The power of procurement has significantly increased over
time; it can be because of the difference between long-term and brand loyalty. Organizations today have upped their procurement game, realizing that not only high-quality products but also the right procurement is the key to excellent customer satisfaction. Whether the product is sold online or through instore shopping, procurement represents the product and the brand as a whole.
Procurement plays a vital role in building an organization’s recognition and influences consumer buying behaviour – an aspect of production that shouldn’t be overlooked. Procurement generally caters to many needs, including protection, improved usability, providing information and safety.
Furthermore, the proper procurement with a clear, concise organization message reflects its identity and what it stands for. It speaks volumes about the company’s core values serving as a virtual channel between the consumer and the organization itself.
Every organization has to revise their processes to meet the new procurement protocols. Companies have evolved to meet the needs of the new age customer and keep up with the contemporary trends. Some of the biggest problems are met by holistic procurement solutions, which help brands package and deliver their services to the customers without compromising on product quality.
In the present scenario, people have become more conscious of what they are consuming, and companies need to build a relationship of trust with their customers. Procurement tech has been on a fast rise over the years, and the future is filled with intelligent cloud-based procurement platforms, which leads to more vertically integrated analysis. And implementing these digital procurement technologies will keep your organization ahead of the competition.
There can be no doubt that procurement is ready to solve analytical problems, address digital issues and is changing the face of organizations today. In order to succeed in the future, organizations and business leaders need to adapt to the evolving procurement technology landscape if they hope to stay in the competition.
Therefore, we at CIOLook value the contribution of procurement tech companies and hear about their procurement journey through its upcoming project - “ Most Influential Leaders in Procurement, 2023 .” Through this edition, we find out the insights, strategies, challenges, and the future of the procurement technology implemented in these companies and how these companies regulate it. In the end, leveraging technology is one part, but to see what actual benefits the technology offer is different. This is why we recognize the contribution of such organizations that implements procurement, digitalization, and appropriate solutions so that everyone can be benefited.
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March, 2023
Diana is in charge of global negotiations for all Regions of Teleperformance as well as standards of procurement from the global perspective. Teleperformance teleperformance.com
TransExecutive trans-executive.com
Harold loves to solve other people’s business challenges and help them overcome their problems to achieve their goals.
Dassault Systèmes 3ds.com
James is a results-oriented expert at containing costs that impact the bottom line.
Nyden On Negotiation jnyden.com
Jeanette is one of the world's foremost experts in collaborative buyer-supplier relationships.
ey.com
Kathy Golding is the Procurement & Supplier Ecosystem Services Leader at EY Global Services Limited and has been with the company for over 10 years, having spent her entire EY career in Supply Chain Services.
EY Global Procurement & Supplier Ecosystem Services Leader EY Global Services Ltd.
Procurement is often seen as a cost-cutting department; at EY, we strive to help deliver long-term value through strong CoE excellence, process e ciencies, and innovation.
With solid strategic planning and decisionmaking abilities to build and maintain effective relationships with suppliers and key stakeholders and a deep understanding of the industry and the various factors that can impact it, Kathy Golding has proven herself with her leadership.
As EY Global Procurement & Supplier Ecosystem Services Leader , Kathy implements her decade-old experience to deliver results with a seamless work procedure.
Kathy's dedication to her work is unmatched, which is why CIO Look discussed her professional journey to date and where it is headed.
Below are the highlights of the interview:
Kathy, kindly brief our audience about your journey as a business leader until your current position at EY. What challenges have you had to overcome to reach where you are today?
Upon graduation with MBA from York University in Canada, I joined Celestica, a Canadian outsourced electronics manufacturing company. I began as a cost analyst for the Chief Procurement Officer, who then asked me to help start up a procurement office in Switzerland, which is when I transitioned into a procurement manager role. Over time, I worked my way up and was eventually promoted to director level, which brought forth challenges such as working in a “24 hours a day, seven days a week” environment and managing the cost and availability of critical manufacturing parts, especially during shortages or unforeseen supplier factory issues.
I met my husband while in Switzerland and decided to take a step back from my role at Celestica to relocate to the UK. I then joined Tesco as a Corporate Procurement Manager for Technology, including retail hardware, software and services. It was extremely rewarding to see the solutions I procured together with technology stakeholders come to life in the market.
Around the time my son was born in 2010, I realized I wanted to take my valuable experience and work for a global organization with a strong brand in the market … and the rest is history!
I started my journey with the EY organization over 10 years ago and have spent the entirety of my EY career in Supply Chain Services (SCS). I assumed my current
role of Procurement & Supplier Ecosystem Services Leader in July 2022, managing the global spend categories of Talent, Technology, Brand, Marketing and Communications (BMC) across the organization, from sourcing inception to full contract lifecycle management of our supplier relationships.
