Recently, SIG had the pleasure of hosting AArete experts Tyler Higgins, Gaurav Joshi and John Marchisin and Duane Elmore, Chief Procurement Officer at The Pennsylvania State University for the July CPO & Executive Virtual Series. It was a very engaging discussion that lasted nearly two hours with tons of excellent takeaways. Let’s get into it!
Adapting Your Supply Chain for Diversity and Sustainability
The team kicked off the day discussing what has driven the rise of corporate ESG priorities. There are seven areas that they highlighted to explain this increase:
Company Culture
Employee Engagement
Investor Activism
Policy & Regulation
Access to Capital
Financial Benefits
Consumer Demand
These competing priorities oftentimes lead to many different approaches to accomplishing ESG initiatives. The Aarete team then walked through different approaches and experiences of ESG initiatives. They also shared successful diversity & sustainability programs. From Starbucks to The University of Penn, there are numerous ways to have success.
How to Transform the Buying Process
Companies across all industries are setting ESG goals, and procurement leaders are at the forefront of executing those goals. Procurement leaders must balance these goals along with supply chain continuity during an inflationary environment. Having a ESG framework and a supplier diversity strategy is fundamental to transforming the buying process. Most organizations are challenged to find the right suppliers that can meet sustainability and supplier diversity goals. By incorporating KPIs for procurement, suppliers and adoption, you set the ESG goals up for long-term success.
Have you ever heard the old saying, "when everything is said and done, there is more said than done?"
How about “everyone talks about the weather, but no one does anything about it?”
The common theme through the above examples of observational wisdom is the suggestion that talking about something is not the same as doing something about it.
Based on experience, I would not be off base in suggesting that this same theme applies to the subject of supply chain resiliency. In other words, in the world of procurement and strategic sourcing, the importance of resilient supply chains has been a point of discussion for some time.
However, what the COVID-19 pandemic and today’s increasing geopolitical instability have taught us is that our fruitful discussions in the past did not necessarily translate into meaningful actions and outcomes today.
Didn’t See It Coming?
When considering the significant disruptions in our global supply chains over the past two years – the most recent involving baby formula, we must ask ourselves how we got here. Didn’t we see it coming?
Let's face it, before COVID-19, how many of us would have predicted that our supply chains would, in some cases, snap like a rubber band stretched beyond its level of tolerance. Sure, we knew there were potential vulnerabilities in our supply and demand networks, but who expected such far-reaching, universal failures? By the state of things today, very few saw what was coming, and even fewer believed that we weren't ready for it.
Why were we so confident?
The problem wasn’t a lack of awareness regarding the importance of having resiliency and agility in our supply chains. We knew it was important. The issue was in our approach, or better yet, our interpretation.
Mary Zampino, Vice President – Content, Research & Analytics
In this second article from the 2022 SIG Procurement Technology Summit Keynote Series, we will tap into the expertise of an esteemed panel of industry leaders who will share their experiences with mobilizing their respective organizations' ESG initiatives to achieve progressive outcomes. Make particular note of the words progressive outcomes because implementing and maintaining an ESG strategy is not a destination but an ongoing journey that requires commitment and the agility to respond to ever-changing marketplace realities.
Rather than just a generalized or conceptual discussion on ESG, these individuals delivered personal and detailed accounts regarding the successful transformation of their supply chains to align with social imperatives and financial objectives. In other words, during the discussion, they effectively "blazed" a trail of understanding that can serve as a helpful roadmap for the successful implementation of your organization's ESG strategy.
No Longer An Option
In the recent Oliver Wyman article, Powering Your Sustainability Strategy Through Procurement, it is clear that the proactive implementation of a successful ESG strategy is not an option for organizations – not that it ever was.
The authors specifically talk about how "For many years, calls have been getting louder for business leaders to pay more attention to their organization's environmental, societal, and governance (ESG) strategy."
Fueled by "intensifying pressure" from all directions, including customers, employees, investors, and governments, good intentions must now materialize into tangible outcomes sooner rather than later.
Our deepest belief is that the procurement functions, by connecting with stakeholders and creating coalitions along the entire supply chain, are uniquely positioned to accelerate transformations and deliver the impact promised by most corporations on environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG).
