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Dana Small

Founder / CEO at Ms Category Management

California, United States

MBA from a top school with over 13 years of experience in finance, with 10 supporting the sales and marketing function including FP&A and Global Category Management Procurement/Sourcing. Over 17 years of experience within the Pharmaceutical / Biotech (BioPharma) Industry. Excellent communicator and innovator that collaborates cross functionally with business partners and has the ability to convey complex or sensitive business issues with Sr. Management.

Follow me on wordpress: https://mscategorymanagement.com/

Available For: Advising, Authoring, Consulting, Influencing, Speaking
Travels From: San Francisco, CA
Speaking Topics: Category Management, Procurement, Sourcing, Sales and Marketing Support, BioPharma, Building a Brand

Dana Small Points
Academic 40
Author 258
Influencer 135
Speaker 64
Entrepreneur 120
Total 617

Points based upon Thinkers360 patent-pending algorithm.

Thought Leader Profile

Portfolio Mix

Company Information

Company Type: Company
Minimum Project Size: N/A
Average Hourly Rate: N/A
Number of Employees: 1-10
Company Founded Date: Undisclosed
Media Experience: 5 Years
Last Media Interview: 10/02/2019

Areas of Expertise

AI 30.05
Analytics
Business Strategy 32.06
Change Management 30.12
COVID19 30.80
CRM 30.08
Culture 30.08
Customer Experience 30.04
Digital Disruption 30.29
Digital Transformation 30.12
Diversity and Inclusion 31.28
Future of Work 30.14
Leadership 31.43
Management 32.48
Marketing 31.56
Mental Health 30.07
Personal Branding 30.21
Procurement 46.00
Project Management 30.18
Public Relations 30.10
Risk Management 30.12
Sales 30.10
Social 30.44
Supply Chain 37.20
Sustainability 30.17

Industry Experience

Pharmaceuticals
Retail

Publications & Experience

1 Academic Award
Executive MBA
Krannert University
May 15, 2007
Purdue University Executive MBA - 2007

See publication

Tags: Leadership, Management, Procurement

2 Academic Whitepapers
Building an In-House Agency in a Mid-Sized BioPharma Company
Ms Category Management
July 26, 2020
White paper on best practices for building an in-house agency

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Tags: Marketing, Procurement, Supply Chain

Managing Advertising Agencies Throughout a Product's Lifecycle
Slideshare on LinkedIn
March 19, 2020
Whitepaper on Slideshare

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Tags: Business Strategy, Procurement, Supply Chain

2 Advisory Board Memberships
Women in Procurement ( Global Council for the Advancement of )
Michael Shaw
December 05, 2019
Board member starting in 2020

See publication

Tags: Procurement, Leadership

ProcureCon Marketing Advisory Board
ProcureCon Marketing
November 20, 2019
Gave time to help support the production of the event.

See publication

Tags: Procurement

210 Article/Blogs
The Recruiting Racket
Supposed Status
December 15, 2025
I will give it to them; it was pretty convincing at first. The super flattering message telling me how I’m a perfect fit for a role that could be a promotion. A nice increase in salary range… and just enough urgency to feel exciting. But then came the plot twist.

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Tags: Marketing, Procurement, Supply Chain

Ghosting: From ‘No-Show’ to ‘No-Reply’, the New Age of Bad Office Etiquette
Import from wordpress feed
September 18, 2025

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Tags: Procurement

Empowering Success – Procurement’s Real Purpose
Import from wordpress feed
September 01, 2025

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Tags: Procurement

7 Insider Tips to Embrace the Joy of the California Workplace Culture
Import from wordpress feed
August 28, 2025
Experience the vibrant California workplace culture and get ready to have a hella good time while joining a community unlike any other.

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Tags: Procurement

The Challenger Effect – The Ability to Ignore Facts and Make Disastrous Decisions
Import from wordpress feed
January 03, 2024
What is the Challenger Effect? Simply put it's giving someone in the position of power all the information they need to make the right decision, and yet they still decide against it.

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Tags: Procurement

The ULTIMATE Preferred Procurement Betrayal – The Story of a Scandalous Supplier and Their Supposed Status
Import from wordpress feed
November 15, 2023

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Tags: Procurement

BEWARE The Ides of March is Coming! You May Want to Run to the Bathroom to Hide.
Import from wordpress feed
February 16, 2023

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Tags: Procurement

Five Obstacles with Management Consulting Spend and the Simple Solutions to Crack their Code!
MS Category Management
June 23, 2022
The first major problem in this category of spend is that everybody thinks everything is consulting. Breaking news, management consulting is not a catch-all. Just because they are a service and managing things for you, does not make them a consultant. Nope.

