How Hershey Direct manages seasonal order peaks to avoid a Christmastime meltdown

By Alicia Orr , Editor In Chief and Catalog Success

1. True strategic and tactical planning: This isn’t a company that just drifts along. Rather, every top and middle manager is focused on what the projections are, what the operating plan is, and how to deal with both the planned and unplanned issues. They have excellent communication between all groups (i.e., marketing, operations, inventory management) through brief daily status meetings and other frequent interaction with one another. There’s never a sense of panic or chaos, even at the busiest time—they just get it done.