This is a fallacy that unfortunately runs deep across companies that are afraid to step into change. There is a gradual process to drive adoption and see success. Industry leaders that have chosen to invest in TPO as an experiment have somewhat seen benefits. However, when spreadsheets are used for planning purposes and TPM is the default transactional tool that keeps a record of promotions and trade, it can be complicated to add a layer of a decision support tool, such as TPO system.
Opting for tools which force you to reenter plans from one tool into the TPM system are not viable. It is necessary that these solutions are integrated and can replace the usage of Excel for planning and considerably simplify the customer planning process. There is also an element of science that is required to ensure accuracy and to make a good model work efficiently.
However, it is also important to note that the approach chosen by the CPG company can drive up TPO costs rapidly – this results in limiting the areas where it is applied.
Yet another aspect to consider is that your sales and marketing teams that should be using the analytical approach to plan promotions may not even be ready yet. This drawback becomes particularly evident when you choose a TPO solution that is far too advanced for your employees to understand. What is the point of investing in a TPO solution that generates valuable insights, but is too complicated to understand?
This struggle to understand advanced analytics can be overcome by providing additional training and education. However, CPG companies must make it a priority to design a program that takes all of these factors into consideration to ensure that the change management aspects are managed successfully for your organization.
Hemanth Kumar