Bringing Category Management to life across three very different business sectors

Solution implemented

Working with a cross-business global design team, Future Purchasing prioritised the key category management levers that would deliver the greatest payback.

We designed a 3-year programme of workshops for category managers on how to build category strategies. This was supported by a category management leadership programme for 200 category directors and line managers. Our highly interactive training encouraged participants to bring their own issues to the workshops, providing unique opportunities for participants to apply both Future Purchasing’s and our client’s tools and techniques on real category activities.

Benefits delivered

120 category managers were trained in America, Europe and Asia with outstanding workshop scores. As a result of their training, the team demonstrated confidence in how to embed category management and engage their stakeholders more effectively. The systematic exploration of a much wider range of category value levers inspired immediate application of new skills in category strategy creation.

• Created global delivery team based in three hubs across Europe, Americas & Asia Pacific
• Rolled-out ‘Building a Category Strategy’ module to 90 people in these regions in 2019
• Rolling out ‘Category Management Leadership’to 60 people in these regions in 2019
• Outstanding feedback and ‘call-to-arms’ that this will support achieving challenging global targets
• Working with sector strategic leadership teams to embed this approach more widely with coaching and extended tools.

In parallel, procurement line managers were trained to use a new set of coaching skills to support their teams to work more cross-functionally with stakeholders and lead category management across their businesses. The workshop sessions were structured to learn, practice and observe the following key leadership skills in the context of category management:

• Using questions to explore issues helps others to learn and take responsibility
• Listening and re-framing problems to help others find solutions and change
• Deploying honest feedback to help others see reality and take ownership for improvement
• Creating followership in your team by overcoming resistance and gaining commitment to change through setting standards in personal behaviours.

The function moved from a box ticking mentality to one that intelligently and collaboratively explored internal business needs and matched them with what the supply marketplace could offer.