The CPDF® Certification Curriculum is All About Hands-on Learning


Welcome . . .

Searching To Enhance Your Professional Skills In Forecasting, Demand Planning, and Forecast Management?

Knowing the basic "ins and outs" of demand forecasting and integrated business planning is critical for any business, as well as your success as a professional. At a CPDF® Workshop, you hear from the most experienced forecasting experts and enjoy an interactive, hands-on learning experience. After the instructor-led workshop, you can earn a certification designation through a self-paced, online e-learning exam process conducted by qualified CPDF Team Leaders. Whether you are new to demand forecasting or not, you will gain valuable information that will benefit your company and you in your career.

"It was a great pleasure for me to attend the CPDF course. It was one of the best organized trainings I have attended so far. Content-wise rich and high level though very practical, and logistics-wise quite well communicated and arranged. Regional Demand Planner, Givaudan, Switzerland

Large Groups (<20): Shanghai, China

Small Public Workshops: Dubai, UAE and Beirut, Lebanon

Develop The Knowledge, Skills, Talents And Sensitivities That Are Critical To Achieving Your Goals Now And In The Future

The Certified Professional in Demand Forecasting (CPDF®) curriculum was launched in 2007 as a new voice in the forecaster training world. In contrast to conventional training programs for forecaster certifications that are based on listening to overviews on statistical forecasting techniques along with a rote memorization of multiple choice exam questions, the (CPDF) curriculum emphasizes blended learning to master the collaborative process of performing the an agile forecasting function quickly and easily while successfully completing forecasting review cycles. 

According to a Demand Planner in a CPG company in Saudi Arabia: "After the CPDF I training workshop, we introduced a new demand planning process based on weekly and daily history rather than monthly forecasts to better reflect the dynamics (short shelf-life products) in our business. We reduced product returns and improved forecast accuracy. I am getting good appreciation from everyone now."

 

Cape Town / Durban / Pretoria, South Africa; (More PICS ==>)

CLICK HERE to download a brochure on CPDF Offerings . . .

Mali, Maldives; Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Istanbul, Turkey (More PICS ==>)

CLICK HERE for pricing and schedules of upcoming CPDF Events . . .

Istanbul, Turkey (More PICS ==>)

CLICK HERE for corporations (285) and countries (34) participating in past CPDF Events . . .

"CPDF is a very useful, hands-on training workshop for combining statistical approaches with a reference to the demand forecasting and planning process. Demand forecasters/planners will realize continuous improvement by having more accurate forecasts in every cycle. I recommend CPDF training for practitioners working in related areas of the supply chain" - CPG forecaster, Turkey

You Get Promoted When You Have Changed Your Job, Not Just Done a good Or Excellent Job!

The CPDF hands-on workshops offer practical tools for on-the-job learning to enrich your job function and enhance your value to the business. Endorsed by the International Institute of Forecasters (www.forecasters.org), our best practices agile Structured Workshops In Forecaster Training (SWIFT) industrial courseware for demand forecasters and integrated business planners offers individuals and organizations the skills and standards necessary to perform at agile, world-class levels with forecasting effectiveness and productivity in todays highly competitive, global marketplace.

For beginners and professionals with specific industrial experience, the CPDF instructor-led courses provide the concepts and techniques behind all the facets of demand forecasting, from data sourcing, data quality management, and exploratory data analysis to structuring forecast data, analyzing and interpreting forecasting models, and assessing forecast accuracy, leading to creating a final forecast for the Integrated Business Planning (IBP) process.

"This workshop helped me to structure my thinking and the basis of this workshop will be used to improve our company's forecasting process and models." - Manager, Operational Forecasting; Gavi, Switzerland

Mumbai and New Delhi, India (More PICS ==>)

"It was great to be trained on demand forecasting by such an experienced person as Dr. Hans Levenbach! Demand Planner, UN World Food Programs.

 

Riyadh and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (More PICS ==>)

 

It's here! Book on Demand Forecasting and Planning for Professional Development, Education and Training for Demand/Supply Chain Analysts, Practitioners and Managers Worldwide

Registered participants for a CPDF Workshop will receive a free copy of the book CHANGE&CHANCE EMBRACED: Achieving Agility with Smarter Forecasting in the Supply Chain. Authored by world-renowned expert Dr. Hans, this is an ideal reference book for supply chain practitioners and courses on demand forecasting and planning. It also provides demand planners and their managers with the quantitative tools and real-world cases that they need to analyze, predict and visualize future customer demand in the Sales & Operations (S&OP) process.

