Supply Planning with SAP IBP: Algorithms and Constraints

In today's volatile market, balancing supply with demand while managing capacity constraints is a critical challenge for every supply chain professional. Understanding how to model these variables in modern planning software is the key to maintaining operational efficiency and high fulfillment rates. This text-based course guides you through the core mechanics of supply planning within SAP IBP. You will transition from understanding basic inventory and distribution flows to configuring complex constraint-aware models, enabling you to make data-driven decisions that align operational execution with high-level business goals. What you'll learn: - Understand the fundamental architecture of SAP IBP supply planning, key figures, and master data. - Configure heuristic and optimizer-based planning algorithms to generate feasible supply plans. - Manage capacity constraints, resource utilization, and prioritize production or distribution demands. - Apply receipts balancing and quota arrangements to distribute supply across complex sourcing networks. - Set up exception-based alerts to proactively identify and resolve supply chain bottlenecks. - Analyze planning outputs to optimize inventory positioning and collaborative planning cycles. The course begins with foundational supply chain terminology and SAP IBP master data structures before moving into step-by-step written breakdowns of planning runs, algorithm configurations, and real-world trade-off scenarios. It is designed for supply chain planners, business analysts, and functional consultants who are new to SAP IBP and want to build a strong foundation in digital supply planning without any prior configuration experience. Start reading today to build the analytical mindset needed to optimize complex supply chain networks.