Online detection of forecast model inadequacies using forecast errors

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Hauptverfasser: Grundy, Thomas, Killick, Rebecca, Svetunkov, Ivan
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2025
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author Grundy, Thomas
Killick, Rebecca
Svetunkov, Ivan
author_facet Grundy, Thomas
Killick, Rebecca
Svetunkov, Ivan
contents In many organisations, accurate forecasts are essential for making informed decisions for a variety of applications from inventory management to staffing optimization. Whatever forecasting model is used, changes in the underlying process can lead to inaccurate forecasts, which will be damaging to decision-making. At the same time, models are becoming increasingly complex and identifying change through direct modelling is problematic. We present a novel framework for online monitoring of forecasts to ensure they remain accurate. By utilizing sequential changepoint techniques on the forecast errors, our framework allows for the real-time identification of potential changes in the process caused by various external factors. We show theoretically that some common changes in the underlying process will manifest in the forecast errors and can be identified faster by identifying shifts in the forecast errors than within the original modelling framework. Moreover, we demonstrate the effectiveness of this framework on numerous forecasting approaches through simulations and show its effectiveness over alternative approaches. Finally, we present two concrete examples, one from Royal Mail parcel delivery volumes and one from NHS A\&E admissions relating to gallstones.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2502_14173
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Online detection of forecast model inadequacies using forecast errors
Grundy, Thomas
Killick, Rebecca
Svetunkov, Ivan
Methodology
Applications
Computation
Machine Learning
In many organisations, accurate forecasts are essential for making informed decisions for a variety of applications from inventory management to staffing optimization. Whatever forecasting model is used, changes in the underlying process can lead to inaccurate forecasts, which will be damaging to decision-making. At the same time, models are becoming increasingly complex and identifying change through direct modelling is problematic. We present a novel framework for online monitoring of forecasts to ensure they remain accurate. By utilizing sequential changepoint techniques on the forecast errors, our framework allows for the real-time identification of potential changes in the process caused by various external factors. We show theoretically that some common changes in the underlying process will manifest in the forecast errors and can be identified faster by identifying shifts in the forecast errors than within the original modelling framework. Moreover, we demonstrate the effectiveness of this framework on numerous forecasting approaches through simulations and show its effectiveness over alternative approaches. Finally, we present two concrete examples, one from Royal Mail parcel delivery volumes and one from NHS A\&E admissions relating to gallstones.
title Online detection of forecast model inadequacies using forecast errors
topic Methodology
Applications
Computation
Machine Learning
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2502.14173