DecisioTool
Service Level Investment Framework (SLIF) — Free Introduction
Most companies choose their service levels arbitrarily.
"95% sounds good." "Leadership wants 98%." "We've always used 97%."
None of those are answers. They're guesses dressed up as targets. And guesses are expensive. Push a service level up two points without checking the math, and you can easily be carrying six or seven figures of inventory that didn't need to exist. Set it too low, and you're eating stockouts, expediting freight, and losing the accounts that mattered most — without ever having made that trade-off on purpose.
The Service Level Investment Framework (SLIF) is a five-step methodology for setting service levels on purpose.
This free introduction covers the problem, the full five-step framework overview, and a detailed walkthrough of Step 1: Segment. It's a complete, standalone read — and a preview of the full guide.
What's in This Free Introduction
- The problem — Why arbitrary service level targets are costing you inventory investment you didn't authorize
- The five-step SLIF overview — Segment → Align → Quantify → Evaluate → Govern, and why the order matters
- Why most companies start in the wrong place — The instinctive move that leads to protecting a $2 fastener at the same 97% as your highest-margin SKU
- Step 1 in full: Segment — The questions to ask, the segmentation approach, how to get the room right, and the output you're working toward
- What's in the complete guide — A preview of Steps 2–5, the fillable worksheets, and the workbook that runs the numbers
The Five-Step Framework
| Step | Question |
|---|---|
| 1 · Segment | Which products and customers actually matter? |
| 2 · Align | What service level does each segment need? |
| 3 · Quantify | What does that service level cost? |
| 4 · Evaluate | Is the cost worth the improvement? |
| 5 · Govern | How do we keep this current? |
Who This Is For
Supply chain managers and directors who suspect their service level targets were set arbitrarily and want a process to fix that. Inventory planners and demand planners who need to defend their targets to finance and leadership. S&OP and IBP leaders who want a structured way to align commercial and operational service expectations.
What Comes Next
The complete SLIF guide covers all five steps with fillable worksheets for Segment and Align, and exact tab-by-tab guidance for the SLIF Analyzer workbook. Available separately or as a bundle.
Format: PDF (5 pages)
Price: Free
License: Single-user personal and commercial use
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