5 questions to...
Giovanni Sambruni
Interview with the CPG & Process Director of Engineering.
Giovanni Sambruni has over 20 years of experience in Management Consulting and in leading successful transformation initiatives in Italy and internationally, working with both local and global teams across multiple industries, including Consumer Goods, Industrial, Automotive, Aerospace & Defense, Fashion, Retail, and Pharma.
He has developed solid expertise in Digital Transformation across the areas of Sales & Marketing, Product Lifecycle Management, Manufacturing, Logistics, Supply Chain, and Service, leveraging innovative technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Big Data and Advanced Analytics, Cloud, and Cybersecurity.
He is currently CPG & Process Director of Engineering.
Giovanni has a strong passion for innovation, solid commercial experience, and a proven ability to support organizations throughout their change and evolution journeys.
1. HOW ARE INFLATION, RAW MATERIAL COST VOLATILITY, AND GEOPOLITICAL TENSIONS IMPACTING THE MARKET STRATEGIES OF CPG (CONSUMER PACKAGED GOODS) COMPANIES?
The CPG market is facing a highly complex economic and political environment, alongside significant changes in consumer behavior, which is inevitably driving a transformation of industry strategies.
Volatility in raw material prices is increasing production costs, while geopolitical tensions are destabilizing supply chains.
In addition, consumers are becoming more selective and more price-conscious due to inflation, which is reducing purchasing power.
All of this is pushing companies in the sector to rethink pricing, sourcing, and internationalization strategies.
In this context, Engineering supports CPG players in optimizing manufacturing processes and supply chain operations through its Industry eXcellence offering, complemented by the data analytics capabilities of Engineering’s AI & Data specialists.
2. WHAT STRATEGIES ARE CPG COMPANIES ADOPTING TO RESPOND TO THE GROWING DEMAND FOR SUSTAINABLE, HEALTHIER, AND PERSONALIZED PRODUCTS?
As mentioned earlier, the consumer is at the center of the transformation of CPG companies’ market strategies. Consumers are becoming more aware, more digital, and more value-conscious, while CPG companies are adapting through strategies focused on personalization, sustainability, and technological innovation.
For example, we are seeing investments in recyclable packaging, as well as the integration of physical retail, e-commerce, and social commerce to reach consumers wherever they are. Direct customer involvement in the development of new products and campaigns also aligns with this direction.
In this scenario, Engineering supports CPG companies in the concrete implementation of these innovative strategies, leveraging solid expertise in customer satisfaction and customer engagement.
Through the Eng X offering and Engineering’s proprietary applications, we enable the continuous improvement of customer interactions across all touchpoints, supporting advanced personalization journeys and fostering a digital transformation focused on sustainability and long-term innovation.
3. WHAT ROLE ARE DIGITALIZATION AND AI PLAYING IN THE CURRENT SCENARIO?
AI and digitalization are playing an increasingly important role in the transformation of the CPG market, impacting the entire value chain: consumer insights, product innovation, supply chain, marketing, pricing, and relationships with retailers.
In this context, Engineering’s AI solutions, such as Eng GPT, enable CPG companies to adopt advanced data analytics models, multi-agent orchestration and intelligent automation, supporting both infrastructural objectives and application-level and business goals.
In practical terms, companies can identify emerging trends in real time through social listening and data analytics; generate more accurate demand forecasts to reduce waste and stock-outs; co-create with consumers by analyzing digital feedback; and conduct virtual testing of packaging and formulations before physical production.
The use of AI is therefore making companies faster in decision-making, more precise in identifying consumer needs, more innovative, and more efficient.
However, there is a very important factor that CPG companies must take into account: the “voice” of consumers. While consumers see AI as an opportunity, they also have concerns related to privacy, transparency, ethics, and authenticity.
As a result, it will be increasingly important to provide clarity on how sensitive information is managed, how data security is ensured, and how data biases that could favor certain consumer groups over others are avoided.
4. HOW DOES ENGINEERING SUPPORT OPERATIONAL CONTINUITY AND THE EVOLUTIONARY JOURNEY OF CLIENTS OPERATING IN THIS SECTOR?
While ensuring continuity for ongoing client projects, there are at least three specific macro areas where we can deliver significant value.
The first concerns data usage and data security, encompassing AI and data governance. This includes leveraging data to support interpretation and decision-making, for example in marketing for market analysis, positioning, or new product launches. It also applies to quality processes, particularly product formulation, as well as to improving production efficiency.
The second macro area focuses on the use of AI to improve processes, reduce costs, and increase productivity, helping to offset margin pressure caused by the complexity of the geopolitical landscape. For example, GenAI can be applied to repetitive and time-consuming activities, traceability, and certifications. These processes often require the production of documentation in multiple languages, with different metadata, templates, and compliance with local regulations. GenAI can also be applied to documentation related to production or maintenance.
Finally, there is the R&D domain, particularly the challenges related to recipe creation and formulation in the food & beverage sector. Clients need different recipe combinations depending on the plant and the market in which they operate. Product labeling (graphics, text, etc.) can also vary based on sales markets and on the regulations of the country of production or sale. In these areas, we are building partnerships with leading vendors.
5. LOOKING AHEAD, HOW CAN WE EXPECT THE CPG SECTOR TO EVOLVE IN THE COMING YEARS?
In the coming years, the CPG market will undergo a profound transformation, driven primarily by technology, increasingly selective consumers, economic instability, and changing distribution rules.
The main evolutions we can expect are multifaceted: products will be developed faster (with more digital and fewer physical tests, following a “CPG rapid prototyping” model); supply chains will become shorter, more regionalized, and more resilient (multi-sourcing, reduced dependence on Asia, industrial automation and robotics, smart warehouses); sustainability will shift from a “nice to have” to a critical growth factor (100% recyclable or reusable packaging, upcycled products, and CO₂ emission reduction as a driver of pricing and positioning).
Engineering positions itself as a strategic technology partner for CPG companies, leveraging strong industry expertise, a high capacity for innovation, and continuous investments in research and development. This approach enables us to support clients throughout their transformation journeys, anticipating market changes and translating them into competitive advantage.
Market evolution will increasingly focus on two main segments: Premium, which continues to grow thanks to high-income consumers or those focused on wellness, and Value, a rapidly expanding segment (private labels, value-sized formats, essential products). The health, wellness, and personalized nutrition segment will also become increasingly important, with products designed for specific functions and growing cross-over between CPG and pharma/nutraceuticals.
All successful transformations require strategic vision, innovative systems and technologies, and the right partnerships. At their core remain the ability to manage change and the people who bring it to life.
Giovanni Samburini
CPG & Process Director of Engineering
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