I believe my past experiences have helped me to develop a truly global mindset. Being raised by Chinese immigrant parents, developing my professional skills as a woman in the technology sector and in positions of leadership, and working in offices and with people all over the world have provided me with the agility to adapt to change and transformation on my career path.
Tell us something more about your organization and its mission and vision.
The purpose of the EY organization is to build a better working world. The insights and services the organization provides help to drive long-term value for clients, people and society and to build trust in the capital markets. An essential function under EY Business Enablement, SCS is a global team with more than 600 professionals in over 35 countries supporting the EY organization globally.
Our structure helps enable knowledge sharing across categories and regions, which streamlines efforts in seeking innovative suppliers that can provide exceptional client service to maximize SCS’s value for the EY organization and the world's supply chain.
Under EY SCS sits Procurement & Supplier Ecosystem Services (PSES), whose purpose is to drive more significant synergies and value creation from sourcing to contract lifecycle management, deliver exceptional client experiences and build more vital collaboration to manage Technology, Talent and BMC spend categories. We forge meaningful supplier relationships and strengthen supplier resilience to help EY maximize long-term value for its people, clients and communities.
Enlighten us on how you have impacted the procurement sector through your expertise in the market.
A crucial part of PSES success and collaboration with the business is our Center of Excellence (CoE) model, which is made up of virtual teams of category professionals that actively gather, develop, share and apply knowledge to a global category, collaborating
with stakeholders and groups to drive long-term value and execution across the EY organization.
Our CoEs cover the following key Talent and Technology spend areas including Automotive Mobility, Cybersecurity, Health and Insurance, Human Capital, Learning and Development, Managed Services, Professional Services, Rewards and Benefits, Software, and Telecoms.
The CoEs continue to grow and raise the bar of the art of the possible through the delivery of innovation, integration, simplification and realization of value. They are also continually recognized outside of the EY organization for their efforts.
Recently, EY Global Automotive Mobility CoE Lead Marc Wittenberg was recognized as the winner of Mobility Management Event's 2022 Mobility Manager of the Year and the Fleet Europe Awards 2022 European Smart Mobility Manager of the Year. Additionally, EY Global PSES CoE sponsor, Jelle Hoogendoorn spoke with The Hackett Group in September 2022 on PSES' multiyear CoE transformation and the value of the concept.
Describe in detail the values and the work culture that drive your organization.
While PSES strongly emphasizes the importance of operational excellence, brand value and quantitative value, our most important asset is our EY people. With that in mind, the entire SCS leadership team strives to provide our people with the resources they need to thrive personally and professionally.
The SCS Wellbeing Network, established in 2019, is a network of members across all categories and teams within SCS including PSES, Real Estate, Travel, Meetings & Events, Environmental, Social, Governance and Enablement, and Source to Settle Enablement. It aims to equip our EY people with the knowledge and support they need to care for and prioritize their emotional, financial, physical and social well-being. Led by PSES team member Maria Harrison, this network runs wellness sessions and challenges and connects with EY Talent to share knowledge and help disseminate the wealth of resources offered across the EY organization to our EY people. We strongly value our EY people and aim to cultivate an environment that allows for open communication, transparency and care.
Undeniably, technology is playing a significant role in almost every sector. How are you leveraging
The organization has the right team to drive and help deliver continued results together, for whatever the future may hold.
technological advancements to make your solutions resourceful?
There are several technological developments that PSES has brought to life over the past year, with one of them being the SmartSpend app, an internal application built by our Enablement team (led by Dan Jenkins and with the technical knowledge of Michael Roche), that allows sourcing managers to quickly and efficiently help manage Spend under Management data. The Enablement team has also been instrumental in driving innovation within PSES by creating a Commercials application, providing instant access to financial spend information and executing its continuous improvements to enhance the user experience.
Another fundamental way in which our team is utilizing technology to simplify the way we work is the recent implementation of a SCS Smart Landing Page, on which any EY internal stakeholder can submit a sourcing request and be quickly completed through faster buying channels or be directed to the right team to drive the sourcing process for an overall smooth and seamless stakeholder experience. Created in collaboration with the Source to Settle Enablement team, the goals of implementing this enhanced landing page include enhanced supplier due diligence and engagement with diverse suppliers, vital consistency across the sourcing process and an overall simplified experience of working with SCS.
What change would you like to bring to the procurement industry if given a chance?
One change I would like to bring to the industry would be continuously raising the procurement brand internally and externally. Procurement is often seen as a cost-cutting department. However, at EY, we strive to help deliver long-term value through strong CoE excellence, process efficiencies and innovation. We act as a trustworthy, trusted business advisor and genuinely global function and also think on a local scale. This is what we call brand value: going beyond the quantitative value of procurement and supplier relationship management by thinking strategically, implementing transformation and adding value in other ways in collaborating with our stakeholders. Working with smaller diverse suppliers, attending supplier pitch events for minority-owned businesses and working collaboratively with our Environmental Social Governance and Enablement Services team to continue raising the bar and building a Better Working World are all ways by which we drive brand value.
