - future forecast is shown here.




To view the required article-variant no details for a certain week, you can select any of these search filters like Account / Week No / Article Variant No - Name / Subsys No on top of the page and click on Search.


If you change the filter, the grid and the graph will also change. So, the second line chart and the grid show the information based on the search filter.

Bar Chart:

This chart shows top five articles which have the maximum value of the forecast in Business Units (BU).

This chart also changes based on the search filter.

To view the top articles related to certain account or for a certain week, you can select any of these search filters like Account / Week No on top of the page and click on Search.



2. Sales Forecast



This section is like Order Forecast, only that here the Sales Forecast is displayed. Which means how much Metro expects to sell to store customers. 


Line chart 1:

This chart shows the Sales Forecast of each article-variant-bundle-number.  And the forecast details are the same as what is shown in the grid.

Total of 13 weeks - which is current week plus next 12 weeks - future sales is shown here.





Bar chart:

The top five articles with the maximum sales are displayed here, from highest to lowest.

PDF can be downloaded and this is in BU.



If you change the search filter, the grid and the graphs will also change. 

To view the required article-variant no details for a certain week, you can select and of these search filters like Account / Week No / Article Variant No - Name / Subsys No on top of the page and click on Search.

 

Base/Promo Sales Forecast Split



This section shows separately Base Sales Forecast (regular period, without special activities), Promo Sales Forecast (how much Metro expects to sell during promotional period) and also Total Sales Forecast – which is a sum of previous two.


Line chart 1:

Sales Forecast of all articles together and also the split between Base and Promo Sales Forecasts are shown here in BU.

Yellow line forecast is Total Sales Forecast.

Light blue line is Base Sales Forecast.

Dark blue line indicates Promo Sales Forecast.



The forecast details reflect what is shown in the grid.

Total of 13 weeks - which is current week plus the next 12 weeks - future forecast is shown here.

The first few columns show 1. SFB (Sales Forecast Base) which means regular forecasted sales without promo impact.

The next columns show 2. SFP (Sales Forecast Promo) which means sales forecast during promo period  without base forecast impact.

Note: SFP is applicable in case upcoming promo activities are introduced in the Metro data systems.

Bar chart 1:

The top five Base forecast articles with the maximum expected sales are displayed here, from highest to lowest.



Bar Chart 2:

The top five Promo forecast articles with the maximum expected sales are displayed here, from highest to lowest.



Exporting data:

Each of these graphs in all three sections can be downloaded as PDF by clicking on the three-dots menu on top right corner.



The table grid of each section can also be exported to Excel by clicking on the three-dots menu on the top right corner, and selecting Export forecast sharing (Excel).

 


Weekly and Customizable Data view:

The table grid in each section presents data on a weekly basis, with the option to filter by specific weeks. The table is also customizable—only the Article Variant Bundle Number field is mandatory, and other fields can be added or removed as needed.