Resin Market Board Presentation Template: 11 Essential Slides for Executive Buy-In

You know your resin markets inside and out. You track feedstock movements, monitor supply disruptions, and can spot pricing opportunities from a mile away. But when it's time to present to the board, something gets lost in translation.

The data and insight that make you so valuable suddenly become a liability. Charts that seem crystal clear to you leave executives confused. Critical recommendations get buried under market mechanics. And opportunities slip by while you're still trying to explain what a non-market adjustment means.

Here's what you need: a proven framework that transforms your market expertise into boardroom influence. Our 11-slide template does exactly that, turning volatile resin markets into clear narratives that executives actually understand and act on.

Why Resin Market Transparency Matters at the Executive Level

Resin is the largest raw material cost for plastics manufacturers. Yet board presentations too often treat it like any other line item.

And that disconnect can create real problems.

Every day, executives manage dozens of priorities across the business. That makes it too easy for one data set or business concern, even a critical one, to get lost in an ocean of operational noise. Therefore, when procurement takes the floor, leadership needs answers to three critical questions:

• What's happening? Current market conditions stripped of technical noise
• What does it mean for us? Direct impact on margins, supply security, and customer commitments
• What do we do about it? Specific actions with clear timelines and expected outcomes

But most presentations miss the mark. They explain non-market adjustments in exhaustive detail while the impact on margins stays buried on the umpteenth slide. They map out feedstock correlations while the board wonders if they should be worried about next quarter's profitability.

When boards can't quickly grasp market dynamics, decisions stall.

When they don't see how resin strategy connects to the P&L, procurement stays stuck as a cost center. And when volatility hits without warning, everyone scrambles to understand risks that should have been clear months ago.

The solution isn't simplifying the content. It's structuring it strategically. Because executives who understand resin market movements make faster, better decisions. They just need those movements translated into their language: risk, opportunity, and action.

Common Challenges in Board-Level Resin Pricing Presentations

Even the most talented procurement teams stumble when it comes to boardroom presentations. To reiterate our previous point, it's a translation problem, not a knowledge problem.

Industry feedback consistently points to the same pain points:

• Translating technical resin pricing mechanics into business impact. You know that a PGP-to-PP spread widening matters. However, explaining why it threatens margins next quarter is where things get murky.
• Avoiding information overload with charts and jargon. Twenty slides of feedstock trends might tell the whole story, but they'll lose the room by slide five. Dense charts that make perfect sense to you become visual noise to executives who already have too much on their minds.
• Linking market changes directly to company P&L, COGS, or margin. A 5-cent polyethylene increase is more than a procurement metric. It’s a potential torpedo to gross margins. Yet most presentations fail to make that connection clear and immediate.
• Providing credible, up-to-date data in fast-moving markets. Last month's pricing report might as well be last year's when markets shift weekly. Executives notice when your "current" data is already stale, and credibility evaporates fast.
• Maintaining consistency across quarters so leadership sees progress over time. Without a standard format, every presentation feels like starting over. Executives can't track improvements or identify patterns when the story structure keeps changing.
• Answering the inevitable: "What should we do?" This question comes every time, yet many presentations end without clear recommendations. Data without direction wastes everyone's time.

These challenges compound each other. Technical jargon obscures business impact. Information overload buries key insights. Inconsistent formats prevent pattern recognition. And without current data backing clear recommendations, procurement struggles to position itself as a strategic partner rather than just another cost center reporting numbers.

Resin Market & Resin Pricing Presentation Template – 11 Essential Slides

So how do you fix these presentation challenges? With structure that works every single time.

The framework we’ve developed helps procurement teams present resin market insights in a way that executives actually understand, appreciate, and use. Instead of scrambling to organize data for each meeting, you'll have a proven structure that builds confidence and drives decisions.

Each slide has a specific job:

• What information belongs on each slide
• Why it matters to your executive audience
• How to visualize it for maximum clarity and impact

The template takes the guesswork out of sequencing—market drivers before financial impact, risk assessment before recommendations. When you use the same structure quarter after quarter, executives can track trends, spot patterns, and make faster decisions. No more starting from scratch. No more buried insights. Just clear narratives that drive action.

SLIDE 1: Executive Summary

Purpose: Set the stage with your three biggest takeaways

What to Include:

• Current market state in one clear sentence
• The primary risk or opportunity facing your business
• Your #1 recommended action with timeline

Visual: Simple dashboard with three bold callout boxes

Why This Works: Executives often skim to the recommendations anyway, so give them the payoff upfront. This also helps you stay focused—if you can't summarize in three points, your message isn't clear enough yet.

