798: Bridging the Gap Between Procurement and Legal W/ Paul Bagley

Apr 28, 2025

Ask episode

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

“I understand that tension between procurement and legal could happen, but it really is a disservice to each other. It's like two brothers fighting. It doesn't make any sense.” - Paul Bagley, Director of Commercial Contracting, Acosta Group

Procurement and legal often find themselves at odds, despite the fact that they’re usually working toward the same goals for the business. We can usually trace this tension back to a few key areas like contract cycle times, risk management approaches, decision-making processes, or contract negotiations. But, when procurement and legal are true collaborators and combine their expertise, they can create measurably better outcomes for the business.

To get to that point, both sides need to get to the root of the tension and develop workable processes and expectations that leverage the strengths of both teams without creating bottlenecks or roadblocks… for anyone.

In this episode of Art of Procurement, Philip Ideson speaks with Paul Bagley, Director of Commercial Contracting at Acosta Group. Paul has a unique perspective as both an attorney and an experienced procurement professional. Because of that, he is able to directly challenge the notion that conflict between procurement and legal is inevitable, and he advocates instead for a more collaborative, supportive approach between the two.

In this episode, Paul explains:

How effective category management is the key to creating alignment between procurement, legal, and business stakeholders
The importance of empowering procurement with clear contract guidelines and fallback provisions so legal doesn’t become unnecessarily overinvolved
Best practices for working with outside council or third-party legal teams
Practical ways procurement can level-up their knowledge about legal’s role, improve their contracts, and stay current on what risks to look out for

Links: