Philip Ideson

290: The Value of Digital Procurement in the Manufacturing Sector w/ Sundar Kamak
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January 13, 2020

“We are in a very unique position right now, especially in the manufacturing world, that so much globalization has already happened. Every dollar saved is a dollar to the bottom...
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289: Integrating Blockchain into Procurement w/ Remko Van Hoek
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January 06, 2020

“We are not looking to re-live the heyday of RFID when we were going around and saying, ‘this is going to solve all of your technology problems overnight’.” If 2019...
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2019 Annual Letter (Part 2): Art Of Procurement In Review
Art of Procurement
December 31, 2019

In our first annual letter last year, I wrote that “the first three-quarters of the year were the most difficult months of my professional career”. So did 2019 fare any better? The short answer – yes! Topline revenue increased 5X and we’re really excited about our plans for 2020. But it wasn’t all roses. 2019 also had an experience that I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy!

2019 Annual Letter #1: Procurement In Review
Art of Procurement
December 30, 2019

Last year, I wrote the first Art of Procurement annual letter, following the lead of the many companies who write annual letters to their investors. In a world of hyperbole and social media bluster, my intention is to pull back the curtains annually and share the highs and lows of building the Art of Procurement business as well as some big picture thoughts on the direction of the procurement function.

2019 Annual Letter (Part 1): Procurement In Review
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December 30, 2019

As someone who engages in Art of Procurement content, I see you as an investor in our community. You invest your time, your mind space and your creativity in your...
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288: Three Procurement Themes for 2020
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December 23, 2019

As we begin to wind down for 2019, Art of Procurement host Philip Ideson shares the three themes that are at the forefront of his mind when considering the health...
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287: Best Practices for Managing Procurement Performance w/ Pierre Lapree and Jason Treida
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December 16, 2019

“Stop the spreadsheet madness!” – Pierre Lapree, Founder of Per Angusta  This week’s podcast is based on our recent AOP Live session with Pierre Lapree and Jason Treida. They joined...
The post 287: Best Practices for Managing Procurement Performance w/ Pierre Lapree and Jason Treid

286: Defining and Delivering on Supplier Development w/ Amanda Prochaska & Jonathan Townsley
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December 09, 2019

“If done correctly, supplier development reduces your total cost of ownership. It reduces risk, it increases innovation and it increases agility within your supply chains. It sounds like everything that...
The post 286: Defining and Delivering on Supplier Development w/ Amanda Prochaska & Jon

285: A Procurement Compendium w/ Peter Smith
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December 02, 2019

 “The focus should be on doing a damn good job.”  Having the opportunity to reflect back on a successful career in its entirety is a gift, and in “A Procurement...
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284: Escaping Your Traditional Environment – This Month in Procurement
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November 25, 2019

In this episode, AOP Host Philip Ideson and Kelly Barner (General Manager of AOP and Owner of Buyers Meeting Point) discuss their major take-aways from November’s news, industry topics and...
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Data Quality: Critical But Overlooked?
Art of Procurement
November 21, 2019

In the latest edition of our AOP Live series, I had the opportunity to speak to Joe Yacura on the importance of data quality – not only as part of procurement digitization, but for the future of procurement as a whole. Joe is a former CPO of organizations such as Fannie Mae, Bank of America and American Express, and the co-author of the 3rd Annual Data Quality and Governance Study in partnership with Dr. Rob Handfield and the Supply Chain Resource Cooperative (SCRC) at NC State.

CPOs Unscripted: Advice on Talent and Transformation
linkedin
June 13, 2019

If procurement’s journey to this point has demonstrated anything, it is the importance of people and talent. A high-performing, cohesive procurement team can deliver unexpected results just as easily as an unmotivated, aloof one can do irreparable harm.

Art of Procurement Meets Art of Procurement
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March 15, 2019

The procurement profession has grown by leaps and bounds, progress that would not have been possible without a constant focus on processes and data. Facts can – or should –...
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When the B-Team Can Beat the A-Team
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March 07, 2019

Those of you who follow me on Twitter will be all too aware of my frustrations with the football team that I love, Bradford City.  For a look deep into...
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Are We Focused on the Right Transformation Objectives?
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February 20, 2019

In The Hackett Group’s 2019 CPO Agenda Report, titled Building Next- Generation Capabilities, there is clearly misalignment between what procurement is expected to do and what we are placing an...
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Combating Leadership Fatigue
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February 05, 2019

