“Play the long game, avoid myopic thinking and approaches to solve immediate problems as much as you can, and treat your suppliers as your customers or clients.”
– Darshan Deshmukh, President at ProcureAbility
Procurement leaders are facing unparalleled uncertainty – trade wars, shifting regulations, and headlines that change overnight. Pressure is mounting to build more resilient, agile supply chains, but most organizations are battling change fatigue as well as a need to redefine value.
Procurement has to rewire their operating model for a future where disruption is the norm.
In this Art of Procurement podcast episode, Philip Ideson and Kelly Barner are joined by Darshan Deshmukh, President at ProcureAbility. Darshan shares real-world stories about how teams are grappling with global risk and why some are seeing volatility as an engine for growth, while others are retrenching. The conversation addresses how CPOs can actively manage optionality in their supply chains, and how procurement leaders can spot – and address – risk fatigue in their teams.
If you want to understand what it means to create a cost-effective and resilient, opportunity-ready supply chain, this episode gives you the roadmap.
In this episode, Darshan discusses how to:
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“We’re in the business of change – selling change and then delivering it.” - Gordon Donovan, Vice President Research - Procurement & External Workforce, SAP
In an era of overlapping crises, procurement faces fast-evolving challenges… and opportunities.
Senior leaders are tasked with not only keeping the engine running but also building resilient, future-facing teams that thrive in complexity. The recently published SAP Economist Impact research report, “The Resilient Edge: Procurement in an Era of Polycrisis,” provides a data-driven lens on what the next three to five years may hold, especially as outsourcing, skills, and technology reshape operating models.
To dig into this new research, Philip Ideson welcomes Gordon Donovan, Vice President Research - Procurement & External Workforce at SAP, back to the show. Gordon combs through insights on what is driving procurement decision-making, current confidence in category management, and the practical implications of surging contingent workforce and outsourcing activity.
Whether you want to understand why risk management is lagging, how AI will drive operating model transformation, or where procurement should focus next, Gordon brings both the latest data and his own hard-won advice for CPOs.
In this episode, Gordon discusses how this latest research from SAP can help procurement:
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“We can all claim savings without necessarily achieving the result.”
This stark observation from Jason Busch sums up decades of dysfunction in how procurement measures their impact and why AI may finally force a (much-needed) reckoning with reality.
In this episode of “Buy: The Way...To Purposeful Procurement,” Jason joins co-hosts Philip Ideson and Rich Ham to explore how artificial intelligence might finally solve procurement's validation problem… but only if organizations abandon their addiction to “claiming savings” and start measuring what actually matters: EBITDA.
As a co-founder of FreeMarkets and a founder of Spend Matters, Jason has witnessed 25 years of procurement's evolution from the inside, and he’s not pulling any punches.
Instead, he offers a radical proposition: procurement should function as economic “detectives” gathering evidence of spend crimes, then “prosecutors” holding suppliers accountable based on that evidence. The technology finally exists to make this possible, but it will require procurement to abandon the comfortable fiction of projected savings in favor of the uncomfortable truth of EBITDA impact.
The implications of this approach extend beyond individual organizations. Jason frames procurement's societal purpose as “public defenders against rampant cost escalation,” suggesting that when buyer-side flaws enable seller-side exploitation, the ultimate losers are consumers who absorb these costs through higher prices.
According to Jason, the question isn't whether technology will transform procurement… It's whether procurement will transform themselves enough to leverage that technology purposefully and for the good of the business.
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“Procurement is going to be on the front lines, creating competitive advantage for the corporation.” - Vel Dhinagaravel, CEO at Beroe
AI isn’t just a buzzword anymore… it’s rapidly becoming procurement’s sharpest tool for staying ahead.
Business leaders now demand more than “check-the-box” savings; they want real, data-driven competitiveness that puts their organizations at the front of the pack. The big question: how can AI and always-on intelligence transform procurement’s role and impact?
