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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: 2023
Dec 25, 2023

You can’t build a community based on the power of a podcast if you don’t love listening to them yourself. All year long, the Art of Procurement team is interviewing, producing, and promoting podcast interviews with some of the most interesting people in the field.

In this episode, Helen Mackenzie, Head of Sales and Community at Art of Procurement, takes over hosting responsibilities to share the five interviews she thinks of as 2023’s chart toppers. She also enlists a bit of help from our Procurement 6 announcer to count them down.

Listen in for a recap of Helen’s picks of the year:

  • Stephane Morel and his category workbench, a place where all the tools procurement needs are in one place, making work so much easier.
  • Advice on shifting priorities and procurement’s ability to adjust from Matt Reddington and Mu Wagh from Procure Analytics 
  • Vendr’s Emily Campbell and Nick Pinkman digging into the darkness to address the topic of shadow spend
  • Katherine McCleery, a B2B brand marketing expert, on how important procurement’s brand is to getting engagement and making an impact.
  • And her #1 pick - A powerful example of using procurement as a force for good: Tim Nelson, CEO of the charities Hope for Justice and Slave Free Alliance, talking about how we can help combat slavery in today’s supply chains 

 

Links:

Dec 18, 2023

Long time listeners of the Art of Procurement podcast will know that the team hosts a related podcast, Dial P for Procurement, every Thursday. The show, which is hosted by AOP Head of Content and Operations Kelly Barner, is part of the Art of Procurement family, but runs in its own podcast feed. 

Episodes air every Thursday and they have a different format than Art of Procurement. Most of the topics are pulled from the headlines and are covered as heavily researched solo pods. Don’t worry though - there isn’t a dull moment. Dial P for Procurement provides up to the moment storytelling about trending supply chain and general business news.

Looking all the way back to the beginning of the year has a way of putting everything into perspective. In this episode, Kelly does just that - following the lead of the listening audience:

  • Going back to the beginning of the year to see which Dial P for Procurement episodes had the greatest number of downloads.
  • Taking some of the ‘honorable mention’ episodes topics and running a LinkedIn pulse poll to see which one the procurement social media community thinks best represented the general tone of 2023. 

Listen to this week’s episode to find out the social media ‘business sentiment’ pick as well as the top 3 downloaded episodes of the year.

Links:

 

Episodes and newsletters referenced:

 

Dec 15, 2023

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time.

Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement.

Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

Dec 11, 2023

“ESG… should be integrated as much as possible into existing processes, structures, and policies because there are so many synergistic effects to be gained.” - Alexander Hellwig, Editor Sustainability & Compliance, IntegrityNext

Historically, regulatory requirements drove most of the momentum and investment in ESG. It was another, albeit critical, corporate box to tick, but rarely considered in relation to revenue-driving areas of the business. 

Pressure from consumers, investors, and business leaders is causing a shift in this mindset, and ESG is quickly becoming a top-line business priority, one that cannot and should not be ignored. 

To learn more about how to build and scale a strong ESG program, Philip Ideson recently spoke with Alexander Hellwig, Editor Sustainability & Compliance, and Jared Ridgley, Head of Sales US, both from IntegrityNext. 

They also discussed:

  • Perceptions and misconceptions around what ESG really means today
  • The most important ESG topics everyone should be aware of in 2024
  • How to leverage emerging technology to build supply chain transparency and integrate ESG into every facet of the business

Links:

 

Dec 8, 2023

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time.

Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement.

Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

Dec 4, 2023

“Purchasing has always been finally responsible for quality, cost, and delivery, but with some of the global challenges we’ve had in the last five years, purchasing has mutated into supply chain, and we have taken over a lot of those responsibilities.” - Stephen Tonks, Chief Supply Chain Officer, Fujikura Automotive Europe

Procurement and supply chain are usually designated as two separate functions within organizations, each with different lines of reporting and operational structures. As procurement’s role has evolved and the value they bring to the business has expanded beyond sourcing or cost and into strategy, purchasing and supply chain are becoming more intertwined than ever before.

