The Next-Gen Procurement Podcast | AI-Powered Category Management

Last Updated on April 23, 2026

Join us on May 27, 2026 at 12PM EST for Season 2, Episode 5 of The Next-Gen Procurement Podcast.

Focal Point CEO Anders Lillevik and Roy Anderson of Northeastern University are back to explore one of procurement’s most important emerging capabilities: AI-powered category management.

In this episode, they break down what it actually means, cutting through the noise to focus on how teams can apply AI to drive smarter strategies and stronger business outcomes.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

What AI-powered category management looks like in real procurement environments
How to use AI to generate deeper insights and more effective category strategies
Practical approaches to implementing AI across category workflows
How to align category management with broader business priorities

As category management continues to evolve, the opportunity is not just better data, but better decisions.

Speakers

Anders Lillevik

Serial Chief Procurement Officer with 20+ years of experience in building and turning around large, complex procurement organizations to be best in class. Anders has extensive background in rolling out new procurement infrastructure and optimizing legacy technology investments. With this experience, Anders founded Focal Point to help organizations maximize the value of their procurement spend.

Roy Anderson

Roy Anderson is a procurement and supply chain leader with over 30 years of experience across global organizations. He has served as Chief Procurement Officer at companies like Tradeshift, State Street, and MetLife, and is now a lecturer from Northeastern University, helping develop future procurement professionals.