If you are a regular visitor to Art of Procurement, congratulations! You recognized how important it is to have access to thought leadership. Youre not mired in the ways of...
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Introducing AOP Live – Establishing Your Procurement AI Game Plan
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January 31, 2019

Today we’re launching a new webinar series: AOP Live, where you drive the conversation and we ditch the slides! AOP Live was born out of my frustration with the traditional...
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Can An Information Amnesty Increase Your Procurement Results?
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January 24, 2019

“Companies will perform better if employees are not cowed into silence,” says a recent article in The Economist (registration required). While we don’t often discuss fear in the context of...
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Is California Reinventing the RFP Process?
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January 16, 2019

It isn’t often that a governmental Executive Order catches the eye for its potential impact on procurement. Last week, on his first day on the job, newly elected Governor of...
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Empathy, Alignment and Integration – Transforming the Procurement/IT Relationship
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January 10, 2019

There are many challenges for young procurement departments in rapidly growing companies who are trying to build and scale their impact. One such challenge is integrating into existing IT environments...
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Art of Procurement: E Pluribus Unum
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January 06, 2019

For small business owners – and this includes me – your brand is your word. AOP has been my brand identity since 2015 when I left my 9-5 job to...
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AOP 2018 Annual Letter (Part 2): Art of Procurement in Review
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December 28, 2018

The end of 2018 marks 3.5 years since I decided to “risk it all” as they say, leaving the confines of comfortable employment with a top tier firm to try and make a difference at scale. It has been an ongoing evolution: AOP1.0: Experiment: Is there a community of like-minded professionals dedicat

AOP 2018 Annual Letter (Part 1): Procurement in Review
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December 27, 2018

I have never written an annual letter to the Art of Procurement community before, but there is no time like the present. I see you as investors in our community. You invest your time, your mind space, and your creativity in your own development and the development of others. That comes with an oppor

It’s Deja Vu All Over Again
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September 08, 2018

I have spent a lot of time this summer thinking about the future of procurement.   As part of our development of The CatalystCo Platform, we have been contemplating what skills will be critical for procurement professionals as the environment around us evolves; not just today, but over the next thr

TWIP: “You Must Unlearn What You Have Learned” – Yoda
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March 23, 2018

I spend a lot of time on Twitter. I set out to have a productive purpose (one can always hope!), rather than just go to commiserate with my fellow Bradford City supporters and debate the reasons behind our latest defeat. One of the things I love about traipsing through twitter, is the chance to happ

TWIP: Plus ça Change, Plus C’est La Même Chose
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March 16, 2018

Happy Friday! Earlier in the month, Deloitte released the results of their 2018 CPO Survey. I always look forward to this report: an interesting check on the pulse and general health of the procurement function. Those of you intrepid Art of Procurement listeners may recall me discussing the results

BMP Radio: Survey Chair Commentary – The February 2018 ISM-New York Report on Business
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March 02, 2018

The ISM-New York Report is a highly regarded indicator of business conditions in the New York Metro area including a six-month outlook, employment index, and current and expected revenues. For anyone new to either the ISM-New York Report on Business, or the national or other regional reports for tha

TWIP: We’re Different
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March 02, 2018

I recently read a book review by my Palambridge co-founder Kelly Barner that really caught my attention.  The book in question was Expensive Sentences, by Jack Quarles. So, for this week’s This Week in Procurement, I invited Kelly to share her perspective on the opportunities that exist by ide

TWIP: Somewhere Over the Gulf of Mexico…
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February 23, 2018

As I write this week’s newsletter, I am en-route home from a productive ProcureCon Indirect East conference in Florida. One of the reasons I started Art of Procurement was to share the experiences, perspectives and lessons learned from events like ProcureCon. Thank you to the team at WBR for their

BMP Radio: Survey Chair Commentary – The January 2018 ISM-New York Report on Business
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February 04, 2018

The ISM-New York Report is a highly regarded indicator of business conditions in the New York Metro area including a six-month outlook, employment index, and current and expected revenues. For anyone new to either the ISM-New York Report on Business, or the national or other regional reports for tha

TWIP: Being a Catalyst – Making Choices. Leaving a Mark. Generating Fulfillment.
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February 02, 2018

Dear Catalysts, Happy Friday! This week was a big week for the team at Art of Procurement. Over the past few weeks, both on the pod and here on the pages of TWiP, I have hinted at the continuing evolution of Art of Procurement (AKA AOP 3.0). (Watch this space for upcoming design changes to […]

Taking on the “Simplicity Challenge”
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January 19, 2018