To understand the relationship between purchasing and supply chain and what this means for the evolving role of procurement as a key strategic partner and relationship facilitator for the business, Philip Ideson spoke with Stephen Tonks, Chief Supply Chain Officer at Fujikura Automotive Europe. 

Stephen emphasizes the importance of purchasing and supply chain being constantly aligned and focused on the overall goals, challenges, and needs of the business as a whole. 

In this episode, he discusses: 

  • How purchasing and supply chain can support each other and find greater alignment to deliver more value for the business
  • The importance of relationships, both internal and external, to supply chain health and transparency
  • How procurement can leverage customer insights and relationships to drive business value and optimize the supply chain

Links:

 

Dec 1, 2023

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time.

Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement.

Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

Nov 27, 2023

“The most successful procurement teams have a strong ability to articulate what they’re doing in the context of overall business objectives.” - Aaron Addicoat, Senior Manager at Deloitte 

We live and work in a time characterized by global supply chain disruptions, inflationary conditions, the pandemic, and a war for talent. As a result, procurement has come under increasing pressure to “do more with less,” and deliver value in areas where they have not traditionally made direct contributions. 

To better understand the evolving nature of procurement and, in particular, what distinguishes the highest performing teams or, “Orchestrators of Value,” from the rest of the pack, Deloitte made this the focus of their 2023 Global Chief Procurement Officer survey. 

Philip Ideson recently spoke with Aaron Addicoat, Senior Manager, and Ryan Flynn, Principal, both from Deloitte, about Orchestrators of Value and how procurement teams can adapt their strategies to increase performance and drive more impact. 

In the episode, Aaron and Ryan discuss: 

  • How procurement Orchestrators of Value outpace their peers in terms of savings, performance, and relationships
  • How communicating procurement’s value proposition increases their reputation and influence within the business 
  • Key areas of focus for procurement moving forward, including operating models, talent strategies, and digital maturity

Links:

Nov 24, 2023

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time.

Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement.

Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

Nov 20, 2023

“Today, if we’re recruiting fresh talent, the right resource pool is not available. That talent incubation is not happening, which primarily means we need universities recognizing procurement as a discipline and making sure that individuals acquire a certain level of skills and are ready to be injected into the corporate setup.” - Nishish Saxena, Head of Terminals Procurement, India and Middle East, Maersk

For years now, procurement has often been seen as a back-office function responsible for finding and managing suppliers and cutting costs, and not as a strategic superpower that can support the overall goals and growth of the entire business. 

In part, procurement’s ‘perception problem’ and reputation as an undervalued and misunderstood function has to do with the way talent is, or isn’t, developed and how a lack of institutional and educational support is doing a collective disservice to procurement leaders and the discipline as a whole. 

Philip Ideson recently spoke with Nishish Saxena, Head of Terminals Procurement, India and Middle East, at Maersk, about his personal views on why procurement is so often undervalued as a strategic partner.

In this episode, they discuss: 

  • The evolution of procurement’s value creation potential beyond supply chain and cost management
  • How educational institutions can help establish procurement as a critical strategic business discipline and stop the perpetuation of misconceptions about their value potential
  • The core skill set procurement needs to strengthen their capabilities and elevate their brand

Links:

Nishish Saxena on LinkedIn

 

Nov 17, 2023

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time.

Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement.

Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

Nov 16, 2023

In this four-part special series, host Philip Ideson speaks with members of the LavenirAI team about the current and future impact of AI on procurement. In each episode, they explore key aspects of the topic to prepare procurement for the changes to come, and for the changes that are already here. 

In this fourth and final episode in the series, Philip Ideson speaks with Clive R. Heal, Founder and CEO, and Bill Michels, Chief Commercial Officer, both from LavenirAI, to bring all the concepts discussed in the series together and consider the overall impact AI is and will have in shaping the future of procurement. 

Key topics include: 

  • How AI will change procurement-stakeholder and procurement-supplier relationships
  • The rise of virtual reality, augmented reality, and conversational AI in procurement
  • How procurement can embrace a new AI-powered reality

Links:

 

Nov 15, 2023

In this four-part special series, host Philip Ideson speaks with members of the LavenirAI team about the current and future impact of AI on procurement. In each episode, they explore key aspects of the topic to prepare procurement for the changes to come, and for the changes that are already here.  

