What is your role and what are your day-to-day responsibilities?
I wear a lot of hats! I advise practitioner advisory clients on their digital procurement (and broader transformation) initiatives. I particularly like working with Center of Excellence leads! We also serve technology providers and consultants, and I help out with thought leadership (e.g., webinars) and strategy. I lead a team of analysts, but also personally help cover the Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) space and broader areas in supply chain, risk management, etc.
We’re evangelizing a concept called “Commercial Value Management” that is basically “CLM on steroids.” Finally, I’m responsible for our “Solution Map” provider intelligence benchmark and other market intelligence and product development efforts, and have been spending a lot of time videoconferencing like everyone else!
What is something that you wish more people knew about sourcing and procurement?
It’s so, so much more than cost cutting and doing deals, but rather, about intelligently externalizing the business to safely tap the power of (increasingly digital) supply markets to maximize enterprise value. Yeah, there’s a lot of words in that statement, but it’s true! It’s the ultimate cross-functional and cross-discipline function.
In your opinion, what are 3 skills that sourcing and procurement professionals of tomorrow must have?
The skills that are still required today: business domain knowledge, stakeholder/relationship management, supply management (strategic cost management, negotiations, SRM, SCM, risk management, etc.), market intelligence and change management.
Digital: AI, optimization, S2P tech apps, analytics, RPA, big data, process mining, agile development, MDM, UX/engagement/adoption, knowledge management, “XaaS,” platforms (e.g., low-code/no-code), ecosystems, architecture, advanced social media.
As finance savvy strategists, knowledge of concepts like portfolio theory, behavioral economics, game theory, innovation/ideation methods, zero-based budgeting, etc.
What does the future of sourcing and procurement look like to you?
Busy, but like the old 80s song goes, “The future’s so bright I gotta wear shades!”
Explore more interviews with expert practitioners and executives on our blog.
Pierre Mitchell, Chief Research Officer, Spend Matters
Pierre leads procurement research and IP development at Spend Matters, and is the chief architect of the firm's industry-leading SolutionMapSM framework. He has 30 years of industry, advisory, and research experience and is a recognized digital procurement transformation expert specializing in advanced supply processes, practices, metrics, and enabling digital tools and services. Previously, Pierre led procurement research at The Hackett Group, and also coined the term "guided buying" in his role as the industry's first procurement technology market analyst at AMR Research (now part of Gartner Group).
What is your role and what are your day-to-day responsibilities?
I wear a lot of hats! I advise practitioner advisory clients on their digital procurement (and broader transformation) initiatives. I particularly like working with Center of Excellence leads! We also serve technology providers and consultants, and I help out with thought leadership (e.g., webinars) and strategy. I lead a team of analysts, but also personally help cover the Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) space and broader areas in supply chain, risk management, etc.
We’re evangelizing a concept called “Commercial Value Management” that is basically “CLM on steroids.” Finally, I’m responsible for our “Solution Map” provider intelligence benchmark and other market intelligence and product development efforts, and have been spending a lot of time videoconferencing like everyone else!
What is something that you wish more people knew about sourcing and procurement?
It’s so, so much more than cost cutting and doing deals, but rather, about intelligently externalizing the business to safely tap the power of (increasingly digital) supply markets to maximize enterprise value. Yeah, there’s a lot of words in that statement, but it’s true! It’s the ultimate cross-functional and cross-discipline function.
In your opinion, what are 3 skills that sourcing and procurement professionals of tomorrow must have?
The skills that are still required today: business domain knowledge, stakeholder/relationship management, supply management (strategic cost management, negotiations, SRM, SCM, risk management, etc.), market intelligence and change management.
Digital: AI, optimization, S2P tech apps, analytics, RPA, big data, process mining, agile development, MDM, UX/engagement/adoption, knowledge management, “XaaS,” platforms (e.g., low-code/no-code), ecosystems, architecture, advanced social media.
As finance savvy strategists, knowledge of concepts like portfolio theory, behavioral economics, game theory, innovation/ideation methods, zero-based budgeting, etc.
What does the future of sourcing and procurement look like to you?
Busy, but like the old 80s song goes, “The future’s so bright I gotta wear shades!”
Explore more interviews with expert practitioners and executives on our blog.
Pierre leads procurement research and IP development at Spend Matters, and is the chief architect of the firm's industry-leading SolutionMapSM framework. He has 30 years of industry, advisory, and research experience and is a recognized digital procurement transformation expert specializing in advanced supply processes, practices, metrics, and enabling digital tools and services. Previously, Pierre led procurement research at The Hackett Group, and also coined the term "guided buying" in his role as the industry's first procurement technology market analyst at AMR Research (now part of Gartner Group).