Supply chain management is built on the principles of partnerships and the
development and use of the connections that exist between the links of the
chain to provide information that will increase the efficiency of all members in
the chain. Success stories abound describing lower costs, shorter lead times and
increased customer service. Collaborative forecasting applies supply chain
management concepts to the forecasting function and uses available
information and technology to force a shift from independent, forecasted
demand to dependent, known demand. Eventually, the future of forecasting
may evolve to the point where forecasting is not even necessary. Demand
information will be supplied completely by supply chain partners and the need
to predict demand will be eliminated.