Common Mistake: Don't bury the lede with background. Start with what matters most: "PE prices up 15% year-over-year, threatening our industrial margins" beats "As you know, the resin market has been volatile..."

Pro Tip: Write this slide last. After you've built the full narrative, the key points to hit will be crystal clear.

SLIDE 2: Meeting Agenda

Purpose: Show executives you value their time with a clear roadmap

What to Include:

• Market snapshot (2 min)
• Key drivers & risks (3 min)
• Financial impact (3 min)
• Recommendations & discussion (5 min)

Visual: Simple numbered list—no need to overcomplicate

Why This Works: Executives mentally budget their attention. When they know you'll hit recommendations by minute 10, they'll stay engaged rather than checking phones wondering when you'll get to the point.

Keep It Tight: Five to seven agenda items maximum. More than that signals a presentation that's trying to cover too much ground.

SLIDE 3: Resin Market Snapshot

Purpose: Ground everyone in current market reality before diving deeper

What to Include:

• Spot vs. contract price trends for your key resins
• 12-24 month price chart showing trajectory
• Current position relative to 5-quarter average
• One sentence on global context (tight/loose/stable)

Visual: Line chart with clear labels, avoid cramming too many resins on one graph

Why This Works: The 5-quarter view bridges past performance with forward planning—long enough to show real trends, short enough to stay relevant. Comparing spot vs. contract immediately shows whether you're exposed to volatility or protected by agreements.

Common Mistake: Showing every resin grade you buy. Focus on the 3-4 that drive 80% of spend. Save the complete picture for backup slides.

Speaking Point: "We're tracking X cents above/below the 5-quarter average" gives instant context that executives can grasp.

SLIDE 4: Top 3 Market Drivers

Purpose: Explain what's actually moving prices without overwhelming the room

What to Include:

• Driver #1: Usually feedstock costs or supply disruptions
• Driver #2: Often demand shifts or inventory positions
• Driver #3: Could be regulatory, seasonal, or trade-related

Visual: Three icons with one-sentence explanations—think infographic, not paragraph

Why This Works: Three is the magic number. Executives can remember three things. Five becomes a blur. Pick the drivers that actually matter to YOUR costs, not every factor affecting global markets.

Example That Works:

• "Gulf Coast cracker outage removing 2B lbs capacity through March"
• "Export demand to Asia up 40%, tightening domestic supply"
• "Crude oil rally adding $0.03/lb pressure to feedstock costs"

Pro Tip: Rank by impact on YOUR business, not general market importance

SLIDE 5: Procurement Portfolio Overview

Purpose: Show how your purchasing strategy aligns with market conditions

What to Include:

• Contract vs. spot mix percentage
• Supplier diversification (avoid over-dependence)
• Index exposure breakdown (CDI, ICIS, fixed, etc.)
• Coverage timeline—how far out are you locked?

Visual: Pie charts or stacked bar chart—whatever tells the story clearest

Why This Works: This slide reveals your risk profile at a glance. A board seeing 90% spot exposure knows you're vulnerable. Showing 80% locked through Q3 demonstrates protection. The visual makes your strategy immediately clear.

Red Flag to Address: If more than 50% of volume comes from one supplier, be ready to discuss diversification plans. Boards worry about concentration risk.

Smart Addition: Include a small table showing contract reopener dates. Executives like knowing when you can renegotiate.

SLIDE 6: Resin Impact by Business Unit

Purpose: Connect resin costs to specific products and customers—making it real for executives

What to Include:

• Which resins go into which product lines
• Cost impact by division (% and dollar terms)
• Why "flat overall costs" might hide major swings
• Which units face headwinds vs. tailwinds

Visual: Heat map or matrix showing resin types vs. business units with impact percentages

Why This Works: Executives think in terms of business units and customer segments, not resin grades. This translation helps them understand which parts of the business need attention and why seemingly small price moves matter.

Real Example: "While total resin costs are flat, our automotive division faces 12% increases in PP while consumer products benefits from 8% PE decreases. Net result: margin pressure on our highest-value customers."

Critical Insight: This slide often triggers the best strategic discussions. When the CFO sees that Product Line A can absorb increases while Product Line B gets crushed, pricing strategy conversations become much more nuanced.

SLIDE 7: Supply Chain Risk Watchlist

Purpose: Flag potential disruptions before they become emergencies

What to Include:

• Recent supply disruptions and recovery timelines
• Upcoming planned maintenance at key facilities
• Geographic concentration risks
• Supplier financial health indicators

Visual: Risk heat map or simple red/yellow/green status table

Why This Works: Boards hate surprises. This slide shows you're monitoring beyond just price, tracking the operational risks that could disrupt production. The red/yellow/green format makes priorities instantly clear.

