In the recent May CPO & Executive Virtual Series hosted by SIG, we had the pleasure of welcoming esteemed speakers: Michael Koontz, Vice President of Strategic Sourcing & Business Leader at ATD Sourcing Solutions; Ruy Martins, Plant and Supply Chain Director at Urgo Medical; and Oren Salzman, Chief Procurement Officer at MetTel. The event was filled with engaging discussions and thought-provoking takeaways. Let's dive into the highlights!

Evolving Sourcing Strategies

Kicking off the day, Michael Koontz started the day with his insightful keynote presentation. He emphasized the need to think beyond contracts and understand the bigger picture of the business. Being at the decision-making table requires aligning with the company's vision and continuously educating ourselves. Plus, he shared some cool insights on using AI tools to make our sourcing processes more streamlined and efficient.

Transforming Traditional Purchasing

Next up, Ruy Martins took us on a journey of transforming traditional purchasing into strategic sourcing. He stressed the importance of taking a proactive approach, where strategy drives the company rather than being solely controlled by supply and demand. It was all about embracing Integrated Business Planning (IBP) and empowering the business to adapt and thrive. We were definitely inspired to think differently!

Unlocking Value and Streamlining Operations

Our last speaker, Oren Salzman, gave us a sneak peek into the world of MetTel. He shared invaluable insights on delivering value and going the extra mile. Oren emphasized the significance of creating a diverse environment that allows businesses to operate smoothly and optimize opportunities. We also dove into streamlining negotiation timelines, uncovering ways to make our processes more efficient. Who doesn't love a bit of optimization?

Recently, SIG had the pleasure of hosting ProcureAbility experts David Latten of Logitech, Chris Shaffer of EyeCare Partners and Adrian Dragomir of REI for the December CPO & Executive Virtual Series. It was a very engaging discussion with many thought-provoking takeaways. Let's get into it!

David Latten, Head of Procurement and Supplier Diversity & Equality at Logitech International, opened the day by discussing his organization's supplier diversity initiatives. Logitech refreshed the program in 2020 and has since expanded exponentially. For example, previously, Logitech had no Black-owned businesses within its supply chain. and have since vastly grown their vendor base to include more diverse suppliers. Logitech has a goal of having a world-class supplier diversity program in place by 2026. As he stated, " Logitech's core value is equality, and your suppliers should reflect that".

Adrian Dragomir, Head of Procurement at REI Inc., was next to present as he looked at how layoffs have affected his team, the challenges of balancing the new players in the company and how to interact with them. Adrian's approach is to let partners know that they exist to help you, not here to do your job. He then discussed how his team is now like "wolves on prey" after adjusting to the changes. Finally, he explained why it is important to take into consideration all aspects of a company when making decisions related to staffing and personnel changes. When it comes to talent, Adrian says the most important thing for his team members is to get the job done. 

Chris Shaffer, Sr. Director Procurement, Facilities & Biomedical Support at EyeCare Partners, closed the discussion by outlining his team's goals for 2023. He listed them out as:

Recently, SIG had the pleasure of hosting ProcureAbility experts Conrad Snover and Darshan Deshmukh for the December CPO & Executive Virtual Series. It was a very engaging discussion, with many thought-provoking takeaways. Let’s get into it!

Conrad, CEO at ProcureAbility, kicked off the exclusive event by explaining the team's research methodology. ProcureAbility regularly conducts research to identify future-looking trends and innovations in procurement. Their in-depth process for identifying the five bold predictions for 2030 consisted of a team of experts who hypothesized on emerging trends and then conducted in-depth research to validate that analysis. The team formulated their predictions for procurement in 2030 based on that data. Then finally, they surveyed CPOs to get feedback on those predictions, which led us to procurement on the brink of transformation.

ProcureAbility's Five Bold Predictions for the Future of Procurement

• Advanced Crowdsourcing
• Procurement Technology Acceleration
• Cognitive Computing
• Hyper Cybersecurity
• Virtual Organizational Design 

Is inflation on your mind? You’re not alone. Rising costs lead to rising overhead—and rising stress about sourcing. 

Not only is it more expensive to get crucial goods and services today, but supply chain issues and labor shortages create extensive delays. These disruptions significantly affect large and small companies' production and inventory. 

Plus, rising fuel costs mean that getting everything from hand soap to building supplies requires an even bigger financial commitment, which could be going toward marketing, R&D, or expansion.

And yet, despite all the talk about the financial impact of inflation on sourcing, there’s an important point missing. 

Inflation, at its core, isn’t really about money. It’s about uncertainty. 

This is good news because organizations that solve for uncertainty can maximize value and thrive despite economic change.

How to Mitigate Uncertainty

There are five key factors that are crucial to navigating sourcing uncertainty when inflation, supply chain issues, fuel shortages, and labor issues mean certain goods and services are in short supply.

First, companies that can see what’s available and act quickly have a significant edge. Agility and increased visibility are key competitive advantages.

So is having the right partners. Solid relationships with a variety of vetted and trusted suppliers not only make it easier to purchase what’s needed. These relationships also significantly mitigate risk, reducing the likelihood of overcharging or receiving poor-quality goods and services. 

Third, having the ability to easily participate in community buys can dramatically increase leverage, reducing costs and increasing purchasing power. 

As a procurement professional, you know that talent in procurement has been a hot topic in recent years. Here at WNS-Denali, we have seen more organizations grapple with talent issues, so we decided to dive deeper into the key talent concerns for retail companies at SIG’s Global Executive Summit a little while back.

>>Looking for a new job or to hire top procurement talent? Visit SIG's Career Network!<< 

The all-star packed panel with procurement leaders from some of the largest retail brands in the world came together to such questions as:

• How does your hiring profile differ now and why? 

• Where are you finding your talent? 

• What are you looking for in new hires? 

• Specialist or generalist, which is a better hiring strategy for your team?

Even if you work at a company beyond the retail industry, these questions and the learnings from the panel still apply to your company. As you strive to gain a competitive advantage and influence more spend strategically, refreshing your approach to talent can make a big impact. Below are the top seven creative hiring strategies that came from our panel of retail experts.

Hire from within

This classic retail trick applies to all industries. Promoting from other areas of business up into a corporate role brings a wealth of knowledge and perspective on the core business and ability to relate to stakeholders. Most importantly, it will add a level of credibility to your procurement team.