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.

In this four-part special series, host Philip Ideson speaks with members of the Sievo team. In each episode, we discover a unique way that differentiated decision making can help procurement 10X their impact: procurement as an information hub, ESG analytics, investments in talent, and crossing the data to action gap.

In the fourth and final episode in this series, he is joined by Sammeli Sammalkorpi, CEO and Co-Founder of Sievo, to bring the whole series together by looking at how procurement can cross the data to action gap.

They take this opportunity to discuss: 

• What the next frontier in procurement analytics may look like 
• Whether automated decision making will replace procurement professionals 
• How procurement decision makers should think about procurement data assets

In this four-part special series, host Philip Ideson speaks with members of the Sievo team. In each episode, we discover a unique way that differentiated decision making can help procurement 10X their impact: procurement as an information hub, ESG analytics, investments in talent, and crossing the data to action gap.

 In the third episode, he is joined by Deep Singh, a Presales Manager at Sievo, to talk about the current state of human decision making and the tools available to drive decisions into actions.

 They take this opportunity to discuss: 

• How procurement can connect global sources of spend data with existing decision making processes
• What the decision making process looks like today with regards to managing risk
• Whether companies spend sufficient time cleaning and interpreting their data so they can improve their decisions

In this four-part special series, host Philip Ideson speaks with members of the Sievo team. In each episode, we discover a unique way that differentiated decision making can help procurement 10X their impact: procurement as an information hub, ESG analytics, investments in talent, and crossing the data to action gap.

 In the second episode, he is joined by Heta Pirttijärvi, a Product Manager at Sievo, to talk about ESG analytics.

 They take this opportunity to discuss: 

• Why ESG topics are becoming more important and receiving more attention 
• The main obstacles companies struggle with as they try to translate their ESG vision into an actionable strategy 
• Procurement’s likely future role in ESG initiatives

In this four-part special series, host Philip Ideson speaks with members of the Sievo team. In each episode, we discover a unique way that differentiated decision making can help procurement 10X their impact: procurement as an information hub, ESG analytics, investments in talent, and crossing the data to action gap.

In this first episode, he is joined by Heta Ruikka, VP of Product Management at Sievo, to talk about how procurement’s role has adjusted in response to differentiated decision making.

They take this opportunity to discuss: 

• How the last few years have altered procurement’s role
• The new challenges that are increasing procurement’s visibility and responsibility
• Examples of how increased complexity affects procurement’s analytical and sourcing work

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.

Art of Procurement recently passed a major milestone for any podcast - but one that is particularly exciting for a niche business podcast… our one-millionth download!

Philip Ideson recorded the first episode of the podcast back in 2015 (he and Kelly Barner connected for the very first time to record episode 6!). Over time, the podcast has evolved and matured just as much as the procurement community has, and today it is the #1 downloaded procurement podcast in the world. 

But if you thought that was our whole story, you would be missing out on a lot…

To mark this occasion, Philip Ideson and Kelly Barner recorded a special episode to share behind-the-scenes stories and answer listener Q&A. Here are just a few of the things they cover in this unprecedented and unfiltered episode:

• The master plan (or lack thereof) that motivated Phil to give up a perfectly good job to host a podcast
• Some of the low points on the journey, and what the team learned from them
• Episodes that were surprisingly well received… or didn’t resonate at all.
• Why the secret to this podcast’s success may actually be another unrelated podcast

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.

Procurement often talks about visibility and transparency. Data turns abstract goals into actionable insight. Having greater visibility makes it possible for procurement to negotiate maximum savings while making sure the company has what it needs to operate competitively in a digital world. 

In categories where it is easy for distributed buyers to act independently - like cloud software for instance - visibility also provides procurement with opportunities for improved savings leverage and the centralized oversight required to stop ‘shadow spend’ in its tracks.

In this episode, based on an AOP Live session, Philip Ideson is joined by Emily Campbell, Director of Product Design & Research at Vendr, and Nick Pinkman, Sr. Cloud Manager at Vendr. 

