This week I welcome Gordon Donovan on to the Art of Procurement. Gordon is a presently a member of the procurement leadership team at Metro Trains Melbourne, and he has a broad range of experiences as a practitioner including Head of Procurement roles, consultant and training. Gordon's career spans both the UK and Australia, and includes roles at organizations such as the UK National Health Service, Transport for London, Healthscope, ArcBlue and The Faculty. Today, we are going to discuss influe...
Nov 29, 2016•42 min•Ep. 110
With it being a holiday weekend here in the United States, I thought I would do is share with you one of my favorite submissions from The Procurement Revolution event from back in late September. More and more, I believe the mindset is a key enabler or roadblock in our efforts to think differently and elevate the procurement value proposition. Without that change in mindset, it makes the other necessities – such as competency development – almost irrelevant. And so I wanted to focus today in the...
Nov 25, 2016•13 min•Ep. 109
Scott Gillespie is an expert in procurement, and corporate travel. He was an original member of the AT Kearney team that launched the 7-step sourcing process in the 1990's, and has since founded a number of companies with a focus on helping organizations better understand, benchmark and measure the performance of their corporate travel programs. Scott also authors the popular blog Gillespie's Guide to Travel & Procurement. Scott passionately believes that corporate travel programs should be ...
Nov 22, 2016•43 min•Ep. 108
Today's episode is in response to a listener question. I was recently asked for guidance on how to maintain supplier relationships following a tough incumbent negotiation - particularly one that occurs mid-contract. Listen in to hear my share five considerations that I have used both as a practitioner and service provider to maintain relationships with my suppliers and clients following difficult negotiations. For more information, visit: http://artofprocurement.com/toughnegotiation...
Nov 18, 2016•9 min•Ep. 107
Jimmy Anklesaria is one of the most prominent thought leaders in procurement today. Jimmy is considered by many as the go-to expert when it comes to the strategic management of cost. He literally wrote the book (well, two books), and regularly travels the globe helping organizations reduce their third party costs. Importantly, he does this not through the leveraging of power but by using data as the foundation of fact based sourcing and continuous improvement. Today's episode of the Art of Procu...
Nov 15, 2016•53 min•Ep. 106
I sat down to record today's episode just a couple of hours after Donald Trump emerged victorious in the US presidential election. And today, I am going to replay a discussion with CPO and former Chief Risk Officer Susan Grelling that I first published in the aftermath of the UK Brexit vote early in the year. In our conversation, Susan shared the steps that procurement can take to help our organizations turn the management of market uncertainty and volatility into a competitive advantage. For mo...
Nov 11, 2016•15 min•Ep. 105
In today's Art of Procurement we take a look inside the career journey of Alex Brown, long time Chief Procurement Officer for Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and GLOBALFOUNDRIES, and winner of the 2013 Zycus High Performing Procurement Leader award. In this wide ranging discussion focused on developing a long term career in procurement, Alex shares a number of key decision points that he had to make on his journey to becoming a CPO. Listen in to the conversation to hear Alex's perspective on a numb...
Nov 08, 2016•36 min•Ep. 104
Today is the Art of Procurement's first birthday! What a crazy, and rewarding, 12 months it has been. Today I go behind the scenes at the Art of Procurement. I look back at the first 12 months and reflect how the show has evolved over the past 12 months - and importantly what are some of the lessons that I have learned. Not procurement lessons, but lessons from my journey as a podcast host. I then look forward to 2017. What are some of the things I want to do better? If you are interested in my ...
Nov 04, 2016•20 min•Ep. 103
Jimmy Anklesaria is one of the most prominent thought leaders in procurement today. Jimmy is considered by many as the go-to expert when it comes to the strategic management of cost. He literally wrote the book (well, two books), and regularly travels the globe helping organizations reduce their third party costs. Importantly, he does this not through the leveraging of power but by using data as the foundation of fact based sourcing and continuous improvement. Jimmy had so much information to sh...
