Benefits of Proper Category Planning and Management Approach

Having a proper approach to category planning and management is crucial for an effective category intelligence solution. Technological advancements and globalisation have caused supplier business models and procurement category management to evolve fast, resulting in the need for a more pro-active approach to category planning and management that is based on actionable market intelligence.

Your company deals with different suppliers coming from different geographies and industries. Hence, it is essential for your procurement team to possess updated and sustainable knowledge on the continuously evolving trends within every category. With an efficient approach to category planning and management, you should be able to have access to timely and comprehensive insights for creating effective strategies for sourcing. Moreover, you should be able to gain relevant updates on developments in categories, so you can find risk signals and reduce disruptions in your supply chain.

A good category planning and management approach should be able to help your procurement team make efficient and effective procurement decisions. Reputable category intelligence solutions providers can help you with their online sources, expert opinions, and on-ground insights. An experienced analyst team can help you track the best practices and category trends, as well as create bespoke market reports on category leads.

Outsourcing your category intelligence solution will improve the way you plan and manage categories. Once a plan is made and a sourcing strategy has been defined, category managers can closely monitor the variables that can affect the plan, such as the entry of new players, regulatory changes, pricing changes, technological developments, and macroeconomic changes. An effective category intelligence analyst should work as an extension of your buying organisation when monitoring those developments across every category. This way, you have an easier way to filter unnecessary information from relevant news and deliver better insights to category managers through periodic newsletters, annual updates, and sector reports.