Our PSES team leads the charge in striving to provide internal and external stakeholders, clients, and vendors with the ultimate experience, and we drive and foster long-term and mutually beneficial relationships; this is a game-changer in positioning the procurement industry in the best possible light as we experience an everchanging environment.
What, according to you, could be the next significant change in the procurement sector? How is your organization preparing to be a part of that change?
Leveraging technological advancements to strengthen the procurement experience internally and externally is the change I expect to see in the sector. The EY organization is already demonstrating internal changes, particularly in the Enablement function of PSES, regarding supplier experience.
We are continually raising the bar to become a digitally enabled function that attracts the absolute best talent. We have prioritized collaboration with our technology supplier, SAP, reducing the administrative burden on our sourcing managers' daily tasks by 80% through a relentless pursuit of innovation. The success of this initiative was highlighted during the 2022 SAP North America Customer Advocacy Day.
To provide a smooth and streamlined onboarding and collaboration experience for our suppliers, we are also preparing for a new, game-changing supplier experience portal that will dramatically simplify the way suppliers work with the complex EY organization. The supplier experience portal will help enable complete transparency in our supplier relationships, will incorporate all facets of the onboarding process and include operational steps required by various functions across the business into one centralized location for an enhanced and connected onboarding experience. With a June-August 2023 launch, we are already experiencing a huge interest in the platform from both internal stakeholders and external clients, so watch this space!
Additionally, the EY organization recently announced plans to potentially separate into two distinct, multidisciplinary organizations, and I believe that what we have achieved over the past 10-plus years in SCS has placed us in a position of strength to wholly support this exciting transformation.
Where do you envision yourself in the long run, and what are your future goals for EY?
I am fortunate that my career has always been centered around my passion for procurement. I am excited about the potential EY organizational restructure and the opportunity to be a part of something that only happens once in a lifetime at this scale. PSES has made a significant effort to achieve giant steps, supporting all of our business units. We have the right team to drive and help deliver continued results together, whatever the future may hold.
What would be your advice to budding entrepreneurs who aspire to venture into the procurement sector?
The EY organization is well known for fostering entrepreneurship, holding the "EY Entrepreneur Of The Year" global program that recognizes entrepreneurial achievement among individuals and companies demonstrating vision, leadership, and success.
A few tips for budding entrepreneurs aspiring to excel in the supply chain world – be part of teams that:
Ÿ Empower and encourage change
Ÿ Make employees feel like partners family
Ÿ Create a safe environment to share ideas
Ÿ Demonstrate a creative culture
Ÿ Are always open to mini-failures!
I’ve been fortunate to find this at the EY organization and we strive to support budding professionals. Since 2018, PSES has helped develop young, budding talent by bringing on board 25 interns to date. During the recruitment process, we seek out students who have demonstrated entrepreneurial flair – their activities and university studies have ranged from a "side hustle" homemade holiday card business to fitness coaching!
Our interns have brought enormous levels of creative energy and enthusiasm to the SCS team. We challenge each student to think differently and challenge the established way of doing things here. While with us, they all build a robust network and develop various skills for the future, including facilitation, supply chain, and consulting methodologies. In a working world competing for the best people, the intern initiative helps promote the EY organization to the brightest students and create new opportunities so that these entrepreneurial students may become EY leaders of the future.
Diana Monterrubio, Procurement Global Strategic Director Teleperformance
As data is a big part of daily business, so is communication. I know this is a struggle that all global companies have, but improving communication and our channels for it is key to improving all human interactions.
For businesses, the customer is king, and
communication is key. Each and every customer is precious to a company, and that necessitates that customer interaction with the company is good as possible. It is, as the slogan of Teleperformance says, ‘every interaction matters.’
Teleperformance is a worldwide leader in outsourced omnichannel customer experience management. By offering customer assistance, technical help, customer acquisition, digital solutions, analytics, back-office, and other specialized services to guarantee constantly great customer encounters, it connects the biggest and most reputable brands on the planet with their customers.
Its Procurement Worldwide Strategic Director , Diana Monterrubio , is responsible for managing global negotiations for all Teleperformance Regions and overseeing procurement standards from a global standpoint. She communicates with the legal division on global agreements for hardware, software, networking, voice, and other types of technology. In order to help local buyers and CIOs fulfill deadlines for international projects, she also looks at operational demands as reported by country or regional CIOs.
In an exclusive interview with CIOLook , Diana shares her insights into the changing dynamic landscape of the Procurement industry.
Below are the highlights of the interview:
Brief our audience about your journey as a business leader until your current position at your company. What challenges have you had to overcome to reach where you are today?
I started in Teleperformance, taking customer service calls as an agent. Growing up in this company has always been a challenge, but it has been a great school for me. Thanks to that, I understand the importance of understanding your business and how it operates.
