Category Management

Category Management is a powerful approach for strategic procurement. It focuses on working with your organization’s key areas of spend to secure added value. When implemented effectively, this approach can build significant competitive advantage, deliver dramatic cost reduction/mitigate cost increases, drive supply-side sustainability, and secure the value and innovation required for business success.

Positive Purchasing combines the latest generation of SaaS and digital platforms to enable Category Management in your organization. Choose Capella – the Guided Category Strategy Creator® or Procleus® – the platform for strategic procurement; both powered by our industry-leading 5i® Category Management methodology.

Our 5i® Category Management training is world renowned as the benchmark. We can develop your team through either virtual online or classroom training and equip them with the expert tools and resources that are essential for success.

Our Category Management program is built on our unique 5i® methodology.

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This stage-based approach – incorporating Initiation, Insight, Innovation, Implementation and Improvement – uses best-practice theory and has been proven to deliver breakthrough results in organizations around the globe. 5i® enables cross-functional teams to develop and implement high-impact sourcing strategies for key areas of organizational spend (purchasing categories).

Choose the solution that's right for you

Our Category Management program combines extensive tactical, psychological and practical elements to provide you and your organization with a complete blended solution for developing the skills and confidence to realize outstanding results
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Guided Category Strategy Creator®

Powered by the proven 5i ® Category Management process for best practice strategy creation, Capella is the latest thinking in software driven strategic procurement. Capella helps you break free from traditional templates and dependence upon good application – it is the new way procurement teams can build breakthrough category management strategies.

Capella’s guided category strategy creator means anyone in your team can become an expert category management practitioner.

Capella will intelligently guide you through the 5i ® process and works for simple areas of spend right up to the most complex of categories. It will lead you to the strategy that will deliver your objectives, whether they are focused on cost, sustainability, innovation, risk, or other value from the supply base.

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Enabling Category Management

Learning Academy
Classic Toolkits
Assessment
Intelligent Workflow
Dashboard

Learning Academy

A comprehensive range of digital learning modules and managed learning programs to measure and develop individual and team-wide capability:

Digital learning library

Substantial library of digital learning modules for category management, SRM and negotiation with self-study and on-demand video learning for all core processes, tools and activities.

Digital dynamic learning

Managed time-bound team learning programs, with options ranging from ‘digital learning weeks’ to 12-month supported programs.

Option to create unique custom learning modules or programs to reflect specific organizational needs.

Classic Toolkits

Strategic sourcing and negotiation toolkits featuring process and full suite of tools to support each step (including quick reference guides and practitioner resources), plus online and downloadable templates for:

Category Management

5i® Category Management sourcing and 5i® Lite

Supplier Relationship Management

5S Orchestra of SRM® including 5A Strategic Collaborative Relationship (SCR) process

Negotiation

Red Sheet®, Red Sheet Lite and Red Sheet Nano negotiation planning toolkits

The Buyer’s Toolkit

5D Power Buying® process

Sustainable Procurement

OMEIA® Sustainable Procurement process

Assessment

Individual and team-wide competency assessment, psychometric assessment, personal development planning and functional diagnostic assessment to determine a measure of core strategic procurement or specialized negotiation capability.

Assessed via online self-assessment, or a fully managed interview-based program, we offer structured insights into personal and team-wide capabilities and provide the basis to create a targeted learning and development roadmap.

Intelligent Workflow

Complete your Procleus platform with our intelligent workflow tools:

Capella – The Guided Category Strategy Creator®

This world leading tool will guide you towards creating powerful category strategies that will deliver game-changing value from the supply base for your organization. Capella will help you secure supply into the future, delivery cost savings, reduce supply-side risk and drive sustainability in your supply base. Get more value from your supply base for your key categories of spend and ultimately, make procurement a strategic contributor to organizational success.

Ruby – The Guided Negotiation Plan Creator®

Ruby is an intelligent workflow tool that enables you to create your own winning negotiation strategies. With a collaboration engine and fully responsive across devices, Ruby enables teams dispersed around the globe to work together to create effective negotiation plans. Ruby guides you towards a detailed plan for your negotiations. You can download it, share it and ensure your team is fully prepared to secure the best outcomes.

