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Art of Procurement

Learn from Procurement Experts. Host Philip Ideson talks with thought leaders who share the trends, strategies and tactics that you can lever to elevate the role of procurement - and your career.
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Now displaying: 2017
Jun 19, 2017

We have all read the blog posts and listened to the talking heads who inform us that Generation X believes this, and Millennials believe that. But are these generational labels actually true, or do we use them as a lazy or misinformed way to try and understand and connect with peers who are not within our own age group.  That is the topic of today’s Art of Procurement.

I am joined in today’s discussion by two experts in the field.  Jim Baehr is group lead for Sourcing Strategies Group and through roles both in consulting and as a procurement leader has helped a number of organizations through procurement transformation initiatives. Joining Jim is Mike Urick. Mike is Graduate Director and Assistant Professor at St. Vincent College in Latrobe, Pennsylvania.  Both Jim and Mike have joined forces to explore the future of work and the impact of generational labels at they seek to understand how procurement leaders can mitigate the coming talent shortage in our profession.

Jun 12, 2017

Today on the pod I am joined by David Bush, formerly of IASTA and Determine, and now Chief Revenue Officer for spend analytics specialist SpendHQ.

It has been a year since I first met David, and so his appearance on the Art of Procurement is long overdue!

I invited David onto the show discuss the topic of spend analytics.  Spend analytics have always been a bit of a pain for me - I have spent a lot of time playing with pivot tables and searching Google to try and categorize suppliers which leads to lots of errors and a lot of time invested!

But I know that it doesn’t have to be like that.  

I invited David on to the show to hear his advice on the steps that procurement leaders can take to gain greater visibility into supplier spend, which is the foundation of robust procurement strategies.

Jun 5, 2017

We are in for a treat this week on the show.  I am joined by Steve Wozniak, the co-founder of Apple, the inventor of the personal computer, and a serial entrepreneur.  Steve really needs no introduction!

Steve recently keynoted the Coupa Inspire conference in San Francisco that I attended a couple of weeks ago.  Coupa arranged for Steve to spend 15 minutes with me after he got off stage, and so fresh off his fireside chat, we sat down and I recorded the conversation.

As I considered what kind of questions to ask to maximize our 15 minutes together, I focused on areas that have been a key part of Woz’s experiences as an innovator, and from his first-hand experience building the Apple brand with Steve Jobs.

May 29, 2017

This Month in Procurement returns, and this week Mark and I welcome a special guest, Sigi Osagie.

Sigi is the charismatic author of the popular procurement book, Procurement Mojo, and a has an extensive background driving performance improvement and change across multiple functions and industries - both as a practitioner and business owner.

Mark and I invited Sigi to join us this month to chat about Procurement Mojo, and to hear Sigi’s perspective on some of the actions we can take to create procurement success.

May 22, 2017

At the Art of Procurement, we get many press releases - usually detailing client wins, technology updates, or company acquisitions.  However, there was one that came across my desk recently announcing the launch of an Indirect Procurement Standard.

With my interest piqued, I reached out to the author of the Standard - Sime Curkovic - to learn more. Sime is Professor of Supply Chain Management at Western Michigan University, and joins me on the show today to share more details about the Indirect Procurement Standard - what was the need, how was it developed, and what does the final output looks like.

May 15, 2017

There was a time, not long ago, when the only procurement professionals who bought software had responsibility for IT sourcing.

Today, with the explosion of SaaS, and the use to SaaS technology to deliver tradition labor based services, buyers across many categories must now negotiate software licenses, either directly or with the help of their peers in IT.  At the same time, IT sourcing professionals are faced with the increasing supplier requests to move from on-premise to cloud based solutions.

My guest on this episode of Art of Procurement is Randy Roth, the President of Seprio.  Randy helps me unpack the world of software licensing, while providing tips to help procurement build stronger relationships with IT, navigate the move to the cloud, and negotiate with the big boys.

May 8, 2017

As a procurement leader, how do you balance the needs of your stakeholders with your responsibility to be guardians of third party spend?

That is the challenge being addressed head on by today’s guests on the Art of Procurement.  I’m delighted to be joined by David Natoff, the Head of Procure to Pay at Google, and Dr Bernd Huber, the Head of Google’s Sourcing Center of Excellence.