Tell us something more about your company and its mission and vision.
Each interaction matters, and Teleperformance is committed to making everyone feel heard.
Enlighten us on how you have impacted the procurement niche through your expertise in the market.
I believe the market has impacted me. It has changed so much in the last few years that it is amazing. Three years ago, the world changed, and then, it changed again. Keeping up with it has given me the ability to problem solve better and feel confident when negotiating with my clients.
Describe in detail the values and the work culture that drives your organization.
I believe I can summarize those. We provide a great workplace that is diverse, equal, and inclusive. We
strive for a code and policies that align with the United Nations Global Compact principles.
Undeniably, technology is playing a significant role in almost every sector. How are you leveraging technological advancements to make your solutions resourceful?
Data visualization and standardization are key to achieving automation, especially in the BPO business. We are starting to see a huge tendency toward cloud migration to make info accessible and easier to reach. However, this can only be achieved in a safe matter with the correct cybersecurity improvements, like firewalls and reliable VPNs. Data is key, but how we access and protect it is the best way to leverage technology.
What change would you like to bring to your industry if given a chance?
As data is a big part of daily business, so is communication. I know this is a struggle that all global companies have, but improving communication and our channels for it is key to improving all human interactions.
What, according to you, could be the next significant change in the procurement sector? How is your company preparing to be a part of that change?
Change is not going away in this virtual era. However, the current work environment brings unique challenges. I do believe that Procurement leads to crisis recovery efforts. In the past, we have tackled crises with strategies to recover from financial effects. Now we are dealing with a changed world with high levels of inflation, where we need to be creative and preserve resources as we strive to maintain prices and contracts. In my case, I must mention the shortages that were created by the volatile demand in the tech sector, so anticipating our needs and forecasting is key to navigating the current global situation.
Where do you envision yourself to be in the long run, and what are your future goals for your company?
I believe in the tech sector. I am going to be surprised over and over by how the market changes and adapts to our needs. My goal is to navigate these waters in the best possible way.
What would be your advice to budding entrepreneurs who aspire to venture into the procurement sector?
Make a plan and think of what is important to you and how you can use that for your own business. Once you have a plan, the market will change it, model it and complement it. Prepare yourself to learn and to keep on making changes to the original plan, but always remember who you were when you planned it.
Technology today is evolving at a rapid pace,
enabling faster change and progress, causing an acceleration of the rate of change. However, it is not only technology trends and emerging technologies that are evolving, a lot more has changed this year due to the outbreak of COVID-19 making business leaders realize the importance of the contactless world tomorrow. Futuristic leaders are constantly learning, unlearning, and relearning the evolving technologies.
Datafication or data management has been transforming several aspects into devices or software powered by data. The modification of human activities and tasks into data-driven technology. From our smartphones, industrial machines, and office applications to AI-powered appliances and everything else, is all is recorded in the form of data. The data is analysed and processed for various inferences to help in business decisions.
Artificial intelligence will become more prevalent in 2023 with natural language processing and machine learning advancement. Artificial intelligence can better understand us and perform more complex tasks using this technology. AI is already known for its superiority in image and speech recognition, navigation apps,
smartphone personal assistants, ride-sharing apps and so much more. AI will be used further to analyse interactions to determine underlying connections and insights, to help predict demand for services like hospitals enabling authorities to make better decisions about resource utilization and to detect the changing patterns of customer behaviour by analysing data in near real-time, driving revenues and enhancing personalized experiences.
3D printing is a key trend in innovation and technology used to formulate prototypes. This technology has been impactful in the biomedical and industrial sectors. Printing a real object from a printer is a reality. 3D printing is another innovation that’s going to be a big enhancer. Companies in the data and healthcare sector that require a lot of 3D printing for their products, offer increasing opportunities for innovation and product research.
RPA is the modern software technology that makes it easy to build, deploy, and manage software robots that emulate human actions interacting with digital systems and software. Similar to people, software robots can do things like comprehending the displayed data and graphics, navigating through the systems, reading, identifying, and extracting data, analysing the data and providing specific conclusions, and performing a wide range of defined actions. The best part of the RPA is software robots can do it faster and more consistently than people, without taking tea or lunch breaks.
Virtual reality and Augmented reality have exciting potential in the future of gaming, marketing, ecommerce, education, and many other fields. Both technologies are known for their enriched experience that brings together a virtual world and the real one with enhanced, 3-D visuals in a comprehensive digital environment. The technology has enabled people in applying visualization skills in creating a virtual world that allows the users to experience participation through their complete journey in the dynamic world.
Blockchain technology comprises a distributed database or ledger that is shared among the nodes of a computer network. The database is stored in the blockchain electronically in digital format. Blockchains became known for their role in cryptocurrency systems, such as Bitcoin, for maintaining a secure and decentralized record of transactions. The innovation of a blockchain is that it guarantees the fidelity and security of recorded data and generates trust without the need for trusted third-party support.