Buyer’s Toolkit Platform

Built on our unique 5D Power Buying® process, the Buyer’s Toolkit platform provides a simple step-by-step approach to buying well – suited to anyone from an individual to purchasing teams in large corporate organizations. This digital tool covers every stage of buying and combines all the best-practice tools and theory for professional buying and negotiation into a straightforward framework that can improve the result of a purchase at any scale or level.

Dashboard

Customizable, interactive management dashboard for real-time project status and learning progress.

Training courses

We offer high-impact courses for individuals and procurement teams. These courses can be delivered online as a series of instructor-led workshops, in a classroom setting, or as blended learning solutions. Our trainers are renowned experts in the field, with personal experience gained from practicing procurement for large organizations around the world.

Training Course | Category Management

Category Management – Introduction

This introductory-level course is aimed at stakeholders or individuals who are coming into contact with Category Management programs. View Course

Training Course | Category Management

Category Management – Intensive

This intensive Category Management course is structured around our 5i® Category Management process. View Course

Training Course | Category Management

Category Management – Advanced

CPD Certified
IFPSM Accredited

Our most popular course, Category Management Advanced, covers all aspects of our 5i® Category Management process. View Course

Training Course | Category Management

Category Management – ‘Getting Behind Price and Cost’

This introductory-level course is aimed at stakeholders or individuals who are coming into contact with Category Management programs. View Course

Training Course | Category Management

Category Management – Executive Team Essentials

This specialist, half-day course is designed for senior management and executive teams in companies using – or considering implementing – a Category Management process. View Course

Training Course | Category Management

Finance for Procurement Professionals – Introduction

CPD Certified

An introductory accounting & finance course aimed at those who want to understand how to use financial data and indicators to assess a supplier's position. View Course

Training Course | Category Management

Finance for Procurement Professionals – Intensive

An intensive accounting & finance course aimed at those who want to understand how to use financial data and indicators to assess a supplier's position. View Course

What our customers say about us

Trainers

Quality of materials provided

Course Overall

“Invaluable training that would be beneficial for anyone working in the Procurement field! Our team gained valuable insight into the opportunities that category management holds. It was a great course that makes you stop, think, and question”.

Category Management course delegate – Healthcare organization

“Excellent course to learn and formulize Category Management! We were given a full overview of the current procurement tactics and techniques required for setting up a category. The half day workshops were the perfect duration to keep me engaged”.

Category Management course delegate – Pharmaceutical company

“This course enables good engagement between team members and opens up new ways of thinking. We covered an extraordinary amount of material supported by online content that provides an in-depth explanation of category management”.

Category Management course delegate – Global food manufacturing company

PROGRAM MOBILIZATION

The support you need at the outset when implementing Category Management – facilitated workshops with your senior team to mobilize a Category Management program. Includes Category Segmentation and Opportunity Analysis to determine, identify and prioritize the categories you will pursue that will deliver the optimum value and advantage, and support to ensure you put the required governance in place. Mobilize your team for success with these tailored workshops designed to help you embed Category Management to realize organizational goals.

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Category Management Success Package

Our Category Management success package is a complete solution of licences to Procleus, training and resources for your purchasing team.

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Category Management in Purchasing 4th Edition Book

Today purchasing functions are presented with opportunities to add value to the organization like never before, with category management being the single most important enabler. Category Management in Purchasing is an essential resource for those making buying decisions and leading purchasing teams. It will help you understand markets, the purchase you make and the needs of your business. In turn this will help you identify and implement new powerful sourcing arrangements that realize significant benefits.

Use discount code WLGPP20 to receive a 20% discount!

Course Catalogue

To download our Training Course Catalogue, please click the link below.

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Get in Touch

If you’d like to discuss how our training, platform and package options could work for your organization, please click below or call us on +44 33 00 94 0000.

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