Nov 01, 2016•51 min•Ep. 102
I was thrilled to be a part of the Zycus event as the media partner for the conference. As part of the partnership, I was able to moderate a main stage panel event and present a separate session in the leadership tract. In today's episode, I provide an overview of the two sessions that I was involved in. I also share my key takeaways from the activities that I was able to attend - with topics such as the Internet of Things, Relevancy of Procurement, Procurement Innovation and the role of technol...
Oct 28, 2016•25 min•Ep. 101
Oct 25, 2016•51 min•Ep. 100
Unless you are new to the show, you will have heard me talk all about The Procurement Revolution event that I co-organized with Kelly Barner of Buyers Meeting Point. We were thrilled with how the event panned out. We had 40 revolutionaries, over 50 pieces of content and five live Q&A interviews throughout the week. We learned a ton from the things that went well, and the things that didn't. One of my regrets was that I wasn't able to dedicate as much time as I would have liked to pull togeth...
Oct 21, 2016•12 min•Ep. 99
Carlson Rezidor - one of the largest hotel groups in the world with brands such as Radisson and Park Place – embarked on a path to identify, build and deploy a global source to pay platform in mid-2015. I am joined on the Art of Procurement today by Scott Deibert, the SVP of Procurement, and Bart Baetens, Director of E-Procurement for Carlson Residor. In today's show, we chronicle their journey. I ask Scott and Bart to share the key decision points and lessons learned, as the sought to transform...
Oct 18, 2016•46 min•Ep. 98
Today's episode is the second in a two-part series considering Category Management: what we can do not only to implement Category Management, but also do so in a way that is sustainable over the long term. The reason why I think this is important is that often I have seen Category Management implemented for the right reasons, but after the initial burst of energy and picking the low hanging fruit, it becomes difficult to keep the momentum going and provide value in other ways. Today's guests on ...
Oct 14, 2016•20 min•Ep. 97
Today's episode is the first in a two-part series considering Category Management: what we can do not only to implement Category Management, but also do so in a way that is sustainable over the long term. The reason why I think this is important is that often I have seen Category Management implemented for the right reasons, but after the initial burst of energy and picking the low hanging fruit, it becomes difficult to keep the momentum going and provide value in other ways. Today's guests on t...
Oct 11, 2016•38 min•Ep. 96
Back in early September, the Art of Procurement left the recording studio and went live for the first time with a webinar that I hosted with a friend of the show, RFP365. The theme of the webinar was Weighted Scoring. Specifically, how you can use weighted scoring as part of your sourcing process, to help make decisions based on facts, rather than feelings. The webinar was broadly split into a couple of different parts – I was asking the questions of RFP365 in terms of technology – how can you s...
Oct 07, 2016•18 min•Ep. 95
Corporate Social Responsibility – or CSR – is a key value lever that procurement can pull to differentiate ourselves from the perceptions of the past, and that can enable us to play a role in revenue generation, not just cost reduction. Indeed, how companies approach their CSR commitments will play an ever increasing role in the way that they are perceived by their target customers, impacting brand value and ultimately pricing power. In today's Art of Procurement, I am joined by Jason Pearson, t...
Oct 04, 2016•43 min•Ep. 94
Today is the last day that content will be published in support of The Procurement Revolution event. We have had 40 revolutionaries share their perspective on such as wide variety of topics – tactical, strategic and a little bit of crystal ball gazing too! There was a particular submission from the event that I think embodies my thoughts on what the role of procurement really is - and why change must come from within. It was recorded by Pierre Lapree, the Founder of a procurement performance man...
Sep 30, 2016•7 min•Ep. 93
Back in 2012, Sylvain Mansotte received the call from the newly appointed CPO of a large Australian based construction company to assist in the building a new procurement function. He jumped at the chance, and one of his first priorities was to understand his new employers' third party spend profile. Within 2 months, Sylvain had uncovered a $20M fraud that spanned 12 years and led to the perpetrator – a finance executive with 30 years of experience in the company – admitting to the crime, and ul...