In the third episode, Philip Ideson is joined by Bill Michels, Chief Commercial Officer at LavenirAI, to talk about how procurement can leverage automation to be more successful.

Key topics include:

  • Embracing automation to achieve next-level efficiency and stronger data sets
  • Stronger predictive analytics, forecasting, and planning through automation
  • The rise of data scientists and automation specialists as key players in procurement

Links:

 

Nov 14, 2023

In this four-part special series, host Philip Ideson speaks with members of the LavenirAI team about the current and future impact of AI on procurement. In each episode, they explore key aspects of the topic to prepare procurement for the changes to come, and for the changes that are already here.  

In this second episode, Philip Ideson is joined by Bill Michels, Chief Commercial Officer at LavenirAI, to discuss the impact of automation on procurement and how procurement needs to adapt their skills to thrive in an increasingly automated, AI-powered world. 

Key topics include:

  • Procurement’s most valuable skills going forward
  • Where procurement should invest in skills development today
  • The impact of AI on job functions, individual roles, and hiring

Links:

 

Nov 13, 2023

In this four-part special series, host Philip Ideson speaks with members of the LavenirAI team about the current and future impact of AI on procurement. In each episode, they explore key aspects of the topic to prepare procurement for the changes to come, and for the changes that are already here. 

In this first episode, Philip is joined by Clive R. Heal, Founder and CEO at LavenirAI, to explore what the procurement metaverse is, how to leverage it, and the transformational impact it is already having on procurement today.

Key topics include:

  • The procurement metaverse, what it is and how it will impact procurement’s day-to-day
  • Procurement’s skill set of the future
  • Embracing opportunity and facing fears around AI

Links:

Nov 10, 2023

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time.

Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement.

Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

Nov 6, 2023

“We have the opportunity to do more, to shape the role of the procurement, shape the expectations that the C-suite has of procurement, define what procurement can do, and link that to the other capabilities that procurement has. That’s what a good procurement roadmap should do.” - Len Prokopets, Managing Director, Procurement and Outsourcing Advisory at KPMG

Procurement has experienced unprecedented change and disruption in the past several years. Procurement operating models and priorities continue to evolve as new trends take hold, including economic turmoil, ESG, supply disruptions, shifting workforce dynamics, new regulatory requirements, and technology innovations such as generative AI. 

Procurement must navigate these changes to help the broader organization adapt, innovate, and deliver.

To help their clients understand this changing environment and benchmark their strategies and investment priorities, KPMG recently conducted a survey of 400 global procurement leaders. The study captured insights on procurement’s current challenges, goals, and priorities as well as the path forward.

In this episode, based on an AOP Live session, Dipan Karumsi, Principal and Leader of Procurement and Outsourcing Advisory at KPMG, and Len Prokopets, Managing Director, Procurement and Outsourcing Advisory, discuss key market insights from the survey with Philip Ideson and Kelly Barner.

Their guidance for forward-looking procurement leaders includes:

  • The key investments that procurement leaders are making in response to today’s challenges and priorities 
  • What savings levels procurement organizations are targeting going forward
  • How procurement budgets and headcount are likely to change
  • Emerging technologies being adopted and implemented

Links:

 

Nov 3, 2023

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time.

Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement.

Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

Oct 30, 2023

“It's important for providers to understand it’s not just about providing technology, but a solution that actually drives value. They have a responsibility to ensure that the implementation and adoption go well because it has a long-term effect.”  - Chris Sawchuk, Principal and Global Procurement Advisory Practice Leader at The Hackett Group


Evaluating P2P solution providers can be challenging, but it is critical for procurement to tailor how they assess and select their solutions to the specific needs and expectations of their stakeholders. Procurement should look for solution providers that fit into ongoing transformation initiatives and align with their organization’s maturity level while also relying on data-driven benchmarking to evaluate their best options.

