Episode 168: Making AI Work in Demand Sensing: The Six Dogmas for Trustworthy Forecasting with Implement's Mike Weisbjerg

This week, Mike Weisberg of Implement explains how AI is improving sales forecasting through trust, purpose, and accuracy, while reshaping the planner’s role, reducing inventory bias, and separating prediction from human judgment.

Download the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠episode transcript⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (sap-podcast-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com/the-future…)

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In this episode, Mike Weisberg shares practical guidance on using AI in sales forecasting, including the right data foundation, six implementation dogmas, and explainable models. He also outlines how planners evolve into business partners and why judgment still matters most.

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Guest: Mike Weisbjerg, Partner, Implement Consulting Group
Mike is a Partner at Implement Consulting Group, where he has spent the last decade working at the intersection of supply chain planning and technology. He specialises in demand planning and AI-driven forecasting and decision making. With a focus on implementing demand planning solutions, Mike helps organisations move AI from proof of concept to production - with forecasts that planners actually trust.

Host 1: Richard Howells

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Richard Howells⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ has been working in the Supply Chain Management and Manufacturing space for over 30 years. He is responsible for driving the thought leadership and awareness of SAP’s ERP, Finance, and Supply Chain solutions and is an active writer, podcaster, and thought leader on the topics of supply chain, Industry 4.0, digitization, and sustainability.

Host 2: Oyku Ilgar, SAP 

Oyku Ilgar is a marketer and thought leader specializing in SAP’s digital supply chain and ERP solutions since 2017. As a marketer, blogger, and podcaster, she creates engaging content that highlights innovative SAP technologies and explores key topics including business trends, AI, Industry 4.0, and sustainability. 

She holds dual bachelor’s degrees in Finance & Accounting and English Translation, along with a master’s degree in Business Administration and Foreign Trade, specializing in marketing. With her background in digital transformation, Oyku communicates technology trends and industry insights to help professionals navigate the evolving business landscape. 

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Show Links:
Implement Consulting Group. Link (implementconsultinggroup.com)
Article (implementconsultinggroup.com/article/beyond-ac…): Beyond accuracy: Six dogmas for turning AI forecasting into real business value

Supply Chain Management: 
⁠⁠SAP Supply Chain Management⁠⁠ (sap.com/products/scm/solutions.html)
⁠⁠SAP Insights: Supply Chain⁠⁠ (sap.com/insights/supply-chain.html)  

Follow Us on Social Media :
Richard Howells: ⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ (linkedin.com/in/richardjhowells),
Oyku Ilgar: ⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ (linkedin.com/in/oykuilgar) 
SAP Digital Supply Chain: ⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ (linkedin.com/showcase/sapscm)  

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Chapters:

00:00:00: Intro
00:01:06: Guest’s Introductions
00:02:05: Why traditional forecasting struggles in volatile markets
00:03:25: The three fundamentals: trust, purpose, accuracy
00:07:03: Which data matters most for AI forecasting
00:10:12: Why bad data should not delay AI adoption
00:13:26: The six dogmas for AI forecasting implementation
00:14:38: The evolving role of the demand planner
00:16:54: Measuring success beyond forecast accuracy
00:18:35: How can Implement help companies in this latest AI-infused planning era?
00:19:36: What is the Future of Supply Chain?
00:20:17: Outro