This Book Will Stimulate and Satisfy Your Interest

If you are a professional forecaster who doesn't know it all, this book will fill in what you need to know. If you are professional forecaster who knows it all, this book will support your knowledge, give you a reference to support your knowledge and perhaps show you that you don't quite know it all. If you are becoming a forecaster, this book will show you the way to go and take you along the proper paths. If you are not a professional forecaster, but interested in forecasting, this book will stimulate and satisfy your interest. It shows you the kinds of charts and graphs to look at so that this is not merely arithmetic, but arithmetic supported by where to apply that arithmetic to take you to a forecast. It's about how to go from the data you have to the forecasts you need. It's not just formulas and methods. It puts you in the right place and tells you what to do and how to do it to get where you need to be. In addition there are amusing little drawing scattered through the book. Also there are little historical pieces that give a sense of how these techniques were developed. As a bonus, there are interesting short quotes throughout the book, including this one, which appears on page 55, "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler," Albert Einstein. That describes this book. If you are a professional forecaster, or would like to be one, this book should be on your shelf, or, better, on your desk.

My mentor on forecasting, Hans Levenbach, has not only updated his previous excellent publications with new topics, but he has given the whole field a fresh feeling written with style understandable by novices and appreciated by experts. In addition to incorporating the latest advances in technology, Dr. Hans has added sections on Agility, Big Data and Data Quality that are so critical in today's business climate. The focus is on applications across the supply chain in a novel way that makes reading fun and full of practical examples. The "Takeaways" provide a helpful summary at the end of each chapter. Pictures, Cases and Quotes add charm to the story. Leon Schwartz, PhD., Principal, Informed Decisions Group, LTD; INFORMS Fellow

FREE Software To Support Learning

For people who are new to the field -- at either managerial or operational levels -- the scope and perspective of these courses are indispensable. For this blended learning process, we utilize Excel spreadsheets and Excel Addins to reinforce best practices and avoid worst practices. You will master state-of-the-art forecasting techniques and practices with PEERForecaster, an easy-to-use Excel Add-In.

"I have already seen dividends from the first CPDF workshop and certification. At work my forecasting responsibilities have grown from the West to the entire US, a challenge for which knowing the PEER process has prepared me for, giving me not only the tools to perform well, but also confidence in the job." - Demand Forecaster, Wireless Network Company, USA

CLICK HERE to download a FREE, full version of PEERForecaster Add-in for Excel . . .

Who Should Attend?

Newcomers to the demand forecasting, planning and management field

Experienced professionals who'd like to increase their forecasting knowledge

Executives from other corporate areas who've been placed in positions that now manage demand forecasting and planning activities

 

 

The CPDF® certification curriculum has been endorsed by the International Institute of Forecasters (IIF). Upon completion of three CPDF credentials, a participant will be awarded the IIF Certified Forecaster designation. A CPDF certification credential can be earned at three levels:

>Smart Forecasting and Planning: CPDF I:A Two-day Hands-on Workshop Covering Forecasting Principles and Best Practices (comprises 60% +/- 25% of the demand forecasting workcycle).

CPDF II: Demand Forecasting Methodology and Performance Measurement (omprises an additional 25% +/- 15% of the demand forecasting workcycle).

CPDF III: Automated, Databased Forecasting Through Forecast Collaboration and Process Integration (comprises the remaining 15% +/- 10% of the demand forecasting workcycle).

>Smarter Forecasting and Demand Planning: Combination of CPDF I and CPDF II compressed into a three-day workshop.

>Agile Forecasting® and Integrated Business Planning: Combination of CPDF I, CPDF II, and CPDF III in a five-day workshop.

Training Workshops can be completed in any order. At each level, a Certification credential is earned by completing six supplementary, self-paced e-learning worksheet problems as exams.

What You'll Learn

Using a hands-on, interactive workshop structure, you'll define the demand forecasting and planning work cycle and its essential contributions to all aspects of the Sales & Operations (S&OP) planning process. You will gain a profound understanding of how all the components of the S & OP planning process work together with a 'best practices' demand forecasting cycle. Some of the topics include:

Determining Customer Needs, New Product Requirements and Location-specific demand patterns

Utilize Proven Data Analytics for Analysis and Predictive Visualization and Reporting

Structuring Forecast Decision Support Database for Automated Forecasting

Preparing the Most Important Drivers for Forecasting New and Existing Products and Services

Designing an Effective Forecast Support System for Decision Making

Identifying the Most Appropriate Accuracy Measures and Applying Them Correctly

Developing Causal Regression Models for Forecasting Trend, Cycles, Seasonal and Promotional Patterns

Selecting the Final Forecast Numbers With Field Sales Input in a Collaborative Framework

Measuring Risk and Creating Forecast Ranges in an Uncertain Demand Forecasting World

Implementing a Sales and Operations Process While Breaking Down Organizational Silos

Analyzing the Business Environment From a Multi-Impact Perspective

Eventhough All Forecasts are Wrong, Know How to Reconcile Baseline Demand Forecasts, Models and Field Forecasters

Developing Rolling Forecasts to Optimize Budgeting and Financial Cycles

Implementing and Supporting World-Class Forecasting Practices

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