Kearney · Industrial / operations · Intermediate · 25-35 min

Procurement transformation under cost pressure

Procurement transformation under cost pressure is an intermediate Kearney industrial / operations case interview that runs 25-35 min. Recommend the best procurement levers and how to phase them. A strong answer works through 3 phases: Spend segmentation; Supplier strategy; Savings versus resilience tradeoff.

Last updated 2026-09-05

The brief

A manufacturer needs to lower input costs without hurting supply resilience or service levels.

How to approach it

  1. Spend segmentation
  2. Supplier strategy
  3. Savings versus resilience tradeoff

What a strong answer does

  • Recommend the best procurement levers and how to phase them.
  • A strong answer should show savings logic, implementation reality, and supplier-risk awareness.

Practice drills

  • Split quick wins from longer-term levers.
  • Quantify savings using a simple spend tree.
  • Recommend governance for implementation.

Why this case

Kearney’s interviewing and services pages strongly emphasize procurement and operations themes.

Adapted from Kearney interviewing themes: procurement and operations (official theme-based practice).

Cases are written in each firm's style, written and reviewed by working consultants; they are not the firms' own published cases.

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