Dear Catalysts, Happy Friday, from the cold but vibrant Canadian city of Montreal, where I have been spending time with a procurement organization assisting in their long term strategic planning. Being invited to Montreal to participate in catalyzing efforts to enhance the procurement team’s impac

You Spoke, We Listened
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January 12, 2018

Dear Catalysts, Happy Friday! We were thrilled with your response to our newsletter last week. Thank you! Your feedback reinforces our belief that Procurement Professionals are passionate about being catalysts and see themselves as central to the health and wellbeing of their organizations. As we m

Summing it Up and Moving it Forward
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January 05, 2018

Making Choices, Leaving a Mark, and Generating Fulfillment Much like red blood cells carry oxygen to all the other cells in the body, Procurement is primed and perfectly placed to aid in the transfer and sharing of knowledge across the entire organization. No other group of professionals touch every

Tapping into Start-Up Ecosystems for Supplier Enabled Innovation
linkedin
December 16, 2017

I was recently working with a client and reflecting on the ways in which procurement leaders can keep their finger on the pulse of supply market innovation - particularly as it relates to innovation from outside the circle of their existing supply base.

10 Procurement Sins & the Actions you can Take to Avoid Them
linkedin
December 01, 2016

I am currently in Las Vegas at the ISM Inside Indirect 2016 Conference, and with Las Vegas also known as Sin City, I thought it would be fun to take a step back and consider a number of "sins" of procurement. What do we do that we really shouldn't?

20 Must Ask Questions for Procurement Revolutionaries
linkedin
October 07, 2016

Over the course of 5 days in September 2016, 40 Revolutionaries from inside and outside of the procurement profession joined together to deliver 5 live webinars and over 50 unique pieces of audio, video, and written content. This collective effort was all focused on being able to answer one central question: how can we challenge the status quo to elevate the role of procurement?

Five of the Best: Procurement Thought Leader Interviews
linkedin
September 19, 2016

I am often asked by listeners who find the Art of Procurement for the first time to recommend a number of my "favorite" interviews as good places to start.

Going for Gold - Procurement's Role in Delivering the Olympic Games
linkedin
August 11, 2016

As the floodlights were dimmed, and the Opening Ceremony of the Rio Olympic Games got underway, I couldn't help myself but to think of the scale of the procurement efforts that would have been necessary to get to the startling line of the Games.

Kate Vitasek shares the Art, Science & Practice of Crafting Strategic Supplier Relationships
linkedin
July 25, 2016

When you say you want innovation, when you say you want strategic partners, these deals have to be crafted differently than you're buying a pen, or a widget.

6 (+1) Ways to Develop Your Career Through Low Cost Self-Education
linkedin
July 19, 2016

I host a weekly podcast aimed at procurement professionals called the Art of Procurement. However, I often find that the guidance shared by guests transcends procurement, and is relevant across professions. This was definitely the case with a piece of advice shared in today's show by Mark Pollack, the Vice President of SIG University.

5 Steps to Break Free from a Stalled Procurement Career
linkedin
July 14, 2016

Be honest. Has your procurement career stalled? If you have experienced nothing but a consistent upward career trajectory, congratulations! From my experience, you are on the path least traveled.

Brexit: A Chaotic Road to Nowhere?
linkedin
July 01, 2016

As you already know by now, the UK electorate opted in a referendum last Thursday to leave the European Union.

Announcing the Art of Procurement Executive Advisory Board
linkedin
June 16, 2016

Today marks an important milestone in the Art of Procurement journey. I am delighted today to announce the formation of the Art of Procurement Executive Advisory Board and welcome the inaugural members John P. (Jack) Miles and Bill Michels.

PAT Chat: Art of Procurement’s Phil Ideson on Elevating the Role of Procurement
SAP Ariba
February 06, 2020

How do we elevate the role of procurement? Meet Phil Ideson, the founder and managing director of Art of Procurement, who has dedicated himself to precisely that task.

Episode #303: How Cimpress Built A Procurement Team That Operates Like A Services Business W/ Evert Karsen
Art of Procurement
February 24, 2020

“We realize that when we negotiate with suppliers, the business is the end customer. We are the function that does the negotiation, but we are not competing with each other. We have different roles. At the end of the process we share the results.”

According to the Cimpress corporate website, “We manage our businesses in a decentralized, autonomous manner so as to ensure we remain close to our customers, focused and entrepreneurial.” Now go back and read that statement again – this time as a member of the procurement team supporting such a collection of businesses.

