Promotion Optimization Institute

What Promotion Optimization Institute does

Promotion Optimization Institute (POI) is a privately held, membership-based industry institute founded around 2014 and headquartered in Bardonia, New York. It serves the consumer packaged goods (CPG) sector, bringing together manufacturers, retailers, solution providers, analysts, and academics to advance practices in trade promotion management (TPMx), revenue growth management (RGM), retail execution (RetX), and advanced analytics. Rather than building a technology product, POI operates as the convening and standards-setting body for the CPG trade and RGM community, anchored by an executive advisory board of CPG and retail leaders.

POI's core offerings span five interconnected asset categories: annual research publications (the Consumer Goods State of the Industry Report and the Enterprise Planning and Retail Execution Vendor Panorama covering 18 leading vendors), two credentialed certification programs (the Certified Collaborative Marketer / CCM in partnership with Saint Joseph's University, and the RGM Foundation Certification), flagship summits (Spring and Fall Hybrid Summits with 50+ manufacturer presentations), a recurring webinar series on AI-enabled TPM, RGM, and agentic commerce, and tiered advisory services for both manufacturers and solution providers. The intellectual anchor is POI's proprietary Holistic Enterprise Planning (EPx) framework, which integrates TPMx, RGM, marketing, and ecommerce planning into a unified commercial strategy.

POI monetizes through annual manufacturer/retailer memberships priced from $3,500 (1-10 members) to $8,000 (25 members), tiered manufacturer advisory subscriptions from $5,000 (Silver) to $25,000 (Diamond), individual CCM certification at $4,995 per candidate, pay-as-you-go solution provider advisory services, and event sponsorship packages. Its go-to-market is community-led and event-driven, with quarterly Manufacturer Connect calls and RGM Share Groups reinforcing peer engagement. The company is led by founder and CEO Michael Kantor, Chief Commercial Officer Pam Brown (formerly Del Monte Foods and Unilever), and EVP of Commercial Operations and Industry Research Jack Harnedy (formerly Colgate-Palmolive, Kimberly-Clark, JM Smucker, Hostess, and Nutrabolt).

Name

Promotion Optimization Institute

Legal name

Promotion Optimization Institute, LLC

Website

https://poinstitute.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Promotion Optimization Institute is a private membership-based industry association serving CPG manufacturers, retailers, and solution providers through research, certifications, summits, webinars, and advisory services focused on trade promotion management, revenue growth management, and retail execution.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Manufacturer/Retailer Membership: Annual membership subscriptions for CPG manufacturers and retailers providing access to the POI portal, summit attendance passes, vendor panoramas, manufacturer connect calls, and CCM certification scholarships. Tiers range from 1-10 members at $3,500/year to 25 members at $8,000/year.
2. CCM Certification Enrollment: Individual enrollment in the 6-month Certified Collaborative Marketer program at $4,995 per candidate. One scholarship included with manufacturer team membership.
3. Manufacturer Advisory Membership Tiers: Advisory services with tiered membership: Silver ($5,000), Gold ($15,000), Diamond ($25,000), including briefing calls, deep dives, and summit access. Ad hoc deep dive sessions at $7,500 and advisory briefings at $3,500.
4. Solution Provider Advisory Services: Advisory services for software and consulting vendors including business lead development, standard deep dive sessions, advisory briefings, and ad-hoc teleconferences. Deep dives are available only to POI members.
5. Event Sponsorship: Solution providers sponsor POI events (summits, webinars) to gain exposure to CPG manufacturers, retailers, and industry leaders. Sponsorship packages provide brand visibility, demo opportunities, and direct access to decision-makers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

POI is a membership-based CPG industry association that delivers annual research publications (State of the Industry Report, Vendor Panorama), whitepapers, certifications (RGM Foundation Certification and Certified Collaborative Marketer), advisory services, in-person summits, webinars, and manufacturer peer networking programs focused on trade promotion management, revenue growth management, retail execution, and holistic enterprise planning. Its offerings are sold as annual memberships, paid certifications, event registration, and sponsor packages to manufacturers, retailers, and solution providers.