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Tags: Procurement, Management, Project Management

I am afraid to open my inbox on a daily basis. What is with the influx in the crazy amount of emails lately?
Import from wordpress feed
June 13, 2022

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Tags: Procurement

I am afraid to open my inbox on a daily basis. What is with the influx in the crazy amount of emails lately?
MS Category Management
June 12, 2022
On a daily basis. With no end in sight. Okay, who is ready to go to work today! YEA! Wait, where did everybody go? Happy Monday to you all!

I always wonder how they worked back in the day without email. How amazing would it be not to be tied down to be able to do work 24/7?

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Tags: Procurement, Project Management

Epic Purchasing Battles – Business Vs. Procurement
MS Category Management
May 26, 2022
I must be getting old. Or maybe I’ve been in the Pharma-Biotech Industry for too long. Maybe it’s the life of working in a support function. No matter the cause, there has to be an explanation for this.

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Tags: Procurement

Cold-Email Fails that Will Make You Want to Cringe!
Import from wordpress feed
May 04, 2022
Cold-emails can be easy to mess up! So don't make these easy mistakes.

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Tags: Procurement

Cold-Email Fails that Will Make You Want to Cringe!
MS Category Management
April 29, 2022
Cold-emails can be easy to mess up! So don't make these easy mistakes.

Cold email campaigns (the bad ones) are annoying, am I right?

In a previous blog, I talk about writing a cold-email that people will want to respond to.

Based on the responses from this post, I thought it would be fun to share a few of the fails I’ve seen when it comes to cold emails.

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Tags: Marketing, Change Management, Project Management

Are YOU on Procurement’s Naughty List?!
MS Category Management
December 07, 2021
Oh tis the season to buy things without procurement’s involvement, because why not? Who cares if procurement has a naughty list or not!

It’s not like we serve some kind of purpose for the company. Or even provide valuable insights about the marketplace and industry to help you make educated decisions. Or try to protect you from terrible contracting terms.

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement

Don’t Miss out on MarPro! Check Out the First 10 Episodes NOW!
Import from wordpress feed
December 02, 2021

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Tags: Procurement

Emails Rant. How many days will it take to get a response from a busy coworker? 2,697 aggravating days later, I’m still counting!
MS Category Management
October 28, 2021
It’s been a long time since I’ve had something rant about, but I’m about over this whole ‘never get back to me’ emails thing. I get that people are busy, and have their own agendas.

But let’s face it, unless you are in the C-Suite or a SVP/EVP, you’ve got time to respond within the next week or two. It’s not like I’m asking for a miracle here.

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing

Emails Rant. How many days will it take to get a response from a busy coworker? 2,697 aggravating days later, I’m still counting!
Import from wordpress feed
October 27, 2021

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Tags: Procurement

Run to your local store and order your Christmas presents now! NO SERIOUSLY. Major Supply Chain disruptions are on the Horizon!
MS Category Management
October 15, 2021
Now if you’re like me and aren’t in a industry that has been majorly affected by the supply chain issues and shortages, then you probably think I’m vastly over exaggerating.

Or if you are in an industry that’s impacted, you may think – well it couldn’t get any worse! But I’m going to take a gamble and say both those positions are probably wrong. Just check out the video above to understand the compounding factors that will turn this ugly in 2022.

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement

A Fun Guide to Marketing Jargon (For Non-marketing Professionals)
MS Category Management
October 06, 2021
It’s been awhile since I’ve last posted, so I thought it might be time to come back with a fun blog. I mean, what really do we all have better to do then to take some time out and learn new things!

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Tags: CRM, Procurement, Marketing

Hiring someone right before you give your two weeks notice – parting gift or a single finger salute? You decide!
Import from wordpress feed
October 05, 2021

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Tags: Procurement

Hiring someone right before you give your two weeks notice – parting gift or a single finger salute? You decide!
MS Category Management
October 05, 2021
Would you hire someone if you knew you were going to leave? Do you think it’s a parting gift or more of the single finger salute?

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement, Project Management

It’s Not You, It’s Me. I Swear. The Vicious Supplier Dating Game.
MS Category Management
July 15, 2021
I’m sure I’ve mentioned it before. Maybe I haven’t. Either way, there is a direct parallel between dating and supplier relationships.

When you think about the similarities, there are too many to count.

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement, Management

Don’t make this ONE HUGE mistake when executing a RFP with a long-term Agency partner
Import from wordpress feed
June 29, 2021
Whether you’d like to admit it or not, we’ve all made mistakes over the life of our careers. We’re all human; and, it’s how we learn and grow to become better professionals in any industry. Sometimes we just fall into them when jumping into a new position, or at least that’s what happened to me.

