Art of Procurement

"It's really nice to have a bigger purpose and actually see the communities that you are changing, the lives that you are altering and impacting through the work that you do." - Andrew Savage, Global Lead: Procurement Excellence at MTN No one would expect leading an award-winning procurement center of excellence across Africa and the Middle East to be easy, but when you're bringing goods or services to hard-to-access geographies or communities, it gives an even deeper meaning to the value you are bringing to the business and entire populations of people. In this AOP podcast episode, Philip Ideson welcomes Andrew Savage, Global Lead: Procurement Excellence at MTN, to talk about his experiences building and leading a large procurement center of excellence across some of the most challenging geographic regions in the world and how that experience has informed his sense of procurement's value creation. In the episode, they discuss: How geographical and geopolitical considerations add both complexity and opportunity to procurement's role The key ingredients for building a procurement center of excellence even in challenging global environments How the principles of entrepreneurship, flexibility, and agility help transform procurement into a profit center for the business Links: Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Andrew Savage 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.

"If our experts succeed, if the processes we build succeed, it will train the client's team in what best in class approaches look like." - Philip Ideson, Founder & Managing Director at Art of Procurement Art of Procurement is excited to announce the official launch of SpendPros, a new on-demand consultancy that connects businesses with the expertise and market intelligence they need to improve the management of high impact spend categories without the cost and complexity of traditional consultancies. In this special episode, Art of Procurement Founder Philip Ideson and Kelly Barner, Head of Content and Operations, introduce the new SpendPros model, explain the inspiration behind its creation, and break down how it can help procurement make an even greater impact on the business. They'll discuss: A vision for the future of the procurement operating model and how SpendPros fits into that ecosystem as a key supportive partner The importance of having access to subject matter expertise and real-time market intelligence to elevate the impact of the procurement community How SpendPros differs from traditional consultancies by offering on-demand, time-bound category management support, transformation guidance, and training to level up your internal team's expertise Links: Visit the SpendPros website Philip Ideson on LinkedIn Kelly Barner 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.

"There is always room for negotiation around IT spend. The worst they can do is say 'no,' but at least you are making a solid case to improve this contract and your spend as much as possible." - Logan Furbee, Senior SaaS Consultant at Vendr Most companies are facing rising IT costs and an increasingly crowded supplier marketplace. This means procurement has multiple hurdles to overcome on their path to eliminating SaaS spend waste - driving optimal performance, efficiency, and transparency with technology suppliers. To explore tactics for overcoming the most common challenges with sourcing and managing IT spend, Philip Ideson and Kelly Barner spoke with Logan Furbee, a Senior SaaS Consultant at Vendr. Logan has negotiated hundreds of SaaS contracts in her own right, and is a strong advocate for transparency as the key antidote to problematic IT spend. In this episode, they discuss: How to solve two of procurement's most important sources of IT spend waste: unused licenses and redundant solutions Top pricing trends and cost drivers for 2024 in IT spend, and how to negotiate the best pricing for the business Navigating complex stakeholder relationships without sacrificing transparency or undermining the goals of the business Links: Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Logan Furbee on LinkedIn Watch Again: Driving the Best Business Outcomes From IT Providers

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.

"Nemawashi is generally something we do on a yearly basis. Is it tedious? Yes. Is it easy? No. Does it take a lot of time? Yes. Is it worth it? Hell yes!" - Réda Guiri, Head of Group Outsourcing & Procurement, Toyota Insurance Services Europe Everyone knows that getting stakeholder buy-in is critical for procurement, but it is not always straightforward – especially in large stakeholder networks paralyzed by red tape, over-thinking, and 'decision-by-committee.' Even when procurement does get stakeholder sign-off at some level, expectations and goals can still remain unmet when the final product or service is delivered. In this episode, Philip Ideson speaks with Réda Guiri, Head of Group Outsourcing and Procurement at Toyota Insurance Services Europe, about the nemawashi method of consensus building. He shares his view about how this approach is often better than the methods procurement has traditionally employed to gain buy-in. Philip and Réda discuss: What the nemawashi method is, how to implement it, and the benefits it can bring to the procurement process and to the business in general How nemawashi can help procurement navigate the difference between 'agreement' and 'alignment' in a large, complex stakeholder network Why nemawashi is hard work for procurement, but completely worth the effort in the end Links: Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Réda Guiri 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.

"Given all the things procurement is doing, it does seem that a lot of their work tends to go unnoticed or be undervalued or is boiled down to that one bottom-line savings number. The truth is that procurement is involved with a lot." - Vishal Patel, VP Product Marketing, Ivalua Even though big events like the pandemic, inflation, global supply chain disruptions, and geopolitical conflict have reminded everyone how relevant procurement is to the organization, the full value procurement offers is still often misunderstood and underestimated. Why is procurement so frequently undervalued when their impact can be felt across the business, not just to cost or risk management but also sustainability, product innovation, supply continuity, and business strategy? To understand how shifting mindsets around procurement's value contribution are redefining their role in the business, Philip Ideson and Kelly Barner spoke with Chris Sawchuk, Principal and Global Procurement Advisory Practice Leader at The Hackett Group, and Vishal Patel, Vice President of Product Marketing at Ivalua. In the episode, Chris and Vishal discuss: New opportunities and approaches to performance measurement for procurement's value contribution beyond cost The deepening value of risk management and the need for nuanced approaches to risk beyond traditional metrics The evolving role of generative AI and emerging technologies as procurement's "co-pilots" in delivering value Links: Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Chris Sawchuk on LinkedIn Vishal Patel on LinkedIn Watch Again: Redefining Procurement's Value and Shifting Mindsets Read: Generative AI and the Future of Procurement Value Creation

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.