We focus our conversation on how Google Procurement continues on their journey to become a trusted business partner in a complex and agile organization, while ensuring that they remain strong corporate guardians.  Balancing these two objectives that are often in conflict with each other is Google Procurement’s greatest challenge – one that they are solving through their journey to move their sphere of influence.

May 1, 2017

I am joined today by Shaz Khan, the co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Vroozi, a leading cloud-based business purchasing platform.

Shaz has a deep background in procurement technology, with a particular focus on SAP.

As long time listeners will know, I learn more and more every day about the nuts and bolts of procurement technology, while tending to spend more time looking for trends that I think will impact our profession.

One of those trends is self-service sourcing – empowering the organization to buy directly the vast majority of products and services they need, one the frameworks and governance structures are in place to support it.

And so, the main topic for today’s conversation is that of self-service sourcing.  Is it a threat, or an opportunity for procurement?

Apr 24, 2017

Joining me on the show today is Dave Quillin, the manager of procurement for Alliant Credit Union, the seventh largest credit union in the United States.

Dave has specialized in technology procurement with organizations such as Orbitz and Groupon before taking on a new opportunity at Alliant to build a procurement and vendor management office from the ground up.

In today’s Art of Procurement, Dave shares his journey at Alliant.  What I really like is that Dave built his organization by first listening to the needs of the business, and by focusing more broadly on value rather than cost savings alone.

Dave shares the importance of balancing process with agility, particularly in regulated industries such as financial services, along with lessons learned along the way.

For his work at Alliant, Dave was recognized by Supply & Demand Chain Executive as a member of their 2017 Pros to Know.

Apr 17, 2017

Today, I'm joined by Tim Meester. Tim is the Senior Director of Procurement and Sustainability for Best Buy, an almost forty billion dollar revenue provider of technology products, services, and solutions.

As I got to know Tim in our pre-interview, I was very impressed by his and his team’s efforts to deliver value beyond savings at Best Buy. We connected to discuss CSR and sustainability, but that is only the start for his team.

In today’s discussion, Tim shares the actions that Best Buy procurement is taking to expand the procurement value proposition and importantly, how Best Buy actually incentivizes their teams to enable them to focus on more than just cost savings alone.

Apr 10, 2017

Back in my days in the automotive industry, supplier led innovation played - and still plays - a key role in the development of new innovative products. Procurement organizations have been set up for a long time to facilitate this process. However, on the Indirect side of things, we still struggle to integrate supplier innovation - certainly at scale.

If you are a long time listener, you will have heard me share my thoughts about the importance of innovation as a key component of the new procurement value proposition. But, where do we start, and how can we enable innovation at scale?

Today’s guest answers those question. I am joined by Jon Washington, founder of The Innovation Garage. Jon help clients increase their profitability through innovation design encompassing products, processes and delivery models.

Apr 3, 2017

I think it is fair to say that you can’t move for reading Blockchain related articles today. But to be honest, I have always been a little confused by them in terms of understanding what Blockchain actually is.

In today’s show, I attempt to demystify Blockchain, and its impact on procurement.

Helping me understand the potential of Blockchain is Jack Shaw. Jack is a business technology futurist who has spent his career leading companies in numerous industries to lever technology to find better, more efficient ways of conducting and operating their businesses.

Jack has authored three critically acclaimed books and numerous articles and is a prolific keynote speaker, including the recent ProcureCon Indirect East. He also is the co-founder of the Blockchain Executive and American Blockchain Council.

In today’s show we go down to the very basics to understand what Blockchain actually is, so that we can then begin to understand what are some of the technologies that can be built upon it. We then discuss usage cases and their impact within procurement and supply chain.

Mar 27, 2017

My guest on the Art of Procurement this week is Lara Nichols. Lara is the Head of Procurement for insurance company NFP Corp, and is also leading the conference organizing committee for ISM2017, the largest procurement related conference of the year.

Prior to NFP, Lara enjoyed roles of increasing responsibility across Fortune 100 organizations such as Wachovia (now Wells Fargo), Tyco and Merck.

