Bridging Financial and Operational Planning Using Event-Driven EPM Architectures in Retail Logistics

Abstract

Retail logistics operates in a highly dynamic environment characterized by volatile demand, fluctuating supply conditions, rising fulfillment costs, and increasing customer service expectations. Traditional enterprise performance management (EPM) systems rely on batch-oriented data integration and periodic planning cycles, resulting in financial forecasts and budgets that lag behind real-time operational realities. This disconnect limits organizational responsiveness, weakens risk management, and constrains effective integrated business planning (IBP). This paper proposes an event-driven EPM architecture that bridges financial and operational planning in retail logistics by embedding real-time event intelligence into enterprise planning processes. The architecture captures operational events, such as inventory stock-outs, shipment delays, transportation cost changes, and demand surges, through continuous event streams and processes them using real-time analytics and complex event processing. These insights are used to dynamically recalibrate financial forecasts, budgets, profitability models, and risk indicators within EPM systems. By enabling continuous synchronization between logistics execution and financial planning, the proposed framework improves forecast accuracy, reduces decision latency, enhances margin visibility, and strengthens enterprise agility. The paper presents a conceptual architecture, system workflow, implementation roadmap, and governance considerations, offering practical guidance for retailers seeking to modernize planning capabilities in volatile logistics environments.