Philip Ideson recently spoke with Andy Warzecha, Principal and Chief Market Intelligence Officer, Christopher Sawchuk, Principal and Global Procurement Advisory Practice Leader, and Rick Gardner, Director, from The Hackett Group. They discussed how procurement can implement The Hackett Value Matrix to create new opportunities for innovation and improvement. 

In this conversation they address: 

  • How to drive more cost savings and value for the organization
  • The impact of AI in the procurement solution space
  • How to increase adoption to achieve greater spend visibility
  • Procurement’s ability to generate value beyond savings

 

Links:

 

Oct 27, 2023

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time.

Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement.

Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

Oct 23, 2023

“Developing trustworthy and reliable suppliers is critical to your business, and maintaining those relationships is beneficial to the organization as a whole.” - Saurabh Mehta, Chief Revenue Officer and Managing Partner of Ops and Performance at Consus Global 

Developing strong supplier relationships can have a profound impact on the overall health of a business and it is one of procurement’s most critical responsibilities. 

While a certain subset of suppliers may fulfill a tactical role, others have the potential to be true collaborators alongside procurement in driving value for the business - if procurement can undergo a mindset shift in the way they think about, approach, value, and measure supplier relationships. 

In this episode, based on an Art of Procurement webinar, Kelly Barner explores this mindset shift with Saurabh Mehta, Chief Revenue Officer and Managing Partner of Ops and Performance, and Manish Agarwal, Vice President of Supply Chain, both from Consus Global. 

In the episode, they discuss:

  • How and in what ways supplier relationships have changed in recent years
  • Why procurement should work to understand the supplier’s perspective
  • How a strong supplier relationship does (or doesn’t) affect pricing
  • Tactical and strategic tips for building strong, healthy relationships with suppliers

 

Links:

 

Oct 20, 2023

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time.

Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement.

Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

Oct 16, 2023

“You need to know your suppliers, what they can and what they can’t do, and what they’re ready to do on top of the relationship you have every day. In an unstable supply chain, you need to invent new rules.” - Olivier Berrouiguet, President & CEO, Synertrade

The increasing complexity and volatility in the global supply chain is putting more pressure on procurement to level up their approach to risk management. But resource-constrained teams and a varied network of stakeholders with different understandings of “risk” means procurement has to work smarter, not harder, to be successful. 

Philip Ideson recently spoke with Olivier Berrouiguet, President and CEO of Synertrade, to get his perspective on how procurement can improve their approach to third party risk management and, perhaps most importantly, how they can adjust their strategy to meet the needs of the moment, which is increasingly defined by instability, risk, and disruption. 

In this podcast episode, Philip and Olivier discuss:

  • How sustained supply chain volatility is changing the way procurement should approach risk management
  • The often overlooked connection between supplier relationship management and supply chain risk management
  • Why a more holistic approach to risk management is needed for direct, indirect, and services procurement
  • The role of technology and generative AI in shaping the future of risk management solutions

Links:

 

Oct 13, 2023

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time.

Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement.

Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

Oct 9, 2023

“If you want to be successful in what you do personally or professionally, you’ve got to manage relationships because the show goes on. You need strong relationships with contractors and suppliers that you know can deliver.” - Matt Mehler, President of PROcurement Solutions

Have you ever wondered what it is like to manage procurement for a large, high-profile venue? According to Matt Mehler, former VP of Procurement for Madison Square Garden, it’s exciting, but there’s also a tremendous amount of pressure.

Madison Square Garden is a large corporate entity that hosts hundreds of sporting and entertainment events per year, welcoming millions of people to its facilities, which also include entertainment venues off site and even in other cities.

In this podcast episode, the opening session of Categorypalooza 2023, Kelly Barner interviews Matt about the complexities and challenges that come along with managing procurement for a large venue with many different types of services.

They discuss topics like:

  • How to manage services procurement in a fast-paced, high-pressure environment
  • The pivotal role relationships play in large-scale services spend management
  • Managing expectations and measuring success in a complex organization with multiple stakeholders
  • Navigating the nuances of supplier relationship and performance management in an advertiser- or sponsor-supported organization



Links:

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