Iscom471 Week 5

Alicia Pearson

June 10, 2013

ISCOM/471

Planning and Controlling the Supply Chain Paper

Dennis Druhe

Abstract

This essay will discuss the planning and controlling supply chain of a health insurance company by the name of Planned Administrators, Inc. (PAI) which offers self-funded health insurance. The organization is a third party administrator of hierarchy insurance company Blue Cross and Blue Shield of South Carolina (BCBSSC). Throughout this essay, we will differentiate key elements from each of the four primary forecasting techniques and how the elements apply to the customer service perspective of PAI, analyze budget plans and compare and contrast the material requirements planning usage against another insurance company who does not offer full coverage for members of group health plans and benefits.

Forecasting Techniques

Forecasting techniques help organizations plan for the future. For most organizations, potential investors and analyst are given a more credible opinion by outside partners on what is expected for an organization. However for PAI, more credence is given from inside perspective which would also include PAI self-funded employer members, members from the marketing teams, and management teams. The identified four primary forecasting techniques are as follows: Delphi Technique, Scenario Writing, Subjective Approach, and Time Series Forecasting.

PAI Delphi Technique

The Delphi Technique is a process in which experts respond to questionnaires about the organization and how the organization can be improved. In the case for PAI, the experts will be as mentioned earlier, the self-funded insurance members and the marketing and management teams from within PAI. Customer surveys will be most important because the members will give the organization an impression of ideas to improve customer service. The marketing and management teams are needed from within for budget purposes. Marketing members will give opinions from the short term...