# Pre-Demand Review Readiness Checklist for Demand Planners > Source: https://netray.co/tools/pre-demand-review-meeting-readiness-checklist > Publisher: Netray (netray.co), AI and integration engineering for ERP and manufacturing systems. > Section: Free Tools ## Short answer A step-by-step checklist to complete before the monthly demand review so the meeting debates decisions, not data. ## Category supply-chain ## Audience - Demand planner - S&OP lead - Sales operations ## Tool **Kind:** checklist **Groups:** #### Data and baseline **Items:** **Text:** Previous month actuals are loaded and reconciled to the sales report **Critical:** true Master data changes since last cycle are reviewed (new items, supersessions) Outliers in last month's actuals are reviewed and marked **Text:** The statistical baseline forecast has been regenerated **Critical:** true Model changes or parameter overrides are logged with a reason **Text:** Last cycle's forecast version is frozen and stored for accuracy measurement **Critical:** true #### Performance review **Items:** **Text:** Forecast accuracy is calculated at the agreed lag and level **Critical:** true **Text:** Bias is reported with the same definition as last cycle **Critical:** true Tracking signal alerts are listed for A and B items Top forecast exceptions are identified with a root cause code Forecast value add of manual overrides is calculated Accuracy trend over the last six cycles is plotted #### Commercial inputs **Items:** **Text:** Sales has submitted its adjustments by the agreed deadline **Critical:** true Promotions and price changes are loaded with dates and expected uplift New product launches and phase-outs are confirmed with dates Large customer orders, contracts and tenders are listed with probability Marketing and key account plans are reflected or explicitly excluded Market or economic assumptions are written down #### Supply awareness **Items:** Capacity and material constraints known for the horizon are listed **Text:** Long lead-time items needing early decisions are flagged **Critical:** true Inventory position and projected stock-outs or excess are summarized Supplier or logistics disruptions that change demand fulfillment are noted #### Meeting pack **Items:** **Text:** Unconstrained consensus proposal is prepared at family level **Critical:** true Risks and opportunities are quantified in units or value **Text:** Decisions needed from the meeting are listed explicitly **Critical:** true The pack is circulated before the meeting with time to review Owners are assigned to follow up on last meeting's actions Minutes and an updated forecast version will be saved after the meeting **Scoring Note:** Aim to complete every critical item before the meeting. If more than two critical items are open, consider moving the meeting rather than debating unreliable numbers. ## Content **Intro:** The demand review works when the numbers are ready and the debate is about decisions. This checklist lists the work a demand planner should finish beforehand, from refreshing data to preparing the pack and the questions to resolve. **Sections:** #### How to use the checklist **Body:** Start it about a week before the demand review and work through the groups in order. Data and baseline come first, because accuracy and exceptions depend on them. Commercial inputs have deadlines for sales, so chase them early. Tick items as done, note owners for gaps and keep the critical items visible. Export the completed list to show the S&OP lead that the cycle is ready. #### Why this order **Body:** Actuals must be right before you measure accuracy, and accuracy must be known before you decide where to focus review time. Only then does it make sense to collect commercial adjustments, because you can show sales where the forecast has been wrong or biased. Supply awareness comes last in preparation so you can bring constraints into the conversation without letting them reshape demand. **Bullets:** - Freeze last cycle's forecast first - Measure at the supply lag - Review exceptions, not everything - Separate demand from supply constraints #### What the meeting pack should hold **Body:** A good pack is short. It shows the statistical baseline, the proposed consensus forecast and the gap between them, accuracy and bias at family level, the top exceptions with causes, and a list of risks and opportunities in units. Finish with the decisions needed. Everything else belongs in an appendix, because long packs hide the decisions. #### Common mistakes **Body:** Planners often update the forecast before freezing the old version, which makes accuracy unmeasurable. Sales adjustments arrive late and are loaded without review. Constrained supply numbers leak into the demand plan so the company never sees true demand. Keep the demand plan unconstrained, version every change and log the reason for each override. **Cta:** If preparing this pack takes several days each cycle, Netray can assemble the accuracy, exceptions and baseline views from your ERP data for a planner to review. **Faq:** #### When should demand review preparation start? **Answer:** Most teams begin once month-end actuals are available, typically several working days before the meeting. Allow time to chase sales inputs, because late submissions are the most common cause of a weak review. #### What is the difference between demand review and S&OP? **Answer:** The demand review agrees an unconstrained consensus demand plan. It is one step in the S&OP cycle, which continues with supply review, a pre-S&OP reconciliation and an executive meeting. Preparation checklists differ by step. #### Why freeze the previous forecast version? **Answer:** Accuracy is measured by comparing actuals with what was forecast at a given lag. If you overwrite the old forecast you cannot measure it. Store a frozen copy of every cycle's forecast. #### Should the demand plan include supply constraints? **Answer:** No. Keep the demand plan unconstrained so the business sees real demand, then compare it with supply capability in the supply review. Mixing the two hides shortages and misleads sales. ## Search terms demand review preparation checklist, demand planning monthly cycle checklist, S&OP pre-meeting checklist, demand planner monthly checklist, demand review meeting preparation, forecast review readiness, consensus forecast preparation, demand planning cycle steps --- Talk to an engineer: https://netray.co/contact?intent=erp_ai | Machine catalog: https://netray.co/agent/catalog.json