What Executives Really Want to Know: "Will we be able to fulfill customer orders?" Frame risks in terms of business continuity, not just procurement challenges.

Speaking Note: Focus on risks that could hit within the next 90 days—longer-term issues belong in strategic planning, not quarterly updates.

SLIDE 8: Financial Exposure

Purpose: Translate market movements into dollar impact on the P&L

What to Include:

• Sensitivity analysis: impact of ±$0.05/lb movement
• Scenario modeling (best/likely/worst case)
• Margin impact by quarter
• Comparison to budget assumptions

Visual: Waterfall chart or scenario table showing COGS impact

Why This Works: This is where procurement speaks finance's language. The ±$0.05/lb analysis gives CFOs exactly what they need for forecasting. Showing scenarios helps set reserves and manage expectations.

Make It Tangible: "$0.05/lb increase = $2.3M annual COGS impact = 1.2% margin compression" tells the complete story in one line.

Pro Tip: Always show mitigation potential alongside risk exposure. If that $2.3M impact can be reduced to $1.5M through strategic buying, say so here.

SLIDE 9: Recommended Actions

Purpose: Convert analysis into specific decisions the board needs to make

What to Include:

• Immediate actions (next 30 days)
• Strategic adjustments (quarter ahead)
• What needs board approval vs. what procurement can execute
• Expected impact of each recommendation

Visual: Timeline or decision tree showing actions and outcomes

Why This Works: This slide earns your seat at the strategic table. Instead of just reporting problems, you're providing solutions with clear timelines and measurable impacts. Boards appreciate knowing exactly what they're being asked to approve.

Strong Example: "Recommend locking Q2 PE volumes by March 15 if prices remain below $0.82/lb. Expected savings: $850K vs. budget. Risk if we wait: April turnarounds could spike prices $0.10/lb."

Weak Example: "Continue monitoring market conditions and optimize purchasing." (Too vague to act on)

Make It Real: Every recommendation needs a deadline, owner, and expected outcome.

SLIDE 10: Backup Data & Glossary

Purpose: Anticipate questions and demystify jargon

What to Include:

• Detailed charts you didn't show but might need
• Definitions of key terms (NMA, feedstock, spread)
• Historical context graphs
• Supplier contract details

Visual: Glossary box with 5-7 most important terms

Why This Works: Having backup slides ready shows preparation and depth. The glossary prevents that awkward moment when a board member asks "What's an NMA?" and derails your momentum.

Terms That Always Need Defining:

• NMA: Non-market adjustment—when indexes correct for accumulated errors
• Spread: Price difference between feedstock and finished resin
• Force Majeure: Supplier's right to break contracts due to uncontrollable events
• Take-or-pay: Contract requiring payment whether you take delivery or not

When to Use: Only if questions arise—don't present unless asked

SLIDE 11: Q&A + Next Steps

Purpose: Drive discussion toward decisions, not just information sharing

What to Include:

• Restate the key decision needed
• Timeline for next update
• Who owns which actions
• How to track progress

Visual: Simple next steps table with owners and dates

Why This Works: Ending with clear next steps prevents the dreaded "great presentation, let's think about it" response. By assigning owners and dates, you create accountability and momentum.

The Close That Works: "Based on today's analysis, we need approval to extend supplier agreements through Q4. Marketing will adjust pricing by April 1. I'll update you on execution at the May board meeting."

Final Touch: End with "What questions can I answer to help us make this decision today?" This shifts discussion from whether to act to how to act.

Building Stronger Board Conversations

This template gives you the structure to tell a clear, compelling story about resin markets. But structure alone isn't enough.

The difference between a good presentation and a great one comes down to the quality of your data. When you're showing market trends, are they from last month's PDF or this morning's trading? When you're flagging risks, are you working from assumptions or actual market signals? When you're making recommendations, are they based on hunches or predictive analytics that actually anticipate price movements?

Because executives can tell the difference.

They know when you're winging it versus when you're working from solid intelligence. And in a market where timing matters—where a two-week delay can mean missing a crucial buying window—having current, reliable data isn't just nice to have. It's what separates procurement leaders who drive strategy from those who just report numbers.

Bottom line: the template gets you organized, but the right market intelligence makes you indispensable.

Want to build board decks backed by relevant, accurate, live resin market data? See how ResinSmart delivers real-time pricing, risk alerts, and actionable insights for confident executive conversations. Schedule a demo today.