Understanding the Discrepancy Between the Design and Implementation of Inventory Policies

The Rochester Institute of Technology is partnering with Dow on a project to optimize how multi-echelon inventory policies are designed and implemented.

Problem

Designed inventory policies are not always followed closely. An inventory manager may have good reasons to deviate from a policy and that information has the potential to improve policy design and implementation. But reasons for such deviations are not typically made clear.

Proposed Solution

Using case studies and real (anonymized data), the team will develop a framework for evidence-based determination of what’s causing observed discrepancies between policy design and execution.

Impact

Improved syncing of inventory policies and implementation unlocks the potential for better results.