The supply chain planner of 2025: How AI and automation are redefining the role

What’s happening now goes far beyond gradual change. It is reshaping the very role of the supply chain planner. The traditional tasks of data gathering, basic forecasting, and routine planning are increasingly being handled by AI-powered systems. This shift isn't happening in isolation. It's being driven by the increasing complexity of global supply chains, the need for faster decision-making, and the emergence of powerful new technologies that can process vast amounts of data in ways that humans simply cannot.

The most immediate change is showing up in the daily work of planners, where AI is taking over many of the routine tasks that once consumed hours. Basic demand forecasting, safety stock calculations, and routine master data management are increasingly being automated. In an interview, Benjamin Obling, an integrated business planning expert, notes that the demand forecast is an obvious example.

He continues: "Incorporating AI will increase the forecast accuracy".

This automation is not only improving efficiency but also raising accuracy and consistency. Systems can now juggle multiple variables at once, spot patterns people might overlook, and keep performance steady across thousands of SKUs without fatigue or bias.

As AI takes over routine tasks, planners aren’t becoming less important. No, their role is evolving. The job is shifting from manual execution to strategic and analytical decision-making. According to Benjamin Obling, tomorrow’s successful planners will stand out through sharp analytical thinking, the ability to model scenarios, and a strong command of AI and automation tools.

This evolution is shaping what we might call a human-AI partnership. AI is unmatched at crunching data and detecting patterns, but human judgment is still essential for strategic choices and handling exceptions. As Obling notes,

Don’t use a large language model for critical components like bill of materials or target service levels. That wouldn’t fly because then you don’t know what happens basically.

The real value lies in knowing where to let AI take the lead and where human oversight must guide the process. Those who succeed will be the planners who balance AI’s power with human judgment, combining speed and scale with strategic oversight.

This isn’t just about working smarter inside the company. It’s about staying competitive in the market.

Companies that move from spreadsheets to integrated, data-driven planning are pulling ahead in three areas: speed, accuracy and scalability. They reduce stockouts and overstock, free up working capital and react faster when conditions change.

Think of tariffs, sudden lead time disruptions or shifting sourcing flows. With scenario planning, you can model these before they hit and make adjustments early. Cloud solutions make it even easier by letting businesses onboard new entities or product lines quickly, without messy ERP consolidations.

The opposite scenario is all too familiar: lost sales because products aren’t where they should be. Competitiveness comes from combining the best of both worlds; robust systems and sharp human judgment. This way businesses make faster and better decisions, and scale as they grow.

For organizations, the message is clear: The time to start preparing for this transition is now. Investing in the right tools and, more importantly, in developing your planning team's capabilities for this new era, will be crucial for staying competitive in the rapidly evolving supply chain landscape.

The message is clear: the time to act is now. If you're ready to move beyond spreadsheets and empower your team with AI-driven, integrated planning, explore the PERITO IBP platform or book a demo to see how it works.

Let’s build the supply chain of 2025 – today.