Emily and Nick share their perspectives about:

• The importance of centralizing workflows for managing spend and headcount
• The different types of cloud savings procurement should pursue during contract negotiations
• What data procurement should have in hand before entering a cloud software negotiation

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.

So much of what procurement does is about change management. Whether it is adopting new technologies, ensuring that soft skills continue to evolve, or understanding how procurement can best align with the business given their changing needs… something is always changing.

Paras Sood has broad senior-level experience across the entire procurement value chain. He has worked as a practitioner, at a procurement tech company, and in procurement consulting. Most recently, Paras was the Global Head of Strategic Procurement Transformation for Deutsche Bank, until he made the move back into consulting at Future Purchasing. 

In this episode, Philip Ideson taps into Paras’ experience in driving transformation to better understand his approach and how it has evolved to meet changing C-suite expectations. 

• How procurement can take a broad range of experiential and functional perspectives when planning a transformation journey
• Changes he has seen companies make to the business case required for both short and longer term funding for transformations
• Why successful transformation efforts require segmentation of transformational phases, stakeholder interests and enthusiasm, and technology implementation

Procurement 6 is a new short podcast from Art of Procurement that will be published 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 will have 6 short segments that summarize this week in procurement.  

Segments will range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that have captured our attention this week.

To support this need for balance, the Art of Procurement team brought together a broad range of experts to speak at Digital Outcomes 2023: one of our largest virtual events of the year. We heard about technical challenges and human growing pains… in addition to technical triumphs and human evolution.

In this episode of the pod, Philip Ideson and Kelly Barner share their combined takeaways from this fast-paced two day event:

• How to take new ideas from a relatively safe incubation phase to full scale corporate programs
• The risks that exist for procurement teams that are not able to successfully leave the status quo behind and embrace new ways of working and thinking
• The opportunity that exists for procurement organizations that use digital platforms as impact multipliers, delivering expanded forms of ROI

Procurement 6 is a new short podcast from Art of Procurement that will be published 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 will have 6 short segments that summarize this week in procurement.  

Segments will range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that have captured our attention this week.

Like most other companies, manufacturing companies have a problem with data. Many of them don't centralize much of the data they produce through regular transactions, and even when they do, they struggle to contextualize that information so that it becomes actionable. When procurement professionals in these companies sit down with engineers and supply chain planners, they need to be able to harness that data as the ‘common language’ for value.

Keith Hartley is the CEO of LevaData - and a passionate surfer, a brand new combination for the Art of Procurement podcast. Keith joined the LevaData team in 2022, but he isn’t new to procurement - and he has deep experience helping manufacturing companies drive better decision making through the use of data. 

In this episode, Philip Ideson and Keith discussed:

• The current state of direct material sourcing 
• How procurement and engineering teams can foster greater collaboration to everyone’s benefit
• How leading companies are using increased data visibility to differentiate their decision making - even in chaotic times

Procurement 6 is a new short podcast from Art of Procurement that will be published 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 will have 6 short segments that summarize this week in procurement.  

Segments will range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that have captured our attention this week.

All companies are works in progress, as are the many professionals dedicated to their operational performance and efficiency. Since today’s business conditions are far from being straightforward, having a better read of the macro landscape can represent a significant competitive advantage.

In this episode, based on an AOP Live session, Art of Procurement’s Philip Ideson was joined by Rujul Zaparde, Founder and CEO of Zip, and Colin Glazier, VP of Solutions Consulting at Zip. They regularly hear different perspectives on the challenges and opportunities that will be presented to all of us, as well as suggestions about what we can start doing now to make the most of the new year.

Rujul and Colin answered questions from the Art of Procurement community about three key areas:

• How macro-economic trends and pressures will affect providers and practitioners differently, and exhibit themselves in each group’s work
• The impact that no-code platforms and automation may have on user friction and compliance
• New approaches procurement can take to influence specific categories and relationships today and in the future

Procurement 6 is a new short podcast from Art of Procurement that will be published 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 will have 6 short segments that summarize this week in procurement.  