Our conversation today is broadly split into three different parts. Lara shares her experiences switching the comfortable surroundings of a Fortune 100 procurement organization for a mid-market firm in procurement start-up mode.

We then discuss the impact that the current anti-globalization political environment is impacting her procurement strategies, with an increased focus on risk mitigation.

Finally, we talk conferences. What does it take to plan a conference with the depth and breadth of ISM2017, and what, as an attendee, can you do to maximize your experience.

Mar 20, 2017

Today I am joined on the Art of Procurement by Jim Butler, the Chief Procurement Officer (CPO) for my home State of California

Prior to joining the State of California, Jim enjoyed a successful career as the CPO for Levi Strauss, and held a number of senior procurement leadership positions with Dell Computer.

In today’s conversation, I wanted to learn about the leadership role that the State of California is taking in building sustainability into its supply chain, and in providing opportunities for small and local businesses.

Sustainability is often a topic we talk about in procurement, but I think it is fair to say that best practices are not widely implemented. Jim shares some of his experiences in California, along with the added dimensions – which create both opportunities and challenges – of doing so within a public body.

Mar 13, 2017

Brian Bancroft, the Vice President of Direct Procurement at The Coca-Cola Company joins me today as my guest on the Art of Procurement.

The diversity of our conversation today matches the depth and breadth of Brian’s career. Brian has enjoyed multiple VP of Procurement and CPO roles at companies such as Kellogg's and Coca-Cola covering both Direct and Indirect spend, while also having P&L and operational responsibility for other business segments.

Listen in to hear Brian’s perspective on a wide range of topics, from how to be successful moving between Indirect and Direct procurement, why global sourcing strategies are often setting buyers up for failure, and how working with procurement as a stakeholder shaped Brian’s approach as a CPO.

Mar 13, 2017

Today, Kelly Barner (Buyers Meeting Point) and I announced that we have founded a new entity to meet the strategic needs of forward-thinking procurement leaders. Palambridge brings procurement experts, technology, and intelligence together and makes them available on demand via a virtual platform.

In this bonus podcast, I go beyond the press releases to share more details on the Palambridge journey, our ecosystem, the reason behind the name, and much more!

 

After we ran The Procurement Revolution in 2016, we wanted to create a lasting force for change. After much discussion and consideration, Kelly and I realized that nothing held more value than the network of experts and partners we built in preparation for the event - and that became the foundation for Palambridge.

Palambridge is the culmination of a 15-year journey working across the procurement and outsourcing value chain, as a buyer, client and service provider, and the delivery model is one that I first mapped out many years ago.

As a procurement leader, I was always frustrated that my ability to access the subject matter expertise that I needed to solve difficult problems was directly related to my ability - or lack of - to make long term investments in hiring, consultants, contractors or outsourcing firms.  Palambridge solves this problem, by taking advantage of the platform economy.  Our model is built to seamlessly deliver procurement solutions that bring together the best of the best under an on-demand, subscription based, commercial model.

What does this mean for the Art of Procurement?

I am excited about what today’s announcement means for the Art of Procurement.  Log on today and you will see a new site design with upgraded search capabilities.  But that is just the start.  I launched the Art of Procurement as a way of giving the procurement profession a voice, a way for us to work collectively to increase our impact on the organizations we serve. However, my ability to grow and expand the site has always been limited by my own bandwidth.

In addition to co-founding Palambridge, I am honored that Kelly will be joining me on the Editorial team of Art of Procurement as we seek to build and grow a multi-format procurement insights platform.  Stay tuned for more information!

Mar 7, 2017

How does the role of procurement differ in a mission driven organization? Today on the Art of Procurement, I explore how procurement can help save lives with Brian Kyle, Managing Director of Strategic Sourcing and Contract Management at the American Cancer Society.

Kyle shares his experiences of moving from a profit-driven to mission-driven organization, and the journey that American Cancer Society has taken to elevate the role of procurement from a sourcing to category management led organization - at zero incremental cost.

Feb 28, 2017

Today on the Art of Procurement I am joined by Kevin Giblin, Head of Global Sourcing & CPO of data analytics company Dun & Bradstreet.

In today’s episode, I start by asking Kevin for his perspective on creating value beyond savings, and towards the end of our conversation Kevin gives some great advice to procurement pro’s looking to stand out from the crowd.

