Inventory Planning & Optimization for Supply Chains Training Course

Course overview

Inventory planning decides how much stock a business holds, where in the network it sits, and when each item is replenished. This course treats those decisions as a connected set of models rather than a series of manual judgment calls. It follows the full planning cycle, starting with demand forecasts, moving through order-quantity and safety-stock calculations, and ending with network-wide optimization across plants, distribution centers, and forward stocking points. The aim is a plan that meets an agreed service level while keeping capital tied up in stock as low as the target allows.

Participants work through the methods a planning team actually uses: economic order quantity (EOQ) for lot sizing, cycle service level and fill rate as service targets, ABC analysis to segment thousands of SKUs by value and movement, and multi-echelon inventory optimization (MEIO) to set stock positions across a whole network instead of one location at a time. The course connects these techniques to sales and operations planning (S&OP), so inventory targets stay aligned with the demand, supply, and financial plans agreed each cycle. Throughout, the focus stays on planning strategy and optimization models, the strategic anchor that the rest of an inventory discipline is built on.

Why inventory planning drives supply chain performance

Most availability problems and most excess-stock write-downs trace back to a planning parameter that was set once and never revisited. A reorder point built on last year's lead time, a blanket safety-stock rule applied to fast and slow movers alike, or a forecast that ignores seasonality will quietly cost service and cash at the same time. Planning done well removes that drag: it sizes buffers to measured demand and supply variability, positions inventory where it protects the customer most efficiently, and dampens the bullwhip effect that amplifies small demand swings into large upstream orders.

Good planning is also where inventory strategy meets the wider network. Decisions about how many stocking echelons to run, where to centralize slow movers, and how to coordinate replenishment with suppliers all sit here, and they interact. This course keeps that broader view in sight, and connects to the wider discipline of Supply Chain and Logistics Optimization so planners can see how inventory targets support flow, cost, and service across the end-to-end chain. Cost and inventory-investment figures used in the course support operational planning decisions; they are not investment or financial guidance.

Course objectives

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Forecast demand and judge forecast quality with MAPE and bias.
• Calculate order quantities using continuous or periodic review.
• Position stock across the network rather than site by site.
• Segment the catalog by ABC analysis to set service priorities.
• Monitor turnover and service metrics to expose root causes.
• Structure master data to keep planning systems trustworthy.
• Justify inventory investment by weighing cost against risk.
• Quantify demand and supply uncertainty to size protective buffers.
• Align replenishment plans with trading-partner signals and forecasts.
• Weigh inventory decisions against waste, obsolescence, and footprint.

Course outline

Unit 1: Introduction to Inventory Planning in Supply Chains

• The role of cycle stock, safety stock, and in-transit stock.
• The trade-off between cycle service level and fill rate.
• Dependent demand feeding material requirements planning.
• Planning parameters and the origin of the bullwhip effect.

Unit 2: Demand Forecasting for Inventory Planning

• Holt-Winters and exponential smoothing for seasonal demand.
• ARIMA and moving averages versus simple baselines.
• Measuring MAPE, mean absolute deviation, and forecast bias.
• Turning forecast error into a safety-stock planning input.

Unit 3: Inventory Optimization Models

• Economic order quantity (EOQ) sensitivity to cost and demand.
• Continuous review versus periodic review and reorder logic.
• Multi-echelon optimization (MEIO) across network stages.
• SKU rationalization and its optimization trade-offs.

Unit 4: Safety Stock and Reorder Point Strategies

• Reorder point as expected demand during lead time.
• Safety stock sized from demand and lead-time variability.
• Setting differentiated service targets by ABC class.
• The effect of lead-time reduction and reliability on buffers.

Unit 5: Inventory Analytics and KPIs

• Inventory turnover and days of inventory outstanding (DIO).
• Service KPIs including fill rate and back-order aging.
• Slow-mover and excess-stock reporting on idle capital.
• Reading forecast accuracy and bias against inventory KPIs.

Unit 6: Digital Tools in Inventory Planning

• The role of ERP, with SAP, Oracle, and Kinaxis as examples.
• Master data, lead times, and demand history driving output.
• Automated recalculation limits and continued human review.
• Integration gaps across forecasting, planning, and execution.

