Beyond the Forecast by Deborah Evans

Beyond the Forecast by Deborah Evans

Integrated Business Planning (IBP) is designed to be the monthly leadership process that aligns demand, supply, finance, and strategy to drive profitable growth. In practice, however, many IBP implementations devolve into costly cycles of meetings and reporting that fail to produce meaningful outcomes. The real obstacles are rarely the process or the technology—they are leadership commitment, organizational design, accountability, and the reluctance to confront difficult trade‑offs.

This book explains why most IBP efforts fall short and offers a practical framework for making IBP function as a true business management discipline.

Drawing on 24 years of hands‑on global IBP leadership at Cummins Inc. and Elanco Animal Health, the author shows how to shift from performative planning to genuine decision‑making. The book outlines the five essential leadership conditions for success: authentic commitment, clear strategic objectives, explicit accountability and governance, capable people, and foundational operational readiness.

Readers will learn how to make performance gaps visible and actionable, force honest trade‑offs in the room, and build organizational structures that support, rather than undermine, IBP. The book includes real‑world examples, practical tools (such as accountability matrices and gap‑closing templates), and candid lessons drawn from both successes and failures.

Unlike most books on S&OP or IBP that focus on process mechanics and assume perfect leadership alignment, this book confronts the human, cultural, and structural realities that determine whether IBP becomes a powerful management discipline or an expensive form of theater. It is written for leaders who are tired of recurring performance gaps and want a disciplined, practical approach to turning strategy into results.

Deborah Evans currently serves as the Head of Global Integrated Business Planning at Elanco and is the Founder of Delve Planning Architects. With extensive experience spanning over two decades at Cummins Inc., Debbie led the implementation of integrated business planning across all business units and joint ventures, significantly impacting revenue and operational efficiency. Debbie's roles at Cummins also included Director of Integrated Business Planning, where workshops and coaching were conducted, and Director of Quality, responsible for the Cummins Operating System assessment and inventory reduction initiatives.

Prior experience includes positions at Arvin Meritor Exhaust Systems, focusing on continuous improvement and manufacturing management. Debbie holds an MBA in Finance from Ball State University and a Business Administration degree from Indiana University Indianapolis.