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement

How to Write a Cold Email that Procurement and Business Professionals Will Respond to!
MS Category Management
April 26, 2021
If you are in procurement, you get so many cold emails from suppliers looking for business, it becomes very easy just to delete them all. It can become the bane of your existence.

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Tags: Procurement

Marketing and Supplier Diversity – Building a Coordinated Approach (3 Part Video Series)
MS Category Management
March 11, 2021
Supplier diversity is a key goal for many corporations’ marketing departments despite all the roadblocks they encounter. Check out this three-part video series on Marketing and Supplier Diversity. Along with new technologies and best practices that simplify the diversity efforts.

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing

5 Conference Publications
The ABC's of Building Your Personal Brand
Slide Share
September 30, 2020
Published Keynote presentation for all to see / view.

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Tags: Marketing, Procurement, Supply Chain

In-House Agency Creation and Management.
Ms Category Management
September 01, 2020
Published on Slideshare for public as ANA website is members only.

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing

BioPharma Business Case on Building An-Inhouse Agency
Ana.net
July 15, 2020
Password protected for members only, the slide deck is published on the ANA's website.

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Tags: Marketing, Procurement, Supply Chain

Managing Advertising Agencies Throughout a Product's Lifecycle
Slideshare on LinkedIn
March 19, 2020
ProcureCon Marketing Presentation on Slide share

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Tags: Business Strategy, Procurement, Supply Chain

Category Sourcing Strategy Template
Slideshare on LinkedIn
March 19, 2020
Published on Slideshare

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Tags: Business Strategy, Procurement, Supply Chain

4 Founders
MarPro Podcast Co-Host
Buzzsprouts, Wordpress
May 30, 2021
Co-Host of the Marpro marketing procurement podcast

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Tags: Marketing, Procurement, Supply Chain

Ms Category Management
Ms Category Mangement / LinkedIn
January 01, 2020
LinkedIn Company

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Tags: Leadership, Procurement, Supply Chain

Category Management Mondays
Ms Category Management
March 04, 2019
Weekly protips on category management

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Tags: Business Strategy, Procurement, Supply Chain

Ms Category Management Website/Blog
Ms Category Management
November 17, 2018
Created website and blog

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Tags: Leadership, Procurement, Supply Chain

6 Influencer Awards
Top 50 PRocurement Thought Leaders
Thinkers 360
April 12, 2020
Number 3 of 50 on Thinkers 360

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Tags: Leadership, Procurement

100 Women B2B Thought Leaders to Follow in 2020
Thinkers360
March 04, 2020
B2B Thought Leader for Women

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Tags: Business Strategy, Diversity and Inclusion, Leadership

Thinkers 360 Supply Chain Top 50
Thinkers 360
February 08, 2020
Ranked 22

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Tags: Leadership, Procurement, Supply Chain

Thinkers 360 Procurement Influencer
Thinkers 360
December 20, 2019
Top 3 procurement leader

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Tags: Procurement

The Best Free Procurement Content Websites
Mark Holyoake
December 02, 2019
Named in the article as one of the top free content producers for procurement.

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Tags: Procurement

Top 20 (#15) Global Thought Leader for Procurement in July
Thinkers 360
July 01, 2019
Thinkers 360

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Tags: Procurement

2 Keynotes
The ABCs of Building Your Personal Brand
Sievo
September 15, 2020
How to build a personal brand online

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Tags: Marketing, Procurement, Supply Chain

My Epic Keynote Speaking Event! Join me at SievoFriends Americas on 9.15.20 – Learn the ABC’s of Building Your Personal Brand
MS Category Management
September 03, 2020
Learn the ABC’s of Building Your Personal Brand

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Tags: Procurement, Management, Marketing

7 Media Interviews
Building Your Personal Brand
World of Procurement
August 03, 2020
Videocast of Building your own brand.

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing

Celebrating Rocks Stars in Marketing Procurement
Future of Sourcing
July 06, 2020
Named marketing procurement rockstar

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing

CPO Strategy - Issue 12
CPO Strategy
May 04, 2020
Procurement's reaction to Co-vid 19

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Tags: Leadership, Procurement, Supply Chain

CPO Strategy
CPO Strategy
February 28, 2020
What's coming up for procurement in 2020 mention

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Tags: Leadership, Procurement, Supply Chain

ProcuRising - Developing Your Personal Brand Without Promoting Yourself
ProcuRising
February 03, 2020
Media interview on building your own brand

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Tags: Marketing, Procurement, Supply Chain

Stop Being a Wanger
The Red Review
January 22, 2020
Podcast interview with the guys at the Red Review

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Tags: Leadership, Procurement, Supply Chain

264: Where Did The Money Go? Bridging The Procurement & Finance Gap W/ Dana Small
Aop
August 05, 2019
I’m joined today by Dana Small, Global Category Manager at BioMarin and author of the Ms. Category Management blog. It is rare to find a procurement professional with a background in finance, and rarer still to find a procurement practitioner so willing to share their insight and experiences that they start a blog. In Dana we find both, and that’s a real win for the procurement community.