A blockchain collects information together in groups, known as blocks, that hold sets of information. These blocks have certain storage capacities and, when filled, are closed and linked to the previously filled block, forming a chain of data known as the blockchain. All new information that follows that freshly added block is compiled into a newly formed block that will then also be added to the chain once filled. The structure is very micro-knit and complex in its interconnected level, making it complicated in the broader perspective and thus securing it completely forming the best fortification.
The Internet of things (IoT) comprises physical objects with sensors, processing ability, software, and other technologies that connect and exchange data with other devices and systems over the Internet or other communications networks. Internet of things has been considered a misnomer because devices connect with each other without having to connect to the public internet, they only need to be connected to a network, and be individually addressable.
The realization of having smart homes and smart offices has been made possible by the sensor-mounted devices that sense and analyse the presence of the number of people in the room and switch ON the lights and the air conditioning system and regulate the temperature. Similarly, with the departure of the last member, all the electrical appliances are switched off thereby saving huge amounts of energy and costs.
mplementing over two decades of experience, along I with a high sense of responsibility and focus, Harold Hendrickx launched TransExecutive to help companies with their purchasing or procurement functions.
Harold loves to solve other people's business challenges and help them overcome their problems to achieve their goals. He provides structure and clarity and takes the complexity out for his clients. Harold is direct in his communication, appropriately and respectfully, and can understand and engage with people from top to floor, adjusting his leadership and communication style.
We caught up with Harold and discussed on ideologies behind the inception of TransExecutive and where it heads in the future.
Below are the highlights of the interview:
Brief our audience about your journey as a business leader until your current position at your company. What challenges have you had to overcome to reach where you are today?
My career started in the military, working as a Senior Officer in the Royal Netherlands Air Force and NATO in various roles and environments and with people with a variety of cultural backgrounds. I learned a lot about leadership and how to deliver missions.
After 20 years, the entrepreneur in me decided to set up my business with my best friend, flying fixed-wing drones in the private sector. However, we were years too early as regulations at that time became highly restrictive. Our business model didn't fit that framework, and we had to change our courses.
I was head-hunted to come work for DS Smith, an FTSE100 company, global sustainable packaging solution provider, B2B to companies like Amazon, Unilever, Nestle, etc. DS Smith has been very successful and has rapidly grown through acquisitions. The
procurement function was scattered and divided and needed catch-up and step-up phases to be able to support the business. I was asked to manage that transformation as Transformation Director.
The transformation was delivered right before the Covid-19 pandemic hit the world, which proved it to be a success: the function kept the business running during the pandemic. It was in close coordination to manage and overcome the challenges in the supply base. After delivering the transformation, I decided that this is my mission in my career: enabling, optimizing, and transforming procurement functions for rapidly growing companies. I set up my own business, TransExecutive, to be able to help companies with their purchasing or procurement function, drive for nothing less than excellence and achieve exceptional results.
Tell us something more about your company and its mission and vision.
The vision for TransExecutive is about speed, accuracy, and delivering results for our clients.
We help mid-to-large-size companies lead through critical procurement optimization projects to achieve procurement excellence that controls costs, cooperative suppliers, supply continuity, reliable systems, and embeds sustainability.
We position ourselves as The Procurement Task Force and consider ourselves the Enabler, Optimizer & Transformer for our clients, seemingly integrating into their ways-of- of working while they focus on delivering their business-as-usual activities. We have an expanding network of procurement, change, and project management professionals, supporting fastgrowing mid- to large-size businesses by applying military precision & practices to achieve their procurement goals rapidly.
Enlighten us on how you have impacted the procurement niche through your expertise in the market.
We apply concepts from the military in the procurement space. Concepts like Dynamic Teaming, War/Situation Rooming, The Commander's Intent, Plan-don't-over-Plan, and Situational Leadership are prevalent in the Military. They are fundamental enablers and accelerators for the commercial sector as well. That is the uniqueness we bring to help our clients.
Describe in detail the values and the work culture that drives your organization.
We live by our H.E.A.R.T. values: Honesty, Embrace, Authenticity, Respect, and Trustworthiness, and these are driving our relationships, whether that is internal or with partners and clients. These values are crucial to delivering on our promises. We need to blend into the ways of working and culture of our clients to be able to hit the ground running and deliver tangible results fast; hence we set "embrace" as one of our values.
We are a network of professionals and see and feel the complementary spirit as a team. We got each other's back and stepped in to support each other. We are ambassadors of extreme ownership and respect; we are humans and make mistakes; it is about taking ownership of that mistake and fixing it. Together. We have always succeeded in delivering because of this mindset. We came out stronger every time.