However, the purpose of our conversation is for Kevin to share a real-life example of how to significantly increase internal client satisfaction, and how reducing stakeholder friction on transactional activities leads to increased early engagement on more value added projects.

Feb 23, 2017

Pardon the interruption!

It has been a busy couple of weeks here at Art of Procurement Towers, and so I wanted to share details of a couple of new shows that have launched is week.  

For more information, visit:

http://artofprocurement.com/evenbiggerideas

http://thismonthinprocurement

 

Feb 21, 2017

Today’s guest was the first ever interviewee on the Art of Procurement.  All the way back in Episode 2, Tania Seary, the Founder of Procurious, as well as procurement consulting firm The Faculty and recruitment company The Source, joined me to talk about all things related to the importance of creating a personal brand through social media.

In today’s discussion, we focus on a couple of topics that both intertwine with each other.  First, I ask Tania for an update on how things are going at Procurious, and we both share our own motivations for following the paths that we have – in fact Tania turns the table on me by asking a couple of questions on why I started the Art of Procurement.

We then talk about the notion of Procurement 4.0, which will be the focus of the Big Idea Summit, and the impact it is set to have on the way that procurement organizations of the future will operate.

Areas we cover in today’s conversation include:

  • Why a complete and up-to-date LinkedIn profile is so important – both in creating your own personal brand, and when you are looking to recruit others.
  • Tania’s perspective on how Procurious has evolved over the past 18 months.
  • How the sources that procurement professionals can use to access knowledge, information and thought leadership changing.
  • Why knowledge alone is no longer power for procurement pro’s.
  • The topics are Procurious members most interested in reading about.
  • Procurement’s role in helping leaders think – and then respond to – the unthinkable.
  • How Tania defines Procurement 4.0.
  • Why Tania is motivated to look outside of the procurement profession for insights and inspiration that will help us to continue to grow.

For more information, visit: http://artofprocurement.com/BIL2017 

Feb 14, 2017

I have always sought out the Deloitte CPO Survey as a leading indicator on the health of the procurement function and just a couple of days ago, Deloitte published the results of their 2017 Survey.  

Today on the Art of Procurement, I am joined by Lance Younger. Lance is the Head of Procurement and Sourcing Consulting in the UK, a Partner of Deloitte’s Strategy and Operations Practice, and a co-author of the report that accompanies this year’s survey findings.

In today’s conversation, we go beyond the numbers to identify some of the trends, challenges and opportunities that look set to shape the procurement profession in 2017.

Areas we cover in today’s conversation include:

  • The headline findings of the report, such as:
    • 79% of procurement leaders continue to focus on cost savings
    • The growing importance of risk management as a procurement priority
    • 60% of procurement leaders do not believe they have the internal capabilities to deliver on their vision
  • The increasing role that procurement is playing in helping organizations deliver top line growth.
  • The juxtaposition between more and more procurement leaders wanting to increase business partnership, while the value levers being used are increasingly short term.
  • Key characteristics of high performing procurement organizations
  • How procurement outsourcing is struggling to maintain traction, and why changing workforce trends and the increase in the freelance economy are providing procurement leaders with new, innovative, delivery models.
  • Why some leading companies are moving back towards a decentralized procurement delivery model.
  • The expanding nature of procurement’s role in an organization.
  • Why the clock is ticking to transform procurement’s value proposition (and why we do have time yet to make the leap).
  • What do C-suite executives look for from their procurement teams today.

For more information, visit: http://artofprocurement.com/deloitte2017 

Feb 7, 2017

My guest today is Drew Polin.  Drew is the president of OpDecision, a company that helps organizations reduce their wireless spend, specifically without having to go through the upheaval of switching out their service providers.

Our conversation today is split into two parts.  First, we talk about gainsharing. It's a commercial model that I have been very skeptical about in the past, as I think it can incent the wrong behaviors, and can become a way for service providers to take advantage of less sophisticated buyers. OpDecision uses a gainsharing model, but with a twist. I think that if you are considering any time of gainsharing engagement, you should listen in to Drew’s lessons learned.

We then move into wireless, where Drew shares some of the tips and strategies that you can use to make an impact on your wireless spend here in 2017.