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement, Finance

5 Panels
Forge – Marketing Virtual Conference by Procurement Foundry
Procurement Foundry
October 29, 2020
Panel speaking event

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing

ProcureCon Marketing EU
WBResearch
September 23, 2020
Panel for Event

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Tags: Business Strategy, Procurement, Supply Chain

GWPP – Virtual Meetup – Climbing the Virtual Ladder (Video)
Ms Category Management
April 29, 2020
OVID-19, there is a drastic shift to an extreme way of digital working for the foreseeable future . This change means little to no in-person meetings and a reliance on digital tools. With this shift, how can women in procurement continue to grow professionally and work towards rising up and making an impact?

Panelists include experts in procurement, sourcing, management, IT and leadership.

Join us to learn from:

Sally Stephens, VP, Alliances Programs at Coupa – www.Coupa.com
Dana Small, Senior Category Manager, Global Strategic Sourcing at BioMarin Pharmaceutical – www.BioMarin.com
Julie Braun, Senior Director, Procurement, AP, and Travel at Smartsheet – www.Smartsheet.com
Keecia Scott, Senior Director, International Procurement at Gilead Sciences – www.Gilead.com
Stephanie Leduc, Senior Director, Sourcing Strategy and IT Portfolio at the National Bank of Canada – www.nbc.ca
Amanda Prochaska, CEO at GWPP – www.GlobalWPP.com

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Tags: Procurement, Management, Leadership

GWPP – Panelist for Global Women Procurement Professionals Event #WSW
Ms Category Management.com
February 27, 2020
GWWP - Global Women in Procurement Professionals. Panelist for event in Foster City, CA. Roadmapping Your Career.

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Tags: Procurement, Leadership

Women in Procurement Panel - Foster City
RSN Network
January 16, 2020
Women in Procurement Panel

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Tags: Procurement, Supply Chain

7 Podcasts
Shereen Lannoye | Astellas Pharma
MarPro - The Marketing Procurement Podcast
August 11, 2021
On this episode of MarPro our guest is Shereen Lannoye, the Associate Director of Global Procurement, Marketing Agencies, and Production at Astellas Pharma US.

Key learnings from this episode include...

Marketing to marketers to earn a seat at the table
Strategic Planning
Maximizing the value of QBR's
Supplier Relationship Management success

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement

Strategy Versus Tactics in Services Procurement – Zivio Conversations Podcast
MS Category Management
June 30, 2021
Strategy versus tactics in services procurement
How procurement can use data to deliver value through better strategic sourcing decisions.

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Tags: Procurement

Spend Culture Stories Podcast: Category Management Must Knows for Biotech Procurement Professionals
MS Category Management
November 18, 2020
I share my learnings and procurement stories with Dani Hao of Procurify, where I chat about category management challenges in biotech procurement, and why being proactive and flexible are key traits that all procurement leaders should have.

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Tags: Procurement, Culture

What Procurement Really thinks
The Red Review
July 23, 2020
Podcast for second season of The Red Review

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Tags: Future of Work, Procurement, Supply Chain

Building your procurement brand
World of Procurement
May 06, 2020
podcast on the world of procurement

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Tags: Marketing, Procurement, Supply Chain

Another Podcast! The Red Review – Stop Being a Wanger
Ms Category Management.com
January 23, 2020
Let me start off by saying, I didn’t get a say in naming the podcast episode, but these guys couldn’t have picked a better one! So cheers for incorporating “wanger” into a title, making my love for all things UK even stronger (can I say Burberry and Jimmy Choo?!).

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Tags: Procurement

Where did the money go?
Aop
August 05, 2019
Podcast on AoP

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Tags: Leadership, Procurement, Supply Chain

8 Speaking Engagements
Join Me! AOP Mastermind LIVE 2020 – A New Day for Procurement – October 6th and 7th!
MS Category Management
September 25, 2020
Mastermind LIVE brought to you by the team at Art of Procurement, will challenge participants’ assumptions, expose them to new perspectives, inspire new visions, and provide the insights required to turn their ideas into reality.



