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.

“What ultimately drove all of us – leadership team, colleagues, and people in procurement – was the excitement about the future. The ability to contribute very differently to the success of the company, ultimately impacting the patient journey, is a great purpose that we have – curing and helping patients.” - Patrick Foelck, Head of Strategy & Transformation and Head of Insights & Enablement Procurement at Roche How procurement prepares for the future, one that includes accelerating digital innovation, may determine whether they have a future at all.  In this episode, Philip Ideson discusses the importance, if not existential necessity, of procurement transformation with Patrick Foelck, Head of Strategy & Transformation and Head of Insights & Enablement Procurement at Roche. As Patrick said, “There must be more than running this singular, one-dimensional process and chasing the savings as a one-dimensional outcome. I think that is also our future. If we don’t get out of it, or if we don’t build on it, procurement will be dead to an extent, or replaced by technology or by an external party.” In this episode, Patrick and Philip tackle the ‘big’ questions around the future of the procurement operating model and the role of procurement transformation in securing that future, while also discussing:  How to build the procurement operating model of the future, pulling together insights and enablement, delivery, business partnering, capabilities, and digitization Roche’s own transformation journey and what success looks like post-transformation Defining, measuring, and achieving transformation success with KPIs beyond savings Links: Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Patrick Foelck on LinkedIn

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.

“What’s interesting in financial services is that third-party risk management is very different than supplier risk management. When a financial institution looks at risk, they look at risk at the relationship level, not just at the supplier level.” - Arnaud Malardé, Director of Product Marketing, Ivalua In the highly-regulated financial services industry, effective third-party risk management is non-negotiable. It can make or break operational success, not to mention client trust. Even though avoiding risk altogether is not realistic, it doesn’t have to feel like an uphill battle.  In this episode, Kelly Barner speaks with Arnaud Malardé, Director of Product Marketing at Ivalua, and Vivek Jayaraj, Managing Director at Deloitte Consulting LLP, about how procurement can turn third-party risk management into a strategic advantage for the business.  As they explain, streamlining business practices and supporting them with well-integrated digital platforms can create the best environment for managing third-party risk and achieving successful outcomes for the business.  They also share their ideas about: What a ‘single source of truth’ for third party risk looks like in practice How to align risk management with supplier management  Best practices for leveraging AI in third-party risk management platforms Links: Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Arnaud Malardé on LinkedIn Vivek Jayaraj on LinkedIn Watch Again: Establishing a Single Source of Truth for Third Party Risk in Financial Services

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.

“You always really need to look at people, process, and technology. If you don’t look at all three and understand where you are and where you need to be in those areas, you are just going to be chasing.” - Sherry Ulsh, Director, Indirect Procurement, The Hershey Company At the CoreTrust Conference in April 2024, Philip Ideson had the opportunity to sit down with Sherry Ulsh, Director of Indirect Procurement at The Hershey Company, about a wide range of topics, including her own journey from finance to procurement, the evolving role of GPOs, and the changing skill sets required in modern procurement roles.  Sherry shared her views on the importance of supplier relationship management and stakeholder management, both of which are reflected in her belief that procurement’s value and influence in the business are best realized when they achieve a balance of people, process, and technology. In this episode, Sherry also shares her views on:  How to define procurement’s value proposition across different industries and organizational models The evolving role of GPOs, and how utilization of the GPO model today differs from in the past Shaping internal and external perceptions of procurement’s value, and how, for example, CFOs and other C-suite leaders can influence procurement’s perceived value beyond cost savings Links: Sherry Ulsh on LinkedIn Subscribe to This Week in 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.

“Sustainability is at the top of the agenda for businesses, because now they have to demonstrate exactly what their carbon footprint is and demonstrate with complete credibility and transparency exactly what they’re doing.” - Melanie Blackmore, Founder & CEO Blackmores (UK) Ltd and Carbonology Ltd When Melanie Blackmore, Founder & CEO Blackmores (UK) Ltd and Carbonology Ltd, says that she is deeply passionate and “in love with” standards, she readily admits not everyone will be able to relate to her enthusiasm. But, applying ISO (International Organization for Standardization) can give organizations, and specifically procurement teams, the direction they need to ensure quality, safety, efficiency, and even compliance across industries and for both goods and services.  The stakes can be high, but the benefits of implementing ISO standards are often even higher.  In this episode, Philip Ideson explores the ins and outs of an ISO framework and how it can help a business improve their processes by following a set of internationally recognized best practices.  They discuss: An overview of current ISO standards and how they have evolved How organizations can apply ISO standards to achieve their sustainability goals The differences between standards and certifications and how this impacts implementation  Links: Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Melanie Blackmore on LinkedIn  Visit IsologyHub to learn more about how to achieve ISO compliance Melanie’s Book on Amazon: Net Zero Planner: Design a Net Carbon Zero plan for your business in 90 days Blackmores (UK) Ltd Carbonology Ltd  

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.

“I think category management is great fun because you have the freedom to do things. It’s not following a rote process. It’s using structure to be creative. I think that’s the great benefit of it.” - Mark Webb, Managing Director at Future Purchasing For many in procurement, category management is “old hat.” Some even assume that widespread adoption and integration of category management structures and processes within the business are non-issues in 2024. They see category management as a mountain that has been scaled, and now procurement just needs to sit back and enjoy the view. When we look more closely, however, there is still significant room for improvement in category management strategy and for expanded scope of implementation throughout the business.  In this episode, Philip Ideson welcomes back Mark Webb, Managing Director at Future Purchasing, for a deep dive into the current state of category management, including where we’ve been and how far we have left to go. Mark also shares the results of the 2024 Global Category Management Report, a large, comprehensive study Future Purchasing conducts in partnership with Henley Business School.  They discuss the importance of stakeholder involvement, the need for more consistency and effective communication, the distinctions between category management and strategic sourcing, and the delicate balance between internal expertise versus external resources in implementation. Philip and Mark also explore: Why 80 percent of stakeholders don’t fully understand their role in category management, and what procurement can do to fix that Practical advice to streamline category planning and improve stakeholder engagement The ideal model for category management when considering big versus small teams Links: Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Read the 2024 Global Category Management Report Mark Webb on LinkedIn The Differentiators of Category Management Leaders & Followers, w/ Mark Webb