Evert Karsen is the Vice President of Global Procurement at Cimpress. From his office in Switzerland, he leads a team of procurement professionals that support Cimpress’ multiple autonomous brands, including Vistaprint, Easyflyer, and BuildASign.

They don’t have a mandate to lean on with internal stakeholders, but they don’t have a savings target either. That combination of conditions has made it possible for them to deliver a wide range of value types and build a services-oriented relationship with the business.

Episode #302: Unpacking The Standing Neutral W/ Kate Vitasek
Art of Procurement
February 17, 2020

A “standing neutral” is a form of alternative dispute resolution. It is different than the roles above in that a standing neutral is brought in before the conflict occurs; they are part of a contract’s governance structure. They are neutral, and mutually approved by the parties to the contract. In this week's interview, Kate provides background info and case examples from her recently released whitepaper on the standing neutral.

Episode 301: Mastering The Procurement Data Challenge W/ Joe Yacura
Art of Procurement
February 10, 2020

Procurement can no longer turn a blind eye to bad data. If we are going to leverage our data for advanced applications such as AI, machine learning, RPA, etc. we have to address data quality now – without spending more time or allowing it to become more fragmented.

Joe Yacura is a former CPO of organizations such as Fannie Mae, Bank of America and American Express, and is the co-author of the 3rd Annual Data Quality and Governance Study in partnership with Dr Rob Handfield and the Supply Chain Resource Cooperative (SCRC) at NC State.

In this podcast, which is based on an AOP Live session made possible by Ivalua, Joe provides insight on data quality-related topics.

Episode 300 – Introducing Procurement, Inc. – This Month In Procurement
Art of Procurement
February 03, 2020

Major milestone - Episode 300 of the Art of Procurement podcast!

In 'This Month in Procurement' Host Philip Ideson and GM Kelly Barner look back at January 2020, including interviews with Sundar Kamakshisundaram and Remko Van Hoek and the Special Startup Series.

Listen in and you'll also hear about Procurement, Inc., the brand new framework for strategic procurement teams and the redesigned AOP website!

Episode 299: AOP Special Startup Series, featuring TraDove's Rowena Ludwig
Art of Procurement
January 31, 2020

In this podcast, we interview Rowena Bonnette, Chief Marketing Officer of TraDove, a social networking platform built to match and connect business buyers and sellers and blockchain payment solution provider.

Discussion highlights include:

- How blockchain tokens can be used to facilitate B2B payment transactions.
- The security and information storage implications of a B2B blockchain v. a traditional one.
- Why social network-based technology is the most efficient way for global buyers and sellers to connect.

Episode 298: AOP Special Startup Series – Per Angusta W/ Pierre Lapree
Art of Procurement
January 30, 2020

In this podcast, we interview Pierre Laprée, Founder of Per Angusta, a procurement project pipeline and performance tracking tool founded in 2012.

Discussion highlights include:

- The importance of investing in – and building up – procurement’s internal credibility through detailed performance management tracking.
- An acknowledgment that procurement teams carry a heavy workload, often multiple projects at one time, including a wide range of task types and activities.
- Why the challenge of ‘savings’ needs to be addressed as a process by both procurement and finance, not as an issue with procurement’s value proposition.

Episode 297: AOP Special Startup Series – ProcurementFlow W/ Tarmo Saidla
Art of Procurement
January 29, 2020

“The procurement person, they shouldn’t really work in an office like a sales guy. Actually, the best procurement guys spend time meeting suppliers and building relationships, not fulfilling some administrative need.” - Tarmo Saidla, Co-Founder and CEO of ProcurementFlow.com

Discussion highlights include:
- The challenge of combining consistent purchase approvals and oversight with buyer convenience and speed
- While a lot has changed in procurement, the need for a centralized team and streamlined processes has not abated
- How, much like with Excel, companies are unlikely to ever get distributed buyers to stop relying on email for requests and approvals

Art of Procurement #podcast episode 296: AOP Special Startup Series – Tealbook W/ Stephany Lapierre
Art of Procurement
January 28, 2020

“There’s a huge data problem right now and it’s actually impacting the return on investment from all the dollars that are being poured into technology – and it’s not the software’s fault.”

In this podcast, we interview Stephany Lapierre, CEO of Tealbook, a master supplier data management platform founded in 2015.

Discussion highlights include:
- The glaring investment between procurement’s investment (to date) in technology versus the investment in the data that runs through that technology.
- How increasing the quality of supplier master data can actually reduce the friction associated with changing procurement software providers.
- Why machine learning may help procurement make the leap from understanding who their suppliers are to recognizing the total value those suppliers can offer.

