6 Lessons from the Scheduling Summit You Can Use Today

Elijah, an architect at On-Time Edge, asked the room who had rebuilt their plan after finishing it Monday morning. Almost every hand went up. That moment, during the first Scheduling Summit in Philadelphia, set the tone for everything that followed. Manufacturers everywhere are ready for smarter scheduling, but few are ready for what it really takes to get there.

Over three days, I listened to speakers and attendees from across the scheduling spectrum: MES, SCP, APS vendors, and a variety of companies who use APS, along with the team at On-Time Edge. Some organizations had refined their advanced scheduling practices for years, others were still exploring the idea. While we didn’t all agree on smaller topics such as whether capable-to-promise should live in planning or scheduling, the group did find common ground in 6 foundations that define successful APS projects: data integrity, process definition, data integration, cultural resistance, continuous improvement, and KPI alignment.

Inside the Summit: Lessons from the Floor

Day 1 focused on clarifying what separates production planning from production scheduling. It was less about slides and more about conversations, the kind that happen in hallways and over coffee. These discussions helped everyone align on terminology and shared pain points. The format was open, which encouraged honest debates about what “good scheduling” really means across industries.

During On-Time Edge’s case studies presentation on Day 2, things got lively. A debate sparked between attendees over how planning and scheduling systems should talk to each other. I’ll admit, I wasn’t expecting that to happen, and I watched the debate unfold for 90 minutes. Blair, one of the presenters, stood there with patience while the room dissected every point. Blair, you’re a trooper for enduring that.

My own session, The Reality of APS: What to Expect As You Prepare to Start Scheduling Smarter, covered five challenges companies face when preparing for an APS journey. I wrapped up by sharing the APS Readiness E-Book, a practical, APS-agnostic workbook for companies looking to assess their readiness and think through the project before implementation. The energy in the room told me that everyone there had lived through at least part of this story before.

A Word of Thanks

Before I go further, I want to thank On-Time Edge for putting together a truly engaging event. The Scheduling Summit was more than a collection of talks; it felt like a conversation among peers who care deeply about manufacturing.

The team created a space that was both technical and relational. Between sessions, you could hear the hum of side conversations mixing with the sound of people grabbing coffee and snacks together. People traded stories, shared frustrations, and swapped ideas about what it takes to bring APS to life in their plants.

I’ll admit, I probably should’ve expected that much engagement, but the passion in that room surprised me in the best way. It reminded me that while we talk about software, what we’re really talking about is people trying to make their workdays just a little less chaotic.

If you missed the event, mark your calendar for the next one. The 2026 Scheduling Summit will take place September 22nd - 24th in Louisville, Kentucky. I’m looking forward to seeing how the discussions evolve next year.

Visibility, Velocity, and Confidence

APS promises 3 things for every organization: visibility into production data, velocity of response, and confidence in the schedule.

Visibility gives schedulers the clarity to see what capacity actually looks like, where bottlenecks exist, and how jobs move across machines. Velocity shortens the time between disruption and response. Confidence builds trust, both in the system and between the planning office and the shop floor.

Balancing these three goals is a constant challenge. Too rigid and you lose flexibility; too fluid and you lose stability. The teams that find the right balance see their scheduling process move from chaos to control.

Data Integrity: The Mirror No One Likes at First

APS doesn’t fix data, it exposes it. That’s often where the hard work begins. A manufacturer PlanetTogether works with found its routing times were inflated by 60X because of a simple unit mismatch. Another discovered 15% of hidden capacity after documenting all the small gaps caused by setup, clean-in-place, and post-processing delays.

The real question isn’t whether the data exists, it’s who owns it. Is the truth in the ERP, in spreadsheets, or in a planner’s head? Until ownership is clear, APS can only reflect confusion. Data is the mirror that shows you where things actually stand, and for some teams, it’s the first honest reflection they’ve had in years.

