Demand Management

The practice of forecasting, planning, and managing the demand for resources to ensure that the best use is made of them.

Also Known As

• Capacity Planning
• Demand Forecasting
• Demand Planning
• Drum-Buffer-Rope (in TameFlow)
• Resource Planning
• Resource Scaling

Related

• Prioritising
• Requirements Capture

Addresses / Mitigates

• Reliability Risk: Helps in efficiently allocating scarce dependencies to meet the most critical demands.
• Deadline Risk: Ensures that the demand is managed to meet delivery schedules.
• Market Risk: Aligns production with market demand, reducing the risk of under or overproduction.

Attendant Risks

• Complexity Risk: Forecasting and planning demand can add complexity to project management.
• Funding Risk: Inaccurate demand forecasts can lead to resource misallocation.

Used By

• TameFlow: Drum-Buffer-Rope ensures the constraint receives continuous work supply, managing demand through the system.

Description

"Demand management is a planning methodology used to forecast, plan for and manage the demand for products and services. It is a key process in supply chain management." - Demand Management, Wikipedia

Demand Management involves forecasting, planning, and managing the demand for products or services to ensure they align with business objectives and customer needs. This practice helps in balancing supply and demand, optimizing resource utilization, and enhancing customer satisfaction by ensuring timely delivery of products or services.

Variations

Demand Management Type	Description	Reference
Capacity Planning	Determining the production capacity needed to meet changing demands for products.	Capacity Planning, Wikipedia
Load Balancing	Distributing workloads across multiple resources to optimize response time and availability.	Load Balancing, Wikipedia
Auto-Scaling	Automatically adjusting compute resources based on current demand levels.	Autoscaling, Wikipedia
Queueing	Using buffers to manage bursts of demand and smooth processing over time.	Message Queue, Wikipedia

See also: Reliability Risk

Used By

TameFlow

A management approach for knowledge work that integrates Theory of Constraints, Kanban, and Agile principles to optimize the flow of work, information, and value.

Why: Drum-Buffer-Rope ensures the constraint receives continuous work supply, managing demand through the system.

Uses:

• Drum-Buffer-Rope