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GS1 Nederland: Retail Category Management Virtual Training Development

Accenture worked with international nonprofit association GS1 Nederland to develop an interactive, Web-based training game for category management.

Overview

The one-day virtual training environment Accenture helped develop provides real-life simulations, even operational distractions, aimed at empirically demonstrating the value of developing effective category management strategies and tactics.


The key objective of the game is to create a virtual environment where professionals learn about the principles of category management by actually practicing them and experiencing the market response.


Business Challenge
An international nonprofit association, GS1 Nederland, focuses on improving the efficiency and visibility of supply and demand chains globally. To teach how to apply category management best practices principles and processes in real life, the ECR Steering Committee Category Management determined that a simulation—or game—model for training was the best solution.


The game’s objective was to teach category managers and trade marketers to make decisions based on facts rather than gut feelings while encouraging the retailer and supplier to work together.

How We Helped

Building the game was a collaborative effort among Accenture, GS1 Nederland, category management professionals from the sponsoring companies and Simenco, a specialist in innovative simulations for educational applications.

Accenture contributed all the management consulting work for the game—using our extensive category management knowledge to develop the training content. We employed the talents of an in-house gaming expert in the Netherlands who has created other simulation games for Accenture clients.


High Performance
The game helps retail content managers to become more successful in their category and learn how to enhance efficiency and grow their category through increased focus on customer needs and collaboration with manufacturers.

After playing the game, category managers can translate what they learned through simulation directly into practice in their daily work. The game also demonstrates the importance of collaboration between retailer and manufacturer teams as they exchange information or discuss strategies and tactics—helping teams to make better decisions.