Having access to resources and knowing how to use them are two different things.
Take market intelligence resources for instance. Procurement often reports a gap between knowing what’s in the reports they have access to and being able to translate it into insight.
Some people might see the gap as a small crack, while others perceive a huge chasm opening up.
This ‘use the data’ theme has been around for quite some time. In the late 1990s, it was developed into a management thinking concept called the “knowing-doing gap” by Stanford University professors Jeffrey Pfeiffer and Robert Sutton. This concept looks at the gap between what people know needs to be done and what they do in practice.
Sound familiar?
An organization may have data and analytics capabilities but may not be putting them to work. In many instances, this could be due to a lack of skills and capabilities.
It is highly likely that this is true for procurement.
We’re increasingly being given access to market intelligence, analysis, and reports. The challenge is how to use them to make a difference and add value.
One of the ways to navigate that challenge is to find out how other people have used the data or how analytics have been applied in a similar market. From this we can learn strategies and techniques to apply in our own categories.
Ideally we will narrow the “knowing-doing gap” from a chasm to a crack and really get on with leveraging value.
All of the sessions at Categorypalooza, including those with our event partners Fine Tune, ProcurementIQ, and SpendPros, will feature different categories and perspectives to help you narrow the chasm.
Categorypalooza is being hosted through the live digital platform StreamGo, so you’ll have the opportunity to engage directly with other procurement professionals and speakers during the event
Click here to register for this free Art of Procurement event, which takes place on August 11th from 11am to 2pm ET.