Undeniably, technology is playing a significant role in almost every sector. How are you leveraging technological advancements to make your solutions resourceful?
We see technology as a true enabler, not a leading topic. Why? Ultimately it is a process outcome that delivers value. Technology is there to enable, accelerate, automate or guide that process, but the starting point is, and must always be the process.
We have developed the Four-Sided Triangle Model©, which can guarantee a proper balance between the starting point: the
“ “
process and governance, ownership, and technology. If you focus too much on one element, you will fail to achieve your objectives and results.
For that reason, we always say: "Digital Transformation Doesn't Exist," which is thought-provoking and might not be entirely accurate. However, it is to make sure people think beyond technology and understand that the other elements are needed to be successful.
We are 100% independent when it comes to (procurement) technology solutions providers, and our guarantee to our clients is that we will recommend and help with the selection and implementation of best-fortheir-business technology solutions from that independent position.
What change would you like to bring to your industry if given a chance?
The procurement sector isn't as established and recognized as Sales, Marketing, Finance, IT, or HR as a supporting function, which is incorrect. Procurement is a vital, crucial and essential function for a business. Most people think it is about reducing prices, which everyone could do. But it is not; when correctly done, it delivers on five value drivers:
Ÿ Save Money
Ÿ Make Money
Ÿ Save Time
Ÿ Reduce Complexity
Ÿ Support the Ambition of the Business
It is a pivotal strategic function directly inputting into achieving business goals. Procurement is getting the recognition it deserves. In the last years, the image has changed, with the need to manage supply continuity, quality assurance of supply, and inflation mitigation strategies.
Also, Procurement requires specific skills, competencies, and capabilities, like Relationship Management and Negotiation, for example.
However, when it comes to optimizing, enabling, and transforming a procurement function, other skills and competencies are required Strategic Thinking, ResultDriven, Analytics, Project Management, etc. In other words, your best negotiator is not necessarily your best enabler, change, or project manager.
Where do you envision yourself in the long run, and what are your future goals for your company?
TransExecutive will continue to grow and expand to serve clients worldwide. With new challenges come new solutions, and we will be on the front foot to design new answers and solutions for our clients. We will continue to widen our network of professionals and partners to provide a customized and tailored approach to our client's unique situations.
TransExecutive will, besides enabling the Procurement functions of our clients to excellence, also expand our services to support other support functions and business development and growth. We are to look at integrated business processes to enable, optimize, improve and transform, so it makes sense to expand how we can help our clients on that axis. An end-to-end approach will be more and more our focus to help our clients to grow, expand and be scalable.
Several business organizations struggle to improve the situation in the organization. A change in the leadership approach can be an effective alternative. A new approach to transformational leadership has emerged as a game-changing methodology that has brought about the change internally across the departments changing the complete work culture through enhancements in quality, services, communication, employee efficiency, and increase in customer satisfaction. Several business organizations have effectively implemented transformational leadership and have reached higher levels of success.
The new leadership approach aims at implementing process optimization systems that identify and record the present work structure and highlight the areas of improvement by bifurcating the activities and the time taken. Defining the quality levels, the teams are directed in working with care, focus and responsibility to reduce errors and operational losses. It also guides people in minimizing the wastage of raw materials, consumables, and product damages during operational procedures. Employees are involved in product development activities where they can contribute with greater involvement and efficiency. The team members are encouraged to participate in enhancing the product attributes from the basic utility purpose to refining the
aesthetics, look and feel and packaging as well.
Service plays a vital role in the modern business world. Several businesses become complacent with the sales figures brought in. However, the sales demand prompt and enthusiastic customer service. This includes product delivery, demonstration, installation, client orientation about the product, and all the details. The service includes attending to customer queries, doubts, and complaints (if any) with an open and patient attitude. Good customer service helps in understanding product performance, ascertaining the functional aspects, and generating customer goodwill. Prompt and timely service helps calm the aggressive and demanding customers eventually making them loyal well-wishers of the organization. The service category has the potential of raking in approximately 17% of repeat orders and 12% of orders from the references of satisfied customers.
People join business organizations for working for their livelihood and for learning some new aspects of the industry. But what retains them is the captivating code of ethics. Companies that have a strong foundation of values create a sense of oneness with the employees. The workforce feels organized, motivated and rightly
channelized. Working on their specific departmental KRAs, the employees bond with the organization emotionally and psychologically. The vision statement showcases where the company is aiming at and so the employees too work with a motivated mindset. Mission statement and the quality policy instruct and guide the employees, associates, and the industry on how the company is going forward with its implementation of the plans.
Everyone works for their KRAs but the prominent contributors are those who go beyond the basics to achieve the extraordinary. Not just through a handful of ambitious performers, transformational leadership puts forth a clear goal-based work model for guiding the employees in working in the right direction. The goal-based thinking helps employees to prioritize their tasks and work efficiently. This leads to better team bonding and team spirit for working together and completing the scheduled targets collectively. It makes everyone accountable and responsible with a higher value for the time. The major reason why the sales teams are very efficient departments is basically due to their goal-based forward thinking.