Episode 295: AOP Special Startup Series – Bid Ops W/ Edmund Zagorin
Art of Procurement
January 27, 2020

“We’ve done a deep dive and found that the main differentiator between ‘peer class’ and ‘world class’ sourcing organizations is their ability to respond to changes in the market by running more sourcing processes.” - Edmund Zagorin

As we kick off week #2 of the 2020 AOP Special Startup Series, Philip Ideson is joined by Edmund Zagorin, the Founder of Bid Ops, a sourcing enablement platform founded in 2018.

AOP Podcast Episode 294: AOP Special Startup Series – Spendency W/ Nils Lundgren And Arvid Fredin
Art of Procurement
January 23, 2020

AOP 2020 Special Startup Series - Day 4! In this episode we welcome Spendency leadership team members Nils Lundgren & Arvid F. to tell us how we can advance the 'democratization' of data via spend analysis.

Podcast Episode 293: AOP Special Startup Series – Keelvar W/ Alan Holland
Art of Procurement
January 22, 2020

In this podcast, we interview Alan Holland, the Founder and CEO of Keelvar. Founded in 2012, Keelvar provides the automation procurement needs to achieve speed, while also increasing adherence to best practices.

Discussion highlights include:
- The power and resource efficiency of combining optimization and automation
- The critical differences between intelligent automation and robotic process automation (RPA)
- The business case for applying optimization technology to large or analytically complex spend categories

AOP 2020 Startup Series Day 2: Provalido Ltd with Paul Gurr
Art of Procurement
January 21, 2020

The highlights of this conversation include:

- Whether it not it is feasible to take a ‘best of breed’ approach to building a procurement technology portfolio

- The continued need for procurement to emphasize and invest in clean, high quality data

- The direct connection between tracking and process/purchasing transparency

AOP Special Startup Series - Kodiak Rating w/ Sam Jenks
Art of Procurement
January 20, 2020

In this podcast, we interview Sam Jenks, Chief Marketing Officer at Kodiak Rating, a supplier relationship management platform founded in 2015.

Discussion highlights include:
- Why supplier insight has to be based on both robust scorecards and data analytics.
- That (believe it or not) Excel continues to be Kodiak’s biggest competitor.
- How this is the time – even according to well-known consulting firms and CTOs – to be an early adopter and partner with a startup

Art of Procurement Podcast Episode 290: The Value Of Digital Procurement In The Manufacturing Sector W/ Sundar Kamak
Art of Procurement
January 13, 2020

Larger manufacturers are starting to build significant momentum for procurement digitalization. As they do, there will no doubt be change to more than their systems.

In this week's podcast, Sundar Kamakshisundaram, Global Head of Manufacturing Solutions at Ivalua, shares his perspective on the move towards digital procurement in the manufacturing space as well as the overall trends he has observed.

Art of Procurement Episode 289: Integrating Blockchain Into Procurement W/ Remko Van Hoek
Art of Procurement
January 06, 2020

If 2019 was the year of emerging technology hype, then 2020 holds the potential to be the year that we turn our attention to the work that needs to be done to derive concrete value from that technology: blockchains included. In this podcast interview, Remko Van Hoek provides actionable insight and realistic use cases for blockchain in the supply chain.

Art of Procurement podcast episode 288: Three Procurement Themes For 2020
Art of Procurement
December 23, 2019

As we begin to wind down for 2019, Art of Procurement host Philip Ideson shares the three themes that are at the forefront of his mind when considering the health of the procurement function and the opportunities that await in 2020.

Art of Procurement podcast episode 287: Best Practices For Managing Procurement Performance W/ Pierre Lapree And Jason Treida
Art of Procurement
December 16, 2019

This week’s podcast is based on our recent AOP Live session with Pierre Lapree and Jason Treida. They joined us last month to take live audience questions about how procurement can maximize the value potential of automation while ensuring that performance management is not lost in the ‘noise’ of technology.

Most of today’s technology focuses on either the transactional aspects of procurement (P2P) or shiny new toys (RPA/AI/Blockchain). It does not necessarily provide a holistic view our activity and performance. And yet, it is those activities and that performance that determine procurement’s impact and influence now and in the future.

