Question 2 (10 marks)

Name the next Excel tab Question 2. For this question, you will focus on two qualitative forecasting techniques that you learned about in Unit 2: consumer surveys and sales force composite forecasts. Answer the following in two text boxes under this tab:

Consumer surveys have the tendency to overestimate demand as people sometimes over-commit but under-buy or they have the tendency to please the surveyor. This creates a consumer bias in the forecast. If you are a forecaster of a companys sales, explain in about 200 words how would you address this bias. In your answer, you must suggest at least two strategies to address this bias.

You are working as a sales forecaster in a company where the sales force composite forecasts are used, and the sales team mostly work on commissions plus some regular salary. The tendency of the sales team is to project lower sales so that target sales are set lower to earn higher commissions. This underestimation of demand creates a sales bias. Explain in about 200 words how would you address this bias. In your answer, you must suggest at least two strategies to address this bias.

Grading Criteria

Clarity on consumer bias (3 marks)

Two strategies to address consumer bias (2 marks)

Clarity on sales bias (3 marks)

Two strategies to address sales bias (2 marks)