Customers need to be communicated about the product and services clearly. The next follow-ups regarding the maintenance, service renewal, accessories and part changeover, and feedback from the clients are very necessary. Regular communication helps in several aspects of conveying the requirements, getting to understand the customer needs, Customer Relationship Management (CRM) has emerged as an important function that has added to approximately 27% of the business from the old and existing customers. Steady engagement with the customers aims to fulfill their requirements, address their queries, and build trust in the organization.
Consistent communication has attributed to the success of the business over the competitors offering similar brackets of products or services. Even the vendors and associates value communication and strive to enrich the association with their valuable inputs, ideas, and contributions for new market opportunities.
The entire culture of the organization undergoes a fundamental change of attitude toward looking at the work. With the steady rise in product quality, service, and efficiency, the customers get their expected returns within the committed time frames. Their purpose getting fulfilled, and customers feel valued and respected. This valuable customer satisfaction proves very useful in creating a league of loyal customer base. Satisfied customers offer valuable references of other clients thereby contributing to the growing business. The word of mouth publicity happens through satisfied and happy customers who have been associated with the organization for a long period of time.
My mission is to transform the way people negotiate complex contracts with strategic suppliers, shifting from an adversarial stance to a more cooperative, or even a collaborative, approach by offering standard and customized learning programs.
Jeanette Nyden Negotiation Expert Nyden On Negotiation www.jnyden.com
With a straightforward approach to teaching
non-lawyers on both the buy and sell-side how to negotiate , Jeanette Nyden is making a significant difference in the business world.
As the Negotiation Expert at Nyden On Negotiation , Jeanette shares her talent to deliver best-in-class results to her clients. To further her commitment to enhancing customer/supplier relationships, one contract at a time, she has devoted her career to researching and writing about improving one's negotiation skills. Each of her four books addresses topics to help supply chain professionals negotiate high-performing complex contracts.
We caught up with Jeanette and discussed her professional journey, training classes, and future goals.
Below are the highlights of the interview:
Brief our audience about your journey as a business leader. What challenges have you had to overcome to reach where you are today?
Like many of my clients, I never dreamed I'd support procurement. In law school, I wanted to be a hotshot litigator. The book A Time to Kill was published while I was working as an intern serving underprivileged people through the court system. I learned more about negotiating deals doing that work than anyone can imagine. I moved to Chicago and started negotiating business deals for debtor companies in bankruptcy court. That's where my negotiation skills shined. After a few years, a client told me that he wished I could teach his team to do the same after successfully negotiating a business deal quickly, without all the drama he was accustomed to.
A light bulb went off, and my journey teaching non-
lawyers how to negotiate complex contracts started. But, in those days, law schools did not teach business classes. So, I joined a peer mentoring group, Vistage™, and learned from others more skilled at running a business than I was.
It was not just the lack of knowledge about running a company that challenged me. I adopted two kiddos from foster care 11 years ago. I put my negotiation skills to work at dinner, bath, and bedtime! I wrote three books during that time and got zero sleep. My passion for negotiating mutual gain agreements is so strong that I persevered. One daughter is now an adult, and my youngest lives at home. She is a world-class negotiator too!
Tell us something more about your company and its mission and vision.
My mission is to transform how non-lawyers negotiate complex contracts -- from an adversarial to cooperative, or even a collaborative, approach by offering turn-key and customized learning programs.
I am both an attorney and a mediator. Those two roles use very different negotiation skills to reach their aim. I learned from my business clients that they wanted their non-legal team members to use the legal department less frequently to negotiate legal terms and conditions. What I understood as a mediator is that to be successful, those non-lawyer team members needed to broaden their negotiation toolkit to include cooperative and collaborative skills necessary to work out terms and conditions with the other company.
This is because the non-lawyers will work off and on with the other company over the contract term. An adversarial negotiation approach will undermine the relationship's value. Therefore, my vision is to upskill
contract negotiators by creating and providing best-inclass training, tools, and resources so that even nonlawyers can negotiate fair, balanced, and risk-free agreements for their organizations.
Enlighten us on how you have impacted the procurement niche through your expertise in the market.
I helped develop the most innovative approach to contracting in two decades. Through my collaboration with Kate Vitasek, a professor at the University of Tennessee, the Vested™ philosophy was distilled into an approachable guide to drafting and negotiating complex business agreements in our book The Vested Outsourcing Manual: A Guide for Creating Successful Business and Outsourcing Agreements. In our next book, Getting to We: Negotiating Agreements for Highly Collaborative Relationships, we proved that collaboration is good for business. Through our books and consulting projects, many companies have increased the value of their customer/supplier relationships. A few years ago, I co-authored another book, The Contract Professional's Playbook: The Definitive Guide to Maximizing Value through Master of Performance-and Outcome-based Contracting to help further the new generation of procurement professionals negotiate complex contracts with accuracy, nuance, and confidence.