Topics that we discuss include:

• Tips on how to structure gainsharing engagements so that they incentivize the right outcomes, and result in win-win deals.

• The major areas of wireless spend, and how the category is evolving • How wireless carriers make their money in 2017.

• Top pain points for out of control wireless costs.

• Why international wireless costs are set to plummet.

• Supplier dynamics in the US wireless market and the impact that has on pricing.

• Why you are leaving money on the table is you only review and agree wireless pricing as part of your contract negotiations.

For more information, visit: http://artofprocurement.com/wireless2017 

Jan 31, 2017

Today’s Art of Procurement interview is a real treat.  It is chock full of actionable insights on how we can position our careers, and our organizations, to fully take advantage of digitization and its impact on what, and how, we buy.

My guest is Bill Huber.   Bill is an active participant in the procurement community and I have followed his career for some time.  Bill has worked as a practitioner – most recently as Chief Procurement Officer of Wachovia - as a service provider as head of IBM’s procurement outsourcing offering - and as a consultant and advisor.  Today, Bill is a Partner at Information Services Group (ISG), responsible for Digital Platforms and Solutions.

Areas we cover in today’s conversation include:

  • Has Bill’s experience as practitioner, service provider and advisor changed his perspective on the procurement value proposition?
  • Why many procurement organizations have become the enemy of differentiation.
  • What procurement can do to have maximum impact on an organization.
  • Why changing metrics matters – especially to those companies that achieve real transformation… and where procurement can start.
  • What does “digital” really mean?
  • What will the impact of digitization on what and how we buy?
  • Will technology render much of procurement redundant, and where should we focus to change our value proposition?
  • How can procurement align with the digital economy:?
    • New ways of segmenting spend, so that you can focus on what is truly material.
    • Options for accessing capability, so that retained teams can focus only on what makes their business a competitive advantage.
    • Rethink contracts and contractual SLA’s to ensure they are fit for purpose and incent all parties to focus on the delivery of outcomes.

For more information, visit: http://artofprocurement.com/billhuber

Jan 24, 2017

“We never put our own priorities first. If I save money and diminish my stakeholders ability to succeed, then I am counter productive and they are not going to use me again.” – Greg Antoniono, Anthem

Today on the show, I am joined by Greg Antoniono.  Greg is the Sourcing Director for Marketing at Anthem, one of the giants of the US Health Care industry

Over the course of the last eight years, Greg has taken his marketing procurement group on a journey from having very limited influence to being a key partner with a direct line to the Chief Marketing Officer.

In today’s show, Greg and I discuss the key steps and learnings that he, and Anthem, took on that journey.

Areas we cover include:

  • The major steps that enabled Anthem Marketing to become a trusted partner to their business stakeholders.
  • The importance of executive level support.
  • Why you should never put your own priorities first.
  • Why Greg believes why products or services should not be immediately labelled as commoditized when they historically may have been so.
  • The biggest disruptions impacting marketing stakeholders at the beginning of 2017.
  • Why Anthem embraces small businesses and start up’s – including making direct investments – as a way to identify and facilitate supplier-led innovation.
  • Greg’s biggest learnings on the journey to date – including the need to evolve to remain relevant, align, and recognize where you can add value.

For more information, visit: http://artofprocurement.com/anthem 

Jan 19, 2017

January 2017 marks the first month of a new collaboration that I am very excited about.  I am co-hosting a new monthly show, imaginatively titled The Month in Procurement, with Mark Perera. 

Mark is the CEO and Founder of Old St Labs, the Founder of Procurement Leaders, and as I have got to know him, I see how passionate he is about levering innovation and technology to help businesses really harness the power of their supply networks.

The show is meant to be a conversation.  We’ll be bringing in other people to join us every month to just chat about the issues of the day and their impact on procurement, and, frankly, anything that we have on our mind!

I’ll be leaving the edit button at home, so what we say, is what you will hear!

This Month in Procurement will have its own podcast channel that you can subscribe to, and I’ll let you know when that is ready to go.

However, for this month, I’m including our conversation in the Art of Procurement feed. 

I hope you like it – let me know what you think.

For more information, visit: http://thismonthinprocurement.com 

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