In this Art of Procurement podcast episode, Beroe CEO Vel Dhinagaravel joins host Philip Ideson for a candid conversation on the reality (and roadblocks) of using AI in procurement. Vel draws from deep experience and real-world case studies to reveal where intelligence platforms are making a difference, how measurement is shifting, and what mindsets are needed to win in today’s faster, more transparent world.
From rethinking metrics to unlocking competitive benchmarking and avoiding overhyped tech promises, this conversation gives procurement leaders practical advice they can use now.
In this episode, Vel discusses:
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“A decision abyss is the chasm that forms between critical supply chain functions… and that's what keeps and prevents organizations from making fast, cross-functional, well-informed data-driven decisions.” – Keith Hartley, CEO and Board Member at LevaData, CEO of The Abyss Group
In today’s hyper-connected supply chains, data is everywhere, but turning it into fast, confident decisions remains elusive. The cost? Slow launches, eroding margins, and “spreadsheet heroics” that mask deeper issues. As the complexity compounds year after year, procurement leaders face a tough choice: keep coping, or tackle what Keith Hartley calls the “decision abyss.”
In this Art of Procurement podcast episode, Keith, CEO of LevaData and author of the new book “Conquering the Decision Abyss”, joins host Philip Ideson to dig into this silent but urgent challenge.
They explore why siloed information and human habits – not just technology – are holding teams back, and what’s truly required to turn fragmented data into bold, coordinated action. Keith also shares real-world stories, quick wins, and a candid take on why C-suites are finally wading into supply chain’s black box.
In this episode, Keith also discusses how to:
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When Kristine Morton's was first introduced to the flawed incentive structures plaguing much of corporate procurement, she said, “That all sounds stupid." Her blunt reaction reveals something profound: it is possible to build a procurement career without ever encountering the dysfunctional systems that dominate so many large organizations.
In this episode of "Buy: The Way...To Purposeful Procurement," Kristine Morton, Director of Strategic Sourcing at Unleashed Brands, joins Philip Ideson and Rich Ham to demonstrate what procurement looks like when stakeholders demand proof, not promises.
Working across franchise systems and private equity-backed companies, Kristine serves over 1,000 individual franchise owners who scrutinize every P&L line item. In her world, "savings" means money that actually hits the bottom line, not projections based on contract signatures. Every initiative undergoes rigorous testing before rollout, and continuous measurement ensures stakeholders receive exactly what was promised.
In this episode, she explains the stark contrast between procurement theory and practice. While large corporations debate abstract incentive structures, Kristine focuses on operational empathy, which means understanding what makes franchise owners' lives easier, cheaper, or better.
Her approach to category management is truly continuous. As Kristine puts it, “My vendor relationships don't end at contract signature. If I don't follow up and ensure our initiatives deliver what we promised, I won't learn when things don't work out.”
Kristine’s leadership journey demonstrates that purposeful procurement doesn't require managing billions in spend. There's profound purpose in simply making efforts real and ensuring stakeholders get what they were promised. With this perspective, adoption is validation; if programs don't deliver value, business owners simply won't participate.
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“ProcureTech100 is the voice of the user. It's the voice of the customer. We want the perspective of those who are using these solutions every day, who have done proof of concepts, and who have seen the ROI.” - Philip Ideson, Co-Founder and Managing Director at Art of Procurement
Today’s procurement leaders are surrounded by tech innovation and disruption, but separating real value from empty hype is more complex than ever. With hundreds of new providers, AI tools, and shifting priorities, staying competitive calls for more than just another list of solutions; it demands objective, peer-driven insights.
This week, Art of Procurement co-founders Philip Ideson and Kelly Barner unpack the acquisition of the ProcureTech100 and Founders’ Circle programs. They explain what sets the ProcureTech100 apart, why practitioner voices matter, and how this new approach will improve visibility, trust, and practical decision-making for procurement teams everywhere.
Tune in for a candid conversation about rethinking technology intelligence, the importance of independence in awards and recommendations, and how community engagement is shaping the next chapter of procurement’s digital story.
In this episode, Philip and Kelly:
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