Product overview

The Promotion Optimization Institute (POI) is an industry association serving the CPG sector, offering a portfolio of research publications, certifications, events, advisory services, and community programs rather than a unified software product. Its core offerings include the annual State of the Industry Report and Enterprise Planning & Retail Execution Vendor Panorama for benchmarking; RGM Foundation Certification and Collaborative Marketing Certification (CCM) for professional development; industry summits and webinars for networking and education; and manufacturer membership providing portal access, peer connect calls, and advisory services. These offerings are organized around key practice areas: Trade Promotion Management (TPM), Revenue Growth Management (RGM), Retail Execution (RetX), Advanced Analytics & Optimization (TPO/AI/ML), Holistic Enterprise Planning (EPx), and Digital Customer Personalization. The ecosystem connects manufacturers, retailers, solution providers, and academics to collaboratively improve enterprise planning, trade management, and commercial execution in the consumer goods industry.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Manufacturer Team Membership Annual team membership for CPG manufacturers and retailers providing on-demand access to summit recordings, the POI portal with research reports and vendor panoramas, summit attendance passes, POI Manufacturer Connect quarterly calls, and a CCM certification enrollment scholarship.
• Collaborative Marketing Certification (CCM) Six-month executive certification program in partnership with Saint Joseph's University covering strategy, sales, marketing, supply chain, and finance functions to develop skills in trading partner collaboration; $4,995 per candidate with one scholarship included with manufacturer team membership.
• RGM Foundation Certification Three-course certification program covering five RGM pillars (price strategy, promotion strategy, mix optimization, trade investment architecture, and portfolio strategy) for CPG professionals seeking credentialed RGM fluency.
• Manufacturer Advisory Services Tiered advisory services (Silver $5,000, Gold $15,000, Diamond $25,000 annually) including strategy development, RFP development, systems and process project planning, and holistic enterprise change transformation, with briefing calls, deep dive sessions, and summit access.
• Solution Provider Advisory Services Custom advisory packages for software and consulting vendors including business lead development, standard deep dive sessions (3 hours), advisory briefings (1 hour), and ad-hoc teleconferences (15 min JIT), with POI membership required for deep dives.
• POI Summits Industry-leading in-person and hybrid events covering RGM, Trade Promotion Planning and Optimization, Data and Analytics, AI/ML, Retail Execution, Omnichannel, eCommerce, Marketing, and Customer Experience; held twice yearly (Spring Chicago, Fall Dallas).
• POI Webinars Expert-led virtual events delivering actionable insights on TPM, RGM, AI-enabled trade promotion, Agentic Commerce, integrated demand planning, and connected planning topics for CPG industry professionals.
• State of the Industry Report Annual comprehensive report delivering peer benchmarking across people, processes, and technologies within Holistic Enterprise Planning, covering TPM, RGM, retail execution, marketing, data management, AI, and omnichannel trends.
• Enterprise Planning and Retail Execution Vendor Panorama Annual research evaluating leading vendor capabilities and performance across Enterprise Planning (TPMx, RGM), Retail Execution, Data Management, AI/ML, and eCommerce, providing actionable insights for vendor selection.

Quantifiable outcome

• 48% achieved greater visibility into business risks and opportunities with TPMx deployment
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