Sep 27, 2016•46 min•Ep. 92
It has been all hands on deck this week preparing for The Procurement Revolution. In the course of recording content, there was a piece that I just couldn't wait for next week to publish. So, I thought I would hand over the reins of the Art of Procurement Friday Show today to Kate Vitasek. Kate is a faculty member in the University of Tennessee's Graduate and Executive Education programs, and founder and lead researcher for the Vested business methodology. I asked Kate to provide her perspective...
Sep 23, 2016•20 min•Ep. 91
Sep 20, 2016•37 min•Ep. 90
The Procurement Revolution is less than two weeks away! I am busily recording content from thought leaders around the world who have inspiring perspectives to share on how we need to challenge the status quo to survive and thrive in the new era of procurement. Listen in to today's episode to learn more about the event, the content that will be shared, and the channels we are using to get the word out. To register to join The Procurement Revolution, visit http://theprocurementrevolution.com...
Sep 16, 2016•7 min•Ep. 89
Much has been written about the fact that the Millennial Generation will make up 50% of the workforce by 2020. How to attract and retain Millennial professionals is becoming an increasingly important challenge for procurement leaders as large numbers of baby boomers retire by the day. In the first part of today's episode, I connect with M.L. Peck (of the Institute for Supply Management - ISM) and Donna Cicale (of THOMASNET.com). We talk about the challenge of attracting Millennials into the supp...
Sep 13, 2016•32 min•Ep. 88
How can professionals best position themselves for success in the new era of procurement? That is the question that I explore in the second of a two part series on the factors that look to change the shape of our profession. In this episode, I explain the notion of a two-tier procurement profession, and the six different role types that I believe will be fundamental in ensuring that procurement remains relevant in times of significant change. For more information, visit http://artofprocurement.c...
Sep 09, 2016•18 min•Ep. 87
Sep 06, 2016•46 min•Ep. 86
What will the future of procurement look like, and how as procurement professionals can we prepare for disruption that is heading our way? In the first of a two part series, I explore the likelihood that procurement as a function will even exist in 10 years time - in response to a number of projections that I have recently heard about the future of our profession. I then share my perspective on how I believe procurement will evolve, based on both my personal experiences and learnings to date fro...
Sep 02, 2016•20 min•Ep. 85
Aug 30, 2016•31 min•Ep. 84
On today's Art of Procurement, I welcome Coupa President and CEO Rob Bernshteyn to the show. In our discussion, Rob and I focus on the concept of value as a service, and the benefits of focusing on delivering outcomes rather than tasks. I then question Rob on what procurement leaders can apply from the concept of value of a service as they look to build a more stakeholder orientated procurement delivery model and the capabilities that underpin it. For more information, visit http://artofprocurem...
Aug 26, 2016•29 min•Ep. 83
As a Buyer, a key factor in my sourcing decisions was the size of the supplier. While it is arguably the greatest piece of marketing of all time, the fact that "nobody ever got fired for buying IBM" was often at the forefront of my mind. I had a number of reasons for taking this approach – some real, some perceived. In today's Art of Procurement, I explore the reality of working with small and medium sized businesses with Tom Greco and Ed Edwards of THOMASNET.com. First, Tom and Ed explain which...
Aug 23, 2016•38 min•Ep. 82
On Wednesday of this week, I joined host Jamie Liddell (Editor in Chief at Outsource Magazine) and fellow panelists Kate Vitasek (Vested) and Don Ryan (KPMG) on this month's Outsource Talks Q&A webinar. During the webinar, I answered questions from Jamie related to the current challenges that CPO's are facing, and the evolution (and future) of procurement outsourcing. My favorite was a question on how I would structure the sourcing organization if a Fortune 50 company with a huge budget came...
Aug 19, 2016•22 min•Ep. 81
