Charles C. Holt
Charles C. Holt was an American economist who in 1957 extended exponential smoothing to forecast trends and co-wrote Planning Production, Inventories, and Work Force in 1960.
What they did and why it matters
Holt's extension of exponential smoothing to include trend is the core of forecasting methods still built into inventory and demand planning software. His 1957 memo added a second smoothing equation for the trend, and his student Peter Winters later added seasonality, giving the Holt-Winters method. With Franco Modigliani, John Muth, and Herbert Simon he also modeled how to balance production, inventory, and workforce. Brands forecasting growing products or planning seasonal staffing at a fulfillment center are using approaches that trace back to his work.