In a recent discussion I was asked if I knew of any CPQ event that was NOT organized by a specific CPQ Vendor.

  • FYI – A vendor organized event is something like PROS/Outperform, Model N/Rainmaker, Apttus/Accelerate, Steelbrick/Build etc.

I thought that was a very interesting question, unfortunately I didn’t have a good answer for that. So I followed up with multiple other CPQ and Ouote-to-Cash experts to see if they knew more. While I got a number of responses referring either generic (e.g. Dreamforce) or Industry specific events (e.g. National Federation of Retailers, Product Innovation Congress/us.picongress.com, etc) it seemed nobody knew of any event where a (potential or current) CPQ customer could learn more about various CPQ tools aside from Dreamforce. While that is not surprising, giving the niche existence of CPQ so far, my question is “Does it need to stay that way?”

Wouldn’t it be great for current and potential CPQ customers if they could come to one place and/or event that would be focused on providing general education and best practices regarding CPQ? A mix of online and offline educational events? I think this could be an exciting opportunity for all CPQ stakeholders from Customers to Vendors to Consultants. There are obviously many things to consider before anything like this could be initiated. I used the five W’s (Who, When, Where, What, Why) below to sort through my thoughts and determine pros and cons to determine if this is an idea worth pursing.

Why may a group or event like this be needed? To bring CPQ user communities ,across CPQ tools, together to share business knowledge and best practices. As well as to add transparency regarding CPQ Education and Information for CPQ Customers.

What is the objective of the group / event? To provide CPQ business process knowledge and best practices to current and potential CPQ users. The group / event may need to be split up to provide the expected benefits. Some examples could be

  • Industry: Manufacturing, High Tech, Healthcare, Medical Devices, Life Sciences, Telecommunication, Services, Automotive
  • Usage: Non-Graphical Configurator, Graphical Configurator
  • Platform: SFDC, SAP, Oracle, …
  • others: TBD

Who could own this event? It would most likely require considerable time and effort to set this up. The best suited group would be current CPQ customers (using a variety of CPQ tools). CPQ customers could be supported by a group of CPQ Vendors and Consultants. That way all stakeholders of a CPQ project could contribute but the focus would be on the customer. Note that LinkedIn has 13 different CPQ Groups!

When would this group or event take place? One option may be once a month online and then one live event a year. It all depends on interest and commitment of the members.

Where could this group meet? Too early to discuss since we need to answer the above questions first.
What are some of the PROS for

CPQ Customer:

  • one place where they can find CPQ Education and Information from various CPQ Vendors, Consultants and maybe even Research Firms like Gartner, Aberdeen etc.
  • connect and build relationships with CPQ Vendors and Consultants

CPQ Vendors:

  • raise visibility of their CPQ Tool
  • connect and build relationships with current and potential CPQ Customers

CPQ Consultants:

  • raise visibility of their CPQ Services
  • connect and build relationships with current and potential CPQ Customers

What are some of the CONS for

CPQ Customers :

  • Information overload for non-relevant CPQ Education & Information
  • Too many CPQ Vendors and Consultants try to connect with you

CPQ Vendors:

  • Too many competitors are there and compete for the same customers
  • Consultants and other Customers have too much influence and may endanger upcoming deals

CPQ Consultants:

  • Too many competitors are there and compete for the same customers
  • Opportunity to educate your competition

While I think it would be a great group and/or event for CPQ Customers I think there are some serious obstacles, as mentioned above, that need to be addressed before it makes sense to discuss this further. I would be interested to help lead and develop this to a certain degree if there is enough interest and support. What do you think?

  • Is a vendor independent CPQ Event & Group needed?
  • Are all CPQ Stakeholders interested in this?
  • Who should be involved in it?

I’m looking forward to your feedback!