Unit 7: Cost Optimization in Inventory

• The components of holding cost, from capital to insurance.
• Trading ordering cost against holding cost through EOQ.
• Estimating stockout cost to justify a service-level target.
• Cost savings from centralizing slow movers and pooling stock.

Unit 8: Risk and Uncertainty in Inventory Management

• Modeling demand uncertainty and outcomes via Monte Carlo.
• Supply-side risk from lead-time gaps and single-sourcing.
• Buffering choices across stock, capacity, and lead time.
• Scenario planning for demand shocks and buffer response.

Unit 9: Collaboration Across the Supply Chain

• Vendor-managed inventory (VMI) and supplier replenishment.
• Sharing point-of-sale signals to dampen the bullwhip effect.
• Integrating inventory targets into the S&OP cycle.
• Collaborative forecasting and replenishment with partners.

Unit 10: Sustainability in Inventory and Supply Chains

• Excess and obsolete stock as write-down and emissions.
• Right-sizing safety stock to cut overproduction, not service.
• Packaging, storage, and expedited-freight impacts of policy.
• Balancing availability against the footprint of buffer stock.

Unit 11: Global Best Practices in Inventory Optimization

• Segmented inventory policies matched to demand and value.
• Network design between centralized and regional stocking.
• Governance of planning parameters, lead times, and targets.
• Regular review of forecast accuracy, service, and turnover.

Unit 12: Capstone Inventory Optimization Project

• Reviewing a dataset of demand history, lead times, and stock.
• Applying ABC segmentation and safety-stock logic to plan.
• Weighing the service, cost, and turnover trade-offs.
• Presenting the reasoning behind the recommended approach.

How the course is delivered

Sessions run through structured presentations, facilitated discussion, worked examples, and documented case studies drawn from real supply chain operations. Participants walk through sample forecasts, safety-stock calculations, and inventory KPI reports, then discuss how the same reasoning applies to their own item catalogs and networks. The course is educational; it does not provide certification and it does not audit or configure any specific planning system.

Who should attend

The course suits inventory planners, demand and supply planners, materials and stock controllers, S&OP and supply chain analysts, and procurement or operations managers who own stock levels. It is aimed at people who set or influence planning parameters and want a clearer, model-based way to balance service against inventory investment.

About EuroQuest International Training

EuroQuest International Training is a professional training organization founded in 2015. It has delivered more than 1,000 courses to over 15,000 participants, with training hubs in Dubai, London, Barcelona, Istanbul, Vienna, Paris, and Geneva, and its headquarters in Bratislava. EuroQuest courses are educational and designed to build practical capability; the organization does not provide certification.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a maths or statistics background to follow the forecasting and safety-stock units?

No specialist background is required. The course explains each method from first principles and works through the arithmetic behind EOQ, reorder points, and safety stock with clear examples, so a working knowledge of percentages and averages is enough. Participants who already use statistics will find the treatment of forecast error and demand variability goes deep enough to be useful.

How is this course different from the stock optimization and inventory turnover course?

This is the broad, end-to-end planning and optimization course. It covers the whole cycle from forecasting through multi-echelon network optimization, S&OP, risk, and sustainability. The stock optimization and turnover course takes a narrower financial angle, focused specifically on freeing working capital, lifting the turnover ratio, and clearing slow-moving stock. Many participants take both, using this one for the planning models and the other for the cash and turnover lens.

Does the course include live software or system training?

No. Digital planning tools are discussed vendor-neutrally so participants understand what ERP and advanced planning systems do and what data they need, but the course does not train any specific product. The emphasis is on the planning logic that any system relies on, illustrated through worked examples and demonstrations rather than product instruction.

Related courses

• Stock Optimization & Inventory Turnover Reduction — the working-capital and turnover angle on the inventory these plans create.
• Inventory Data Analysis & Smart Procurement Decisions — using inventory data to drive sharper procurement decisions.
• Warehouse Efficiency & Inventory Control in Supply Chains — where inventory plans meet physical stock control on the floor.
• Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in Procurement & Supply Chains — the metrics that track inventory and supply performance.

Register for this course

To reserve a place or request a schedule for your team, contact EuroQuest International Training through the course page. Early registration helps secure your preferred date and location across the EuroQuest training hubs.