SIG and Oliver Wyman have developed a survey to assess the current maturity level of Procurement organizations globally, across various industries and geographies, to highlight the best practices and identify the upcoming challenges for CPOs.
Specifically, this survey examines the following criteria to determine your maturity in sustainable procurement:
Convert ESG-related company ambitions into strategic procurement objectives
Build a robust baseline on each ESG dimension
Embed ESG in category strategy
Explicitly state your goals and pledge to suppliers
Embark, engage, and challenge suppliers
Team up with partners to share ESG-related best practices
Champion change internally
Accelerate change externally
Reinvent procurement performance monitoring towards ESG
Embed sustainability in the core procurement processes
Upskill teams to better engage suppliers on sustainability
Embed ESG in procurement data and digital asset strategy
Share your insights with SIG and Oliver Wyman on our new Sustainable Procurement Maturity Survey!
I can't believe it's the end of the year again, and what a year it has been. 2021 presented many new challenges. We had to navigate carefully and, at times, change direction. However, when the SIG community told us what they needed, we forged ahead and rolled out some amazing virtual and in-person events to SIG members to help them navigate the disruptions.
As we commemorate SIG’s 30th Anniversary Celebration, we want to take a moment to thank our members for making SIG a fun, vibrant community of practitioners, critical thinkers, problem solvers, thought leaders, executives, and industry leaders. Our members make the magic come alive. SIG’s achievements over the past 30 years are the results of the combined contributions from every individual member, cheers to future successes and past glories!
Here's a special message from our President and CEO, Dawn Tiura, about SIG's past, present and future.
Thanks to the vast input of SIG's member network, here are the bright spots and successes we collectively achieved this year.
Kristen Jordeth is the Director of Procurement Product Strategy at SAP. At SIG's Fall Global Executive Summit, Kristen will highlight how the ability to survive future disruptions will be dependent on a companies ability to manage and respond to real-time risk information about third parties transacting with the business.
What is your role and what are your day-to-day responsibilities?
I am the Director of Procurement Product Strategy focusing on future innovations within Supplier Management and the SAP Business Network. My day-to-day responsibilities are to ensure our solutions are addressing the future needs of our customers.
What does Procurement 3.0 mean to you?
Procurement 3.0 means to make the day-to-day procurement process more efficient, transparent and streamlined. Removing tactical procurement that is traditionally done in a spreadsheet or via lots of paperwork and replacing it with technology.
How have you and your team innovated through Procurement’s new “seat at the table”?
Procurement’s new “seat at the table” has validated the need for intelligent enterprise solutions. With Procurement now involved in executive planning, it is important for the procurement processes to connect to all other business processes. At Sapphire this year we announced the SAP Business Network which brings together our SAP Ariba Network, SAP Logistics Network and SAP Asset Network together to expand transparency and enable stronger collaboration.
There is no denying that procurement must change. We can sense it in what our executive team asks of us, what our supply partners are suggesting, and the increasing role of technology in everyday procurement workflows. In addition, the business has recognized what we are capable of, which has opened the door to increased insight and influence.
Suppose procurement leaders and teams are going to be ready to make the journey ahead. In that case, we must carefully design our desired future state, leverage the resources currently available to us, including automation and broader access to talent, by tapping a virtual workforce.
ProcureAbility's vision for the future of procurement is an organization that is viewed as a partner to the business, generates value beyond traditional measurements, and leverages technology and process optimization to increase strategic focus. In the following, we will answer two of the most pressing questions: What precise mix of talent will be required? What processes and technology are needed to enable this future-state organization?
Talent: What precise mix of talent will be required?
With the rise of workforce virtualization, the sky's the limit for building out the future team. Before defining the combination of talent needed for in-house resources, it is essential to identify their responsibilities. A standard pillar of high-performing organizations, even today, is the separation of strategic and tactical activities.
