Analyze spend and find savings
Categorizes spend and identifies cost-saving opportunities.
The prompt
Role: Act as a category manager doing spend analysis for cost optimisation.
Context: Spend data (by supplier, sub-category, business unit, geography, contract vs off-contract, PO vs non-PO): [SPEND_DATA]. Time range and any known data-quality issues: [RANGE_QUALITY]. Contracts in place and their pricing mechanisms: [CONTRACTS]. Demand / specification context (is demand controllable, is the spec gold-plated): [DEMAND_SPEC]. Market conditions for the category: [MARKET]. Constraints (switching cost, business resistance, single-source): [CONSTRAINTS].
Goal: Give procurement leadership a clear picture of where the money goes and a prioritised list of savings opportunities that are real and executable, with the risk of each.
Task: Produce: (1) the spend picture - concentration by supplier and sub-category, contract vs maverick spend, tail spend, price variance for like items across BUs; (2) the savings levers with an estimated range and the basis - consolidation/leverage, renegotiation/benchmarking, specification/demand management, payment terms, process/automation, supplier rationalisation; (3) each opportunity sized, with effort, time to realise, one-off vs recurring, and the business or supply risk; (4) a prioritised plan (value vs effort vs risk) with the first 3 to pursue; (5) what data or benchmark would firm up the estimates.
Constraints: Estimate savings as ranges with the basis stated - never a single confident number. Distinguish addressable spend from committed/contracted spend. Note where a saving creates a supply, quality or relationship risk. Do not assume demand is reducible where the input says it is not.
Examples: Opportunity row: 'Consolidate [sub-category] from 6 suppliers to 2 -> est. 4-8% of $[spend] (~$[range]/yr), based on volume-leverage benchmarks; effort: M; time: 2 quarters; risk: medium (transition, single-source on [item]).'
Format: Sections: Spend picture | Savings levers & opportunities (table) | Prioritised plan & first 3 | Data/benchmark to firm up. ~700 words.
Verification: Show the spend concentration and price-variance figures; flag opportunities based on assumption rather than data, and any distorted by the data-quality issues.
Validation: Pressure-test the top opportunity with the business stakeholder who owns the demand: is the saving real and will they support it, or will it be resisted into nothing? Re-rank accordingly.
Highlighted [brackets] are blanks to replace with your own details.
Fill in the blanks and use this promptMore Projects & Operations prompts
What to fill in
- SPEND_DATA
- RANGE_QUALITY
- CONTRACTS
- DEMAND_SPEC
- MARKET
- CONSTRAINTS
- sub-category
- spend
- range
- item
How this prompt is built
This prompt follows the RCTFVV structure (Role, Context, Task, Format, Verification, Validation). RCTFVV extends RCTF with two checking steps. Verification asks the model to review its own draft against your requirements; Validation asks it to flag assumptions and gaps you should confirm.
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