25 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• SAPcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSAP co-authors POI whitepapers on AI-powered Perfect Store Execution and integrating revenue growth planning into digital core. SAP is a featured webinar partner and technology vendor profiled in POI's annual Vendor Panorama research.
• SalesforcecoreTechnology or IntegrationSalesforce is a sponsor of POI events and a leading CRM/promotion technology provider for CPG manufacturers. Logo displayed in POI sponsors section.
• ConfidocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConfido co-presents POI webinars on AI-enabled TPM and integrated demand planning. Featured in POI industry articles on deductions management and planning integration. Active co-marketing relationship.
• Saint Joseph's UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPOI partners with Dr. John L. Stanton at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia to co-develop and deliver the Certified Collaborative Marketer (CCM) executive certification program. Academic credential partnership.
• PwCmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPwC co-presents POI webinars on Agentic Commerce for CPG. Strategy consulting partner contributing thought leadership on AI-first commerce and pricing strategy.
• Enterra SolutionsmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPOI and Enterra Solutions co-authored whitepaper on Autonomous Value Chain Optimization and Decision Making. Featured partner in POI research ecosystem.
• DatasemblymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPOI and Datasembly co-authored whitepaper on RGM Teams advancing retail execution with real-time hyper-local shareable data. Featured in POI research publications.
• AnaplancoreTechnology or IntegrationAnaplan is a sponsor of POI events and provides connected planning platforms for CPG revenue growth management and trade promotion optimization.
• o9 SolutionscoreTechnology or Integrationo9 Solutions is a sponsor and enterprise planning platform provider featured in POI's Vendor Panorama research for holistic planning capabilities.
• Simon-KuchermajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSimon-Kucher is a sponsor of POI events and a leading pricing strategy consultancy for CPG companies, contributing to POI's pricing and RGM research.
• McKinsey & CompanymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMcKinsey (Periscope) is a sponsor of POI events and provides pricing/revenue management consulting. Featured in POI's pricing strategy ecosystem.
• BCGmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBoston Consulting Group (BCGX) is a sponsor of POI events and provides expertise in pricing and revenue management for CPG clients.
• EYmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerErnst & Young is a sponsor of POI events and provides consulting on revenue growth management and digital transformation for CPG manufacturers.
• DeloittemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDeloitte is a sponsor of POI events and provides consulting services on CPG commercial transformation and analytics modernization.
• AccenturemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAccenture is a sponsor of POI events and provides digital transformation and analytics consulting for CPG and retail clients.
• AlixPartnersminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAlixPartners is a sponsor of POI events and provides turnaround and performance improvement consulting for CPG companies.
• VisualfabriqcoreTechnology or IntegrationVisualfabriq is a sponsor and TPx technology provider featured in POI's Vendor Panorama for trade promotion management solutions.
• VividlycoreTechnology or IntegrationVividly is a sponsor of POI events and provides trade promotion optimization and revenue growth management solutions for CPG brands.
• InforcoreTechnology or IntegrationInfor is a sponsor of POI events and provides enterprise software including supply chain and analytics solutions for CPG industry.
• Baringa PartnersminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBaringa is a sponsor of POI events and provides consulting on commercial strategy and revenue growth for consumer goods sector.
• CognizantmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCognizant is a sponsor of POI events and provides digital transformation and analytics services for CPG and retail clients.
• AforzacoreTechnology or IntegrationAforza is a sponsor of POI events and provides cloud-based commerce and trade promotion solutions for CPG and retail.
• NTT DataminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNTT Data is a sponsor of POI events and provides consulting and IT services for digital transformation in consumer goods.
• Roland BergerminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRoland Berger is a sponsor of POI events and provides strategic consulting for consumer goods, retail, and agriculture sectors.
• Heritage Marketing GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHeritage Marketing Group is referenced as the parent organization of POI, managing the institute's operations and heritage.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• NielsenIQ: Global consumer measurement and analytics provider for CPG and retail. Comparable in producing CPG benchmarking and insight content; overlaps with POI on audience (manufacturer trade and category teams) and competes for share of their research budgets.
• Circana: Market research and analytics firm (formerly IRI + NPD) producing CPG/retail insights and vendor benchmarking. Adjacent to POI - competes with POI's research and Vendor Panorama for CPG decision-maker attention, while also being a potential POI sponsor.
• Advantage Solutions: Sales and marketing services company serving CPG manufacturers and retailers, including retail execution and category management. Comparable buyer set and overlapping value proposition around in-store execution and TPM-related services.
• Acosta Group: Sales and marketing services firm providing retail execution and shopper marketing for CPG brands. Already a POI sponsor; comparable buyer audience and overlapping services in retail execution, the same domain POI trains and certifies around.

Direct peers

• Food Marketing Institute (FMI): Trade association for grocery retailers and wholesalers. Comparable member-driven model around industry events, research, and education for the food retail/CPG ecosystem, with overlapping senior buyer audiences.
• National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS): Industry association for convenience retail with annual expo, research, and member services. Comparable convention/research/membership structure targeting CPG suppliers and retail buyers.
• National Grocers Association (NGA): Trade association for independent grocers, with annual show and industry research. Comparable membership/event model serving grocery retail and CPG supplier communities.
• National Retail Federation (NRF): Large retail industry association running NRF Big Show and research programs. Comparable association model (membership + large industry event + research/benchmarking) serving a tangential but overlapping CPG/retail audience.
• Consumer Brands Association: Leading US trade association for CPG manufacturers (formerly GMA). Directly comparable membership-association model targeting the same CPG manufacturer and solution-provider audience, with summits, advocacy, and research at its core.
• Category Management Association (CMA): Industry association focused on category management best practices for CPG and retail. Highly comparable - smaller-scope association running certifications, summits, and research directly relevant to POI's RGM and retail execution themes.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/poinstitute
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/promotion-optimization-institute

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Promotion Optimization Institute