The concept of sustainable sourcing, also known as green purchasing or social sourcing, is nothing new. Sustainable sourcing is impacting nearly every area of corporate business and the consumer’s mindset. Everything from sourcing materials, talent attraction and consumer purchasing habits is changing because of sustainable sourcing growth. However, the term gets thrown around in the procurement industry quite often and is often misunderstood or misused. So, here’s a guide with all the basics you need to know about sustainable sourcing.
WHAT IS SUSTAINABLE SOURCING
First and foremost, we have to define the term. Sustainable sourcing is the integration of social, ethical and environmental performance factors into the process of selecting suppliers. It includes purchasing sustainably preferable products and services (products made from recycled or remanufactured materials), as well as green purchasing guidelines that might pertain to certain products or commodities.
This month we kick-off SIG’s Procurement Technology Summit, have a host of exciting industry research and training to keep you up to date with Procurement’s rebirth.
Procurement Technology Summit
The 2021 Procurement Technology Summit will pioneer a new era for sourcing leaders and their teams to transform the future of procurement. Come prepared to engage and learn from the brightest industry experts, connect through AI-powered speed networking, and experience live solution deep-dives from best-in-class providers.
This year’s agenda includes a really unique line-up of keynote speakers who are covering key Procurement topics like design thinking, diversity & inclusion, the future of technologies and building a high-performing team.
We’re inviting SIG’s buy-side members and their ENTIRE TEAM to attend. Yes, you read that right! Whether you’re a team of two or 200, everyone on your team gets to attend for free!
The Summit will take place May 4 – 6 and will be 100% online, so you can attend sessions as it fits your schedule. You do not want to miss this event, so register today and get ready to be impressed!
Just last month, when thousands of people took time away from their day-to-day, to gather to focus on Sustainable Procurement at the 2021 Sustain event. There was an air of anticipation, with a whiff of panic. The 5000+ registrants and 3000+ attendees (over twice the number from last year and ten times the number just five years ago) are a testament to how Covid and all the calamity of 2020 has moved the supply chain into a very bright spotlight. A year as disastrous as 2020 demands a deep strategic rethink of how we approach, value, build and optimize our value chains, with an ESG/Sustainability lens.
Procurement, supply chain and sustainability leaders alike are groping for guidance on how they can rebuild better and more resilient supply chains in the face of such massive uncertainty. There is a visceral passion and ambition by the sustainable procurement community to reinvent. But along with this spirit was an unsettling mix of uncertainty, anxiety, and trepidation about HOW to do it right.
Four Ways we Must RETHINK Supply Chain
We see four key factors that we must RETHINK about supply chain sustainability, which sets a framework and direction for launching or accelerating a sustainable procurement program to meet the needs of the New Normal.
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 (1).png?mzZ54bqabXh5qcMg4C_Pw08UtNkJLvaf= "Is Your Supply Chain ESG Ready?")
 (1).png "Sustainable Procurement Maturity")
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 (1).png "Rethink and Rebuild for the New Normal")
Recap of CPO & Executive Virtual Series with Aarete
Recently, SIG had the pleasure of hosting AArete experts Tyler Higgins, Gaurav Joshi and John Marchisin and Duane Elmore, Chief Procurement Officer at The Pennsylvania State University for the July CPO & Executive Virtual Series. It was a very engaging discussion that lasted nearly two hours with tons of excellent takeaways. Let’s get into it!
Adapting Your Supply Chain for Diversity and Sustainability
The team kicked off the day discussing what has driven the rise of corporate ESG priorities. There are seven areas that they highlighted to explain this increase:
These competing priorities oftentimes lead to many different approaches to accomplishing ESG initiatives. The Aarete team then walked through different approaches and experiences of ESG initiatives. They also shared successful diversity & sustainability programs. From Starbucks to The University of Penn, there are numerous ways to have success.
How to Transform the Buying Process
Companies across all industries are setting ESG goals, and procurement leaders are at the forefront of executing those goals. Procurement leaders must balance these goals along with supply chain continuity during an inflationary environment. Having a ESG framework and a supplier diversity strategy is fundamental to transforming the buying process. Most organizations are challenged to find the right suppliers that can meet sustainability and supplier diversity goals. By incorporating KPIs for procurement, suppliers and adoption, you set the ESG goals up for long-term success.