The triggers that would require the procurement teams to revisit the category management strategy — are they pre-decided or are they left open?

by GCM - Lisa | Apr 11, 2022 | Beroe

Pre-decided triggers include the time horizon, which varies by category; changing business requirements; fundamental changes to the supply market; recession; inflation or deflation; and geopolitical events. Unknown or unknowable events such as pandemics or natural...

Can category management be applied even to start-up companies?

by GCM - Lisa | Apr 4, 2022 | Beroe

There are a number of start-ups that are getting a lot of funding, but many of them do not have a proper sourcing team, even after growing to a decent size. Can category management be applied even to start-up companies? In addition, how prevalent is the procurement...

What kind of business impact can category management create?

by GCM - Lisa | Mar 25, 2022 | Beroe

What kind of business impact can category management create? If the concept is not just about buying stuff, then surely it has a lot more depth to it — where can it shine light on hidden opportunities, thereby creating competitive advantage? Yes, category...

How to set the stage for implementation of category management — what steps need to be taken in order to prepare the ground for successful implementation?

by GCM - Lisa | Mar 15, 2022 | Beroe

Strong senior management support for the category management process is critical for successful deployment of category management in an organization. Without the support of senior management across the organization, category teams will face changes in stakeholder...

Global Category Procurement: What about the truly immovable items that do not have alternate sources of supply?

by GCM - Lisa | Mar 8, 2022 | Beroe

This argument about not having to depend on a single source, well, there are industries where companies have to rely on a single source supplier; for example, certain specialty chemicals come only from China. At the height of the trade war, someone challenged us to...

What was the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on category management plans?

by GCM - Lisa | Mar 1, 2022 | Beroe

COVID stopped many category management strategy development activities as companies struggled with the basic assurance of supply. What was exposed by COVID was the number of companies relying on sole or single sources of supply and the assumption that this supply...