Segments will range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that have captured our attention this week.

The procurement job scene has been a wild ride for the last few years. Conditions are standing to change, and no one ever should have expected otherwise. As procurement begins to enter a new phase of recruitment under very different economic conditions, there are still plenty of op[portunities - but it may require a new approach to find them.

Mark Holyoake is the Managing Director of Holyoake Search, a recruitment specialist focused on procurement. Mark joined host Philip Ideson for a discussion about the general health of the procurement job market and how it has evolved over the past couple of years, along with his tips for any listeners who have been impacted by workforce reductions.

In this interview Mark and Philip discuss:

• How the spike in demand for procurement professionals during the pandemic caused years’ worth of overdue salary increases to hit hiring companies all at once
• Why recent news of mass layoffs, especially within the tech sector, should not be seen as a proxy for the market as a whole - and certainly not for procurement
• Why hiring managers and candidates all have to keep an open mind about which skills and experiences can apply to which open positions

Procurement 6 is a new short podcast from Art of Procurement that will be published 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 will have 6 short segments that summarize this week in procurement.  

Segments will range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that have captured our attention this week.

Procurement often talks about being limited by others’ perception of them. But how is that perception created? In some cases, experience dictates what stakeholders expect from procurement. In other cases, it stems from procurement’s internal brand, the combination of voice, tone, and values they use when communicating with the business.

Katherine McCleery is a good friend of the Art of Procurement team. She is a marketing and branding expert who has significant experience working with procurement services and SaaS companies. She understands the power of a good brand as well as immediate opportunities for procurement to build one of their own.

In this conversation, Katherine and host Philip Ideson discuss:

• Why branding is important for procurement leaders to understand and invest in
• How to build and then scale an effective procurement brand
• How the efforts that go into building a brand could also make procurement a better partner to the business

Procurement 6 is a new short podcast from Art of Procurement that will be published 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 will have 6 short segments that summarize this week in procurement.  

Segments will range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that have captured our attention this week.

Could there be any better qualification to compete in Ironman events than a 20-plus-year career in procurement? 

We find out in this week’s podcast, as host Philip Ideson is joined by procurement leader turned Ironman Vytas Sliesoraitis. 

Vytas has a diverse procurement background that includes time in procurement at Intel in his native Brazil, leading procurement at Google X (Google’s R&D company), and Global Head of Procurement at Epic Games, the makers of Fortnite. 

In this conversation, Vytas and Philip discuss many of the lessons learned from his long and varied career in procurement:

• The balance he learned to achieve while in procurement at Intel, balancing global strategy with local nuance
• Building trust based partnerships while establishing the procurement function at Google X
• What made him want to train for Ironman competitions and the lessons he has learned that current procurement professionals can benefit from

Procurement 6 is a new short podcast from Art of Procurement that will be published 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 will have 6 short segments that summarize this week in procurement.  

Segments will range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that have captured our attention this week.

Do fish know they are wet?

Every creature on earth has a natural habitat. Procurement’s habitat is digital. And yet, the digital aspects of procurement’s work are so pervasive, they surround us like the air we breathe. It is easy to forget to look at the nature of digital business when we are focused on individual technologies… just like fish may not notice they are wet.

Digital Outcomes is an annual virtual event that creates a space for procurement to think about the macro trends associated with digital business. In this episode, Philip Ideson and Kelly Barner reveal the topics, speakers, and session scope featured in this year’s agenda.

Attendees to the live virtual event on February 15th and 16th will discover:

• Why procurement can only improve their results by making the user experience frictionless
• The context and terminology required for procurement to address cybersecurity concerns with stakeholders and suppliers
• The upsides, downsides, and disruptive complexities of today’s robust procurement startup landscape