As part of the NSW Government procurement reform process, procurement category management is to occur across all agencies covering significant expenditures. Category management takes into account the requirements, opportunities and risks of both the supply side and buy side. It involves moving away from a contract-focussed approach, to one focussed on the category of goods and services as a whole.
The priorities within a category are clearly articulated within a category management plan, including appropriate high-level 'go to market' sourcing strategies. It also communicates an effective understanding of external and internal market environments, and involves active management of stakeholder requirements throughout the category lifecycle. Procurement strategy, market engagement, vendor and contract management are all subsets of category management. A 'go to market' strategy details how the supply market will be engaged, the type of contracts that need to be put in place, and how the contract will be managed. Guidance is available from the Category Management Planning Guidelines on ProcurePoint.