Art of Procurement

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.

“It’s not going to take much to push us back into a shortage market where demand would exceed supply.” - Graham Scott, Vice President, Global Procurement at Jabil Semiconductor volatility is grabbing headlines again, but what’s really happening beneath the surface for organizations buying and managing critical components? Graham Scott, Vice President of Global Procurement at Jabil, knows this landscape inside and out. In this episode, Graham speaks with Philip Ideson about the biggest pressures facing procurement teams, from AI-driven shifts in global supply, to the real cost of building resilient risk-management strategies.  Graham discusses how transparency and agility will set the winners apart, and why procurement teams must stay close to both operational details and C-suite priorities. For procurement teams steering spend, pushing for greater optionality or navigating complex geopolitical headwinds, Graham shares strategies they can use right now. Graham also covers: Assessing hidden risks behind “healthy” inventory levels Rethinking supplier relationships to secure mission-critical data Calculating the tradeoffs and ROI of dual sourcing Navigating the impact of AI and geopolitics on future investment Links: Graham Scott on LinkedIn Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Subscribe to Art of Procurement on YouTube

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.

Between annual targets and cost-focused KPIs, procurement leaders find themselves in an impossible bind when it comes to decarbonization: they know sustainability matters, yet the very incentive structures designed to reward their performance actively undermine their decarbonization efforts.  In this episode, co-hosts Rich Ham and Philip Ideson speak with Martin Chilcott, Founder and CEO of 2 Degrees Limited and Founder of Manufacture 2030, to explore how procurement incentives could rapidly accelerate corporate decarbonization.  Martin works with global corporations across manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and automotive industries, and he's seen firsthand how carbon strategies succeed or stall based on the commercial relationship between procurement and their suppliers. Martin points out an important truth that many procurement leaders understand but struggle to quantify: "Carbon costs exist right now, even if they don't appear on your budget line." He shared concrete examples like Panama Canal disruptions and cocoa price hikes, with climate disruptions already impacting business financials.  The problem, he says, isn't awareness, but short-termism and narrow financial definitions that discourage investment. As Martin says, "If reducing emissions isn’t explicitly worth the effort financially, suppliers won’t make the effort." The way forward requires fundamental changes to how procurement defines value. By reframing total cost of ownership to explicitly include carbon, implementing longer-term contracts with carbon reduction targets, and building targeted supplier incentives, procurement can make decarbonization both profitable and achievable.   Links: Martin Chilcott on LinkedIn   Rich Ham on LinkedIn Learn more at FineTuneUs.com  

“My number one rule for being a professional procurement person is to be fair and consistent. You've got to give every supplier the same opportunity, the same amount of time, and the same pieces of information, so you've got a level playing field.” - Michael Bertalli Today's procurement teams must deliver value through strong relationships and a reputation for professionalism that extends far beyond cost savings alone. Exceptional relationship skills – both within organizations and with external suppliers – have a significant strategic impact and can dictate lasting business outcomes. In this episode, experienced procurement leader Michael Bertalli outlines exactly what it takes to build impactful relationships and project authentic professionalism.  Michael reveals practical insight on internal and external relationship strategies, explores actionable steps for deeper stakeholder collaboration, and emphasizes the nuanced art of supplier engagement. Michael also discusses: The value of fostering deeper internal collaboration with proactive, informal engagement How to navigate supplier relationships through strategic openness rather than price pressure Why utilizing strategic preparation and research is procurement’s key relationship-building tool How to establish and sustain an ethical, professional image through consistency and fairness Ways to strengthen relationships with suppliers through transparent and valuable feedback Links: Michael Bertalli on LinkedIn Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Subscribe to Art of Procurement on YouTube  

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.

“During COVID, we went from just in time to just in case. Unfortunately, now supply chains have to factor in risk mitigation. Finding alternative sources of supply might be a little more pricey, but it reduces the risk.” - Alan Arcand, Chief Economist at Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters Economic uncertainty and tariff volatility continue to shape procurement strategies and supply chain decisions across North America. As businesses grapple with unpredictable policy shifts, the need to interpret nuanced economic signals accurately has become critical to maintaining stable operations and safeguarding organizational profitability. To decode these trends and recommend timely strategies, Philip Ideson spoke with Alan Arcand, Chief Economist at Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, at the Supply Chain Canada National Conference.  In this conversation, Alan highlights key factors procurement leaders should monitor, including the inflation implications of tariff decisions, investment behaviors influenced by economic uncertainty, and the profound impact all of this has on manufacturing sectors, particularly automotive. Alan also discusses: How to navigate conflicting economic indicators in the U.S. to improve procurement foresight Understanding tariff-driven supply chain disruptions in manufacturing sectors, particularly related to steel and aluminum Ways to adapt procurement strategies to shifting North American economic and political fluctuations Utilizing strategic diversification, including nearshoring and friendshoring, to mitigate risk Links: Alan Arcand on LinkedIn Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Subscribe to Art of Procurement on YouTube

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.

Halfway through their 24-episode journey, the co-hosts of “Buy: The Way...To Purposeful Procurement” pause to assess what they've learned so far about how procurement has and is evolving, and, more importantly, what’s ahead for the future. In this reflective episode, Philip Ideson, Rich Ham, and Kelly Barner bring together insights from their recent conversations that confirm a troubling trend in procurement: not only are the P&L-related harms of procurement's flawed incentive structures real, they're also worsening over time. It is time for procurement to course correct.  Rich explains why by pointing out an important lesson learned from previous episodes: suppliers have figured out the game. They've learned that winning the initial deal is what matters, because procurement's incentives usually revolve around projected savings rather than actual P&L impact.  This discovery has unleashed an avalanche of post-contract margin-grabbing tactics, from billing for non-existent inventory to charging premium rates for basic services during crisis situations, that are diluting procurement value creation. This episode reveals a fundamental paradox within procurement: while they consistently report driving value in multiple ways (sustainability, risk mitigation, social impact, strategic sourcing for M&A targets), procurement is still measured almost exclusively by narrow, often dysfunctional savings definitions.  This misalignment doesn't just harm savings outcomes; it may be crippling procurement's ability to deliver value across the business. Finally, this episode sets up the series' pivot from problem diagnosis to solution exploration, as the co-hosts discuss their plans for future episodes to examine how organizations can move beyond “savings” toward comprehensive “value” metrics that more accurately reflect the depth and breadth of procurement's true contribution.   Links: Rich Ham on LinkedIn Learn more at FineTuneUs.com  

"The way we start looking at every unit of work in a workflow flips from being something that's truly human-led to something that can be increasingly human-reviewed and driven, but not necessarily initiated as a human." Nick Heinzmann, Head of Research at Zip The pressure for procurement to do more with less means innovation is no longer optional… It's necessary for survival and growth.  The game changer? Agentic AI: artificial intelligence capable of perceiving, analyzing, and taking action, all with minimal supervision. In this Art of Procurement podcast episode, Philip Ideson interviews Nick Heinzmann, Head of Research at Zip, to dive deep into real-world applications and opportunities that Agentic AI holds for procurement.  Nick demystifies this powerful technology, showcasing practical ways it is already being used to automate workflows, solve procurement headaches, and address age-old data challenges. In this episode, Nick covers: How to identify workflows ideally suited to AI-driven automation Understanding what Agentic AI is (and isn't) Procurement use cases where Agentic AI adds immediate value How to overcome traditional roadblocks like data quality concerns Links: Nick Heinzmann on LinkedIn Unleashing the Power of Generative AI in Procurement Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Subscribe to Art of Procurement on YouTube