The different players in the supply chain - including customers, suppliers, manufacturers, and retailers - have limited control over the whole process, but their actions influence everyone else. As these different parties try to respond to demand fluctuations, they create ripple effects throughout the chain. One of these is the bullwhip effect. This phenomenon is named after the movement of a bullwhip, where a small movement of the wrist becomes a much larger, uncontrolled movement at the end of the whip.