PDM: Where does it go from here?

At various times certain functions in industry become not merely fashionable, but exert considerable dominance over other functions. This was the case at one time with production; in the immediate post‐war years it was so with marketing; in the 1960s accountancy held sway. Over the past few years, the advocates of PDM have won a well‐deserved prominence. In this writer's opinion, we have passed the peak of the evangelistic surge for PDM, and a clearer picture is emerging. It is a good time to re‐appraise progress and assess where we are going. Are there perhaps tasks sometimes claimed as distribution territory which could be better allocated elsewhere? Michael Clay is senior manager in a large international chemical company, responsible for the production and distribution planning function covering distribution over the whole world from supermarkets to overseas companies. His first management textbook (co‐authored) was published by Longman in 1965 and two others are in course of preparation. He has written widely on management for magazines in the UK, North America, Australia and elsewhere.