Welcome to this weeks Friday Solo Show!

I recently received an email from a listener that had a couple of great questions.

1. Do you perhaps have any tips for an individual such as myself who is a beginner when it comes to procurement?
2. How can I become part of a 'procurement community'? I've joined various groups and blogs the last couple of months but I'm struggling to actually feel part of the discussions.

Be sure to listen to the episode to hear my answers. More detailed show notes with links can be found at artofprocurement.com/15

From the start of Art of Procurement, I have planned on recording a series of “how-to” or case studies that highlight the steps that leading companies are taking to tackle their most difficult procurement challenges. I’m excited to share with you the first in this “how-to” series.

Today’s guest is Tim Jones, the Head of Sourcing at Google.

Google Procurement have been on a journey to become a trusted advisor supporting the key strategic stakeholders that represent the most strategic supplier spend and initiatives rather than an RFP show. In today’s show, Tim will share Google’s journey to date, along with what I think are some really interesting approaches to drive stakeholder engagement.

Today's show notes are available at artofprocurement.com/google

In this Friday solo show, I give my thoughts on the previous episodes relating to the US & UK Job Markets.

There are a few key insights that I picked out of those two shows, but one thing that is a recurring theme is that companies who want to retain and attract the best people have to do things differently.

I hope you enjoy this episode

Mark Holyoake, Owner of The Holyoake Search Group, a boutique Recruitment Specialist focused exclusively on recruiting professionals into the Procurement function, explains the key strategies and tactics that you should follow to secure you perfect Procurement hires in 2016.

Welcome to 2016!  Host Philip Ideson shares his procurement journey, and discusses his vision for the Art of Procurement in 2016 - including a new regular Friday show.

Learn the best practices that I have observed procurement services firms level to increase the ROI of their client engagements, and how they can be applied to your internal team.

Andrew Daley, co-founder of procurement recruitment consultancy Edbury Daley explains the current state of the UK procurement job market.

Andrew Daley, co-founder of procurement recruitment consultancy Edbury Daley, explains the key strategies and tactics that you should follow to secure you dream procurement job in 2016.

Andrew Karpie, the preeminent analyst covering the future of work for procurement industry blog Spend Matters, explains the transformative power of worker intermediation platforms and how labor in the future will be accessed on a activity basis rather than FTE basis.

Kelly Barner, Owner and Editor of Buyers Meeting Point, discusses the trends shaping Procurement's future, and the importance of Supply Market Intelligence in making Procurement a competitive advantage.

In this Thanksgiving week episode, host Philip Ideson discusses whether or not procurement outsourcing is an all or nothing value proposition, and explains different procurement outsourcing use cases.

Tibor Shanto, Chief Sales Officer and Principal of Renbor Sales Solutions explains the perception of the procurement function from the sales community, and how both tribes can work together to foster a spirit of partnership and build long term relationships.

In this episode, Tania Seary, Founder of Procurious, discusses a wide range of issues from the impact that nano-niching will have on the procurement careers of the future, to the importance of social media in winning the war for talent.

Host Philip Ideson introduces the Art of Procurement, and explains who the show is for, and the motivations behind its launch