Art of Procurement podcast episode 286: Defining And Delivering On Supplier Development W/ Amanda Prochaska & Jonathan Townsley
Art of Procurement
December 09, 2019

Whether you call it supplier performance management or supplier relationship management, procurement has always understood that we need supply partners at their best for us to realize the maximum ROI from each contract. Usually, however, that boils down to a meeting where we point out where they could be doing better or ask a bunch of questions that imply the same thing and send them on their way to figure out how they should improve. It basically amounts to procurement making a wish list and throwing it over the wall.

Needless to say, this delivers questionable results. Procurement doesn’t have the time required to follow up with as many suppliers as we should, and the suppliers don’t have an incentive to put more energy than absolutely necessary into a contract they have already signed. Besides, they’re often not sure exactly what we want from them.

In this disconnect, Amanda Prochaska, President and CEO of HPP Coach, and Jonathan Townsley, a Business Transformation and Supply Management Advisor, see an opportunity for procurement to meaningfully and sustainably change the way we manage our suppliers.

Art of Procurement podcast episode 285: A Procurement Compendium W/ Peter Smith
Art of Procurement
December 02, 2019

In this week's podcast, Philip Ideson interviews Peter Smith about his book, "A Procurement Compendium". Peter shares stories from his career that capture the things he’d done differently and the questions that still linger about the current state and future trajectory of the procurement profession. At the end of the day, however, it all really boils down to this one piece of simple advice: “The focus should be on doing a damn good job.”

Art of Procurement podcast episode 284: Escaping Your Traditional Environment – This Month In Procurement
Art of Procurement
November 25, 2019

In this episode, AOP Host Philip Ideson and Kelly Barner (General Manager of AOP and Owner of Buyers Meeting Point) discuss their major take-aways from November’s news, industry topics and podcast interviews.

In November, we heard Bill Michels, VP of Operations Americas for CIPS, discuss proactive recession planning, and then Procurement Leaders’ David Rae and Geraldine Craven connected the results of recent research to how CPOs should be planning for 2020.

Our discussion topic is getting away, or stepping away from your traditional environment to gain perspective and inspiration. We just spent two days in person planning out our strategies and actions for 2020, and it made all the difference in the world. Whether you have an upcoming team offsite or whether your holiday travels will carry you far from the office, remember to find ways to benefit from the objectivity that distance and reengagement offer.

Art of Procurement podcast episode 283: A CPO’s Guide To Planning For 2020 W/ David Rae And Geraldine Craven
Art of Procurement
November 18, 2019

In this week’s podcast, Philip Ideson is joined by two members of the Procurement Leaders team, David Rae, their Chief Product Officer, and Geraldine Craven, Head of Research. They recently completed a study in cooperation with Bain Consulting to understand what is changing in advance of the arrival of 2020 and what remains the same.

PAT Chat: Art of Procurement’s Phil Ideson on Elevating the Role of Procurement
Thinkers360
February 09, 2020

I recently had the opportunity to participate in an episode of ‘Pat Chat’ the video interview series hosted by Patrick McCarthy, Global Senior Vice President and General Manager of SAP Ariba and SAP Fieldglass. He gave me the opportunity to talk about the Art of Procurement podcast and my own perspective on our field as a whole…

What part of my job do I enjoy the most…
What I enjoy most is the work that is hard. These challenges present the best opportunity for procurement to impact the enterprise really showcase our capabilities. There's more value to be had in complex categories because they allow us to solve business problems as opposed to just rolling out a one-size fits all process.

How can we build sustainable procurement organizations…
There’s such a ‘boom and bust’ cycle in procurement. First, we’re just going after the low hanging fruit, saving money at all costs. Then we return our focus to transformation, because the successes of the savings cycle have allowed procurement to build a good story. Of course, some of the strategies or the tactics we've used to save money in the past may not be ones that endear us to the rest of the organization – especially when it comes to business partnering. That’s a sustainability issue we need to focus on more.

What does procurement’s real opportunity look like…
Procurement is at a bit of a crossroads today, but I think we have a tremendous opportunity to focus on spend that is material to the organization. We get involved in all kinds of spend because we want people to engage with us. We want to have an opportunity to make an impact.
When we get to the point that we are focusing on the most strategic 20% of enterprise spend, we’re not thinking about purchasing decisions anymore; we’re driving total commercial value. That work is incredibly exciting. I don't think we should aspire to have 100% of spend under management. We should focus on how to enable the business to transact as efficiently and as easily as possible. We have to focus on the stuff that matters.

Click here to view the full video interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OV_GwyJDvLs&list=PLPs9vNA-XppTFxVuS3lIfo6Xxq_g482fT