Procurement professionals are so often told to do more with less. People feel more confident negotiating complex agreements when they are trained. That confidence directly translates into more time to work on the deals that provide value rather than spinning their wheels on stalled deals. Procurement is doing more because they are empowered to do a better job. For example, a client went from being a self-conscious, average negotiator who had not negotiated large deals in her role to being promoted to manage a team of 3 in a nine-month timeframe after participating in my training class and working with me during negotiations for a very complex deal.
Describe in detail the values and the work culture that drives your organization.
My passion is to change the way people negotiate. I tell my clients that they cannot change the other negotiator. If I had the secret to changing other people, I'd be a multi-billionaire by teaching the world how to
change other people! Rather, people can dramatically improve outcomes by changing the way they negotiate. All of my work, whether in negotiation playbooks, training programs, or books, gives people access to appropriate tools and techniques for the situation. By choosing the right techniques for the situation, people can influence people to reach a mutually beneficial agreement.
Clients choose to work with my company because we partner with your company to deliver exactly what your team wants and needs to enhance their skill sets. By paying attention to contract details and understanding supply chain issues in general, the training programs provide people with the skills they need for their dayto-day duties. And, once people are empowered with techniques, tools, and a customized playbook, they are much more likely to use the techniques, tools, and playbook long after the training ends.
Undeniably, technology is playing a significant role in almost every sector. How are you leveraging technological advancements to make your solutions resourceful?
Twenty years ago, when I started offering contract negotiation training courses, companies would bring me out to their sites for two or three days of in-person training. Today, I offer self-paced, online training programs delivered over a Learning Management System. Technology allows so many more people to access valuable, career-changing training programs all across the world. No need to travel.
No need to leave their tasks undone for days on end. Easy access to training in bite-sized learning segments also allows people more immediate access to the answer to their questions. Technology allows me to work directly with people worldwide, providing strategic advisory services over web conferencing platforms. And, in the not-too-distant future, people will increasingly use A.I. to negotiate with the other party.
What change would you like to bring to the procurement industry if given a chance?
I dream of the day that procurement contract professionals have the confidence and skills to negotiate cooperatively, if not collaboratively, with
their organization's strategic suppliers. Long gone are the days of procurement's "golden rule," which translated into the adversarial negotiation style of "if my company has the gold, then it makes all the rules." The supply chain environment has changed, and procurement must adopt different skills to match the current reality. The skills procurement needs today are more facilitative, cooperative, and strategic. And, let's face it, if procurement cannot move up the value chain to become a strategic partner, we'll lose our proverbial seat at the table and risk being outsourced or automated out of existence.
What, according to you, could be the next significant change in the procurement sector? How is your company preparing to be a part of that change?
The next significant change is negotiating with artificial intelligence. On my podcast, I recently interviewed Antonio Ancora, Adjunct-Lecturer in Negotiation Luxembourg Centre for Logistics and Supply Chain Management, about his college students' experiences negotiating with artificial intelligence. Never fear; we will not see the wholesale replacement of procurement negotiators in the next year or two. However, what is currently being negotiated now and in the future is what one client called "the difficult and the ugly."
These high-risk, high-value relationships offer out-ofthe-box solutions that A.I. cannot yet be programmed to negotiate and likely never will. True supplier-driven innovation requires strategic, out-of-the-box conversations. People will still need to negotiate the terms of those relationships using data collected through A.I. I am sure that in my children's lifetime, A.I. will have developed to the point that many of the contracts people negotiate today can and will be negotiated by A.I. programs to reach a satisfactory resolution.
For 20 years, I've been fortunate enough to offer nonlawyers who are newer to negotiating complex contracts the tools, techniques, and skills they need to reach mutually beneficial agreements. Mahatma Gandhi once said, "Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever." The tools, skills, and techniques people need will change and evolve again and again as the supply change environment and
the use of A.I. changes which, what, and how people negotiate contracts.
I look forward to another 20 years supporting procurement professionals' lifelong learning journeys.
What would be your advice to budding entrepreneurs who aspire to venture into the procurement sector?
I always ask my clients if they grew up wanting to pursue a procurement career, negotiating contracts. Not too many people say, "yes, I did." However, almost all the people I am fortunate enough to work with have happy, thriving careers because they are not just performing repetitive buys. They are helping to shape their organization's future by developing mutually beneficial relationships with their organization's strategic suppliers.
But, to have that happy, thriving career, people must learn new skills and be willing to change how they interact with internal stakeholders and suppliers to succeed. It is not a one-size-fits-all world anymore, but for those ready to embrace the skills necessary to move up the value chain, procurement can be a fantastic place to work.
