North Carolina Executive Roundtable Hosts Michael Gilliland at April 2014 Meeting

CARY, NC, April 02, 2014 (Press-News.org) James Chambers, President of the North Carolina Executive Roundtable (NCER), announced that Michael Gilliland, Marketing Manager for SAS forecasting software, and author of The Business Forecasting Deal, will discuss key factors in determining accurate business forecasts in his talk "Value Added Business Forecasting." The talk will take place April 11th, 2014 NCER meeting of members at Prestonwood Country Club in Cary at 11:45am. The meeting is open to members and invited guests, and the cost is $30.00.

Gilliland will discuss how accuracy is largely determined by the nature of what is being forecast -- its "forecastability." Even costly and heroic efforts may not yield the level of accuracy management desires. Instead of squandering resources in pursuit of the perfect forecast, organizations should seek forecasts as accurate as can reasonably be expected (given the nature of what is being forecast) and to do this as efficiently as possible. Forecast Value Added (FVA) analysis, a tool in the lean approach to forecasting, can identify waste in the forecasting process, allowing organizations to achieve these objectives.

Michael Gilliland is Marketing Manager for SAS forecasting software, and author of The Business Forecasting Deal. He has over 15 years of forecasting experience in the food, apparel, and consumer electronics industries. Mike edits the Forecasting Practice section of Foresight: The International Journal of Applied Forecasting, and has published articles in Foresight, Supply Chain Management Review, Journal of Business Forecasting, Analytics, Supply Chain Forecasting Digest, and APICS magazine. Mike holds a BA in Philosophy from Michigan State University, and Master's degrees in Philosophy and Mathematical Sciences from Johns Hopkins University. You can follow his blog The Business Forecasting Deal at blogs.sas.com/content/forecasting.

"We are eager to have Michael speak with us about Forecast Value Added analysis" said Chambers. "His experiences at a leading company like SAS in the forecasting software arena will provide cutting-edge insight and a knowledge that can greatly benefit business owners."

For more information or to register for the event, visit:

http://www.ncer1.org/members/calendar-events/event-registration/

About North Carolina Executive Roundtable (NCER):

North Carolina Executive Roundtable is the premier professional association of highly capable senior executives who are sought after by business and industry for their unparalleled expertise and recognized for their contributions to the greater community. For a senior executive in a small-to-midsize business, NCER is a nonprofit professional association that provides a forum for building trusted relationships among members which fosters a culture where peers discuss and explore business ideas and challenges in an open, receptive environment. For more information, visit http://www.ncer1.org