• October 6th and 7th from 10 am-1 pm ET
• A virtual, global event for procurement professionals and executives
• Featuring general sessions plus two tracks: one for CPO’s and one for mid-level/emerging leaders

Advertisements

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing

I’m speaking at ProcureCon Marketing Virtual Flagship Event – Join me on 9/23 for a Legendary Event!
MS Category Management
September 08, 2020

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Tags: Procurement, Marketing

I’m Speaking! An Epic Event: Forge – Marketing Virtual Conference by Procurement Foundry – 10.29.20. Don’t Miss out!
Ms Category Management
August 13, 2020
Marketing Virtual Conference by Procurement Foundry

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing

Building Your Own Brand
Procurement Leaders
July 16, 2020
One of two speakers on building your own brand for women procurement leaders.

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Tags: Procurement, Marketing, Diversity and Inclusion

Marketing Procurement Day
ANA.net
July 15, 2020
In-House Agency

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Tags: Procurement, Marketing, Business Strategy

Managing Agencies Throughout the Product Lifecycle
ProcureCon Marketing
November 20, 2019
My presentation was the first of it's kind, to introduce proper agency management through a product's lifecycle. Best practices for procurement and partnership with marketing partners / agencies providers were included.

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Tags: Business Strategy, Procurement, Supply Chain

Implementation of Tealbook at BMSA
BMSA
October 12, 2018
Review of the implementation at BioMarin.

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Tags: AI, Digital Transformation, Procurement

Tealbook Presentation at ProcureCon Pharma
ProcureCon Pharma
October 03, 2016
A short presentation on the relationship between BioMarin and Tealbook for managing our vendor master, with enhanced data information on the cloud.

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Tags: Digital Transformation, Procurement, Supply Chain

8 Videos
What’s Your Zoom Personality?
Ms Category Management
April 23, 2020
Zoom meetings have become all the rage when it comes to conference calls. And with that have come personalities, in all shapes and sizes. (And a few epic fails too!)

So which unique personality do you have when you are attending a conference call?

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Tags: Procurement

Small Business Vs. Large Corporation
Ms Category Mangement
February 23, 2020
Video describing the Differences in Strategy for Sourcing in Large vs. Small Corporations.

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement, Management

GWPP Panel Video
Ms Category Mangement
February 23, 2020
The advice I give during the GWPP Panel.

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement, Management

Kelly Barner's Advice
Ms Category Mangement
February 09, 2020
Interview with Kelly Barner and advice she gives to procurement professionals.

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Tags: Leadership, Procurement

Nine Issues with DIY Procurement
Ms Category Mangement
February 09, 2020
Video describing the DIY Procurement Issues.

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Tags: Management, Procurement, Supply Chain

The Keys to Successful Martech Procurement – The Webinar Video
youtube
February 01, 2020
Keys to Successful Martech Procurement

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Tags: Procurement

What's Next for Ms. Category Management
Self
August 17, 2019
Video on upcoming speaking events, webinars and podcasts.

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Tags: Procurement

Video explanation of what is procurement
Sievo
August 01, 2019
Quoted in helping explain what procurement is.

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Tags: Procurement

5 Webinars
APMP Winning Business Virtual Experience
APMP
July 23, 2020
Recorded a videocast with guys at Red Review for APMP event

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Tags: Future of Work, Procurement, Supply Chain

Climbing the Digital Ladder
GWPP
April 10, 2020
Webinar for GWPP - Digital Discussion

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Tags: Digital Disruption, Diversity and Inclusion, Procurement

Managing Agencies Throughout the Product Lifecycle
Dana Small
February 13, 2020
Presenting my procurecon presentation to Nestle Corporation for lunch and learn

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Tags: Marketing, Procurement, Supply Chain

Key to Successful Martech Procurement
RSN Network
January 29, 2020
Panelist for the event

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Tags: Digital Transformation, Digital Disruption, Procurement

Implementing Tealbook Globally
tealbook
September 04, 2019
A webinar on how I was the first ever to implement tealbook globally at BioMarin

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Tags: Business Strategy, Customer Experience, Procurement

1 Whitepaper
Managing Advertising Agencies Throughout a Product's Lifecycle
Ms Category Management
March 06, 2020
The whitepaper is written based on the presentation I have during the ProcureCon Marketing 2019 Conference.

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Tags: Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing

Thinkers360 Credentials

6 Badges

Blog

Opportunities

Events

1 Online Event
FORGE: MARKETING VIRTUAL CONFERENCE

Location: Online    Date : October 29, 2020 - October 29, 2020     Organizer: Procurement Foundry

Procurement Foundry presents a premier 1-day conference of Advertising and Marketing sourcing topics and content.

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