Process Definition: The Story Behind the Numbers

Every company has two processes: the one written down in a SOP binder on the desk and the one that actually happens on the shop floor. APS forces those two realities to meet in public. For example, a documented 30-minute changeover that really takes 1-hour will reveal itself instantly. A blending process that moves faster than downstream packaging will leave operators waiting with nothing to run.

Sometimes the mismatches are more subtle. In one facility, jobs were starting before the scheduler officially released them. The team thought the new system was broken when in truth, the floor had been working ahead of the process for years.

When data and process are out of sync, schedulers start to improvise. One of the clearest signs is the use of negative inventory entries in ERP. It’s not sabotage; it’s survival. It’s how schedulers keep things moving when physical materials arrive before the paperwork catches up. APS helps reveal those patterns so they can be addressed rather than repeated.

Data Integration: Finding the Real Home of Your Data

The challenge isn’t that companies have too many systems. It’s that they don’t always know which one owns which piece of the truth. ERP handles orders and materials, MES tracks real-time execution, and APS coordinates capacity and sequencing between them.

If those systems don’t align, information slips through the cracks. I’ve seen implementations lose weeks because job IDs, timestamps, or status flags didn’t match between ERP and APS. Once those connections were clarified and validated, the schedule stabilized almost overnight.

Understanding where data lives and who maintains it makes every other step faster. You can’t schedule what you can’t define, and APS depends on those definitions being accurate and current.

Cultural Resistance: The Human Side of Smarter Scheduling

Adding in APS software can be a challenge, but it isn’t the hardest part. Implementing APS means rethinking how decisions are made and who makes them.

Schedulers often fear losing control to automation, and that’s a valid concern. One company overcame that resistance by explaining that APS was power steering, not autopilot. It enhanced human judgment rather than replacing it. Once schedulers saw that the system amplified their expertise instead of undermining it, adoption followed naturally.

Cultural readiness means leadership sponsors the project from the top while schedulers take ownership from the bottom. Both matter. When either side feels excluded, trust erodes and progress slows.

Continuous Improvement: Progress Over Perfection

APS readiness isn’t a one-time milestone, it’s an ongoing habit. One operations manager shared a simple rule: if APS flags an issue, we fix it within twenty-four hours. That discipline built a continuous improvement loop. Every fix became an opportunity to learn, document, and strengthen the process.

The most successful teams don’t chase perfection. They chase visibility and accountability. When the organization embraces that mindset, APS becomes the framework for long-term performance improvement, not just a software project.

KPI Alignment: Speaking the Same Language

Executives focus on outcomes like margin, throughput, and on-time delivery. Schedulers focus on mechanics like run time, setup, and machine utilization. The disconnect between those perspectives can stall progress.

APS bridges that gap. When a leadership goal such as “increase throughput by 5%” translates into an operational focus like “reduce bottleneck idle time by 10%,” both sides can measure success in the same terms.

Shared metrics unify the conversation. When planners, schedulers, and leadership look at the same data from different angles but see the same story, trust and alignment follow.

What Happens If You Wait

Companies that continue scheduling through spreadsheets or manual tools often underestimate the cost. The impact shows up in hidden overtime, lost throughput, late shipments, and customers lost to missed commitments. Based on what I’ve seen with clients and partners, the difference often equals three to seven percent of annual revenue.

That’s not a hypothetical risk. During the conference, one manufacturer said it plainly: knowing there’s a better way to schedule and choosing not to act borders on negligence and malpractice. 

Where to Start

You don’t need to transform everything at once. Start by seeing clearly. Document where your data lives, confirm how your process truly flows, and have honest conversations about cultural readiness.

If you’d like a structured way to begin, download the APS Readiness E-Book. It’s free, practical, and designed for any manufacturer exploring how to implement APS successfully.

Or, if you’re ready to see what PlanetTogether can do with your data and your process, have a conversation with our sales team. We’ll show you how scheduling clarity changes everything: capacity, trust, and confidence in every plan you publish.