COLLABORATION, INNOVATION AND THE INTERNET OF PRODUCTION ACCORDING TO WIKIFACTORY’S CHRISTINA REBEL
After two years of virtual learning and networking, it’s time to unite the industry in person again.
More than ever, procurement executives are driving the commercial stability of their organisations. Balancing digital innovations and sustainable initiatives against a backdrop of global instability and spiraling prices isn’t easy, but you’ve got this.
With inspirational keynotes, small-group interactive learning, fun networking events and hundreds of peers to connect with, we can’t wait to welcome you back to ProcureCon.
Fall in love with Barcelona!
27-29
September, 2022
Hyatt Regency
Barcelona Tower, Spain
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If there’s a word that sums up this issue – that sums up the rapid and ongoing evolution as a key strategic business function – it’s purpose. For too long procurement has been about cost savings, buying, and a single-minded approach to work. But no more. The modern procurement organisation is different; it is proactive, embeds itself in the heart of the organisation and uses its skills and capabilities to add value and drive innovation. Perhaps most importantly, it takes the lead on pushing forward change in areas such as sustainability and ESG.
That’s true of all our contributors to this issue. And, irrespective of what that greater purpose is, there’s a sense of ambition, of a collective drive to offer more and show just what’s capable that brings a cohesiveness to their stories. Take Danone North America’s Axel Lundstrom as a great example. During his time at the
business the scope of work that falls into procurement’s lap has grown significantly. The result, he says, is the development of a business function that’s rapidly emerging as a key powerhouse of strategic effectiveness that’s playing a vital role in moving the organisation forward.
You’ll find the same sense of purpose elsewhere in our executive interviews with OU Health’s Josh Bakelaar, Mark Anway and Ray Rasmussen, who are leading a total supply chain transformation programme, or Capgemini’s Dico Van Dijk and Arthur Langezaal and their role in extending the capabilities and skills of leading procurement departments worldwide. All are great examples of the kind of power that can be leveraged – as well as the impressive results that can be achieved – when we collectively look beyond the norm and push to be our very best.
Enjoy this issue and let it inspire you, wherever you are on your own journey.
Matt Content Director Matt High Creative Directors Daniel Crawford Steve Shipley Marketing Director Jack Pascall Project Director
Manuel Navarro
Project Director
Katie Fedun
Managing Directors
Charlotte Clarke
James Pepper
54 | INTERVIEW PROVIS
On procurement excellence and being ‘match fit’
72 | INNOVATION CROUCHING TIGER
Yes. A real life transformer…
78 | INTERVIEW DANONE
On procurement as a strategic powerhouse
90 | DISRUPTOR MAGWAY
Faster, more energy efficient, sustainable transport
92 | INTERVIEW OU HEALTH
On leading a total healthcare supply chain transformation
106 | CITY GUIDE
48 HRS: LEUVEN
Business and pleasure in the Belgian city
114 | CALENDAR EVENTS
The best events for 2022
PepsiCo has committed to spending more than $400m with Black and Hispanic owned suppliers as part of its pep+ agenda to create growth and shared value with sustainability and human capital at the centre. The brand recently celebrated the 40th anniversary of its Supplier Diversity Program, through which it currently spends more than $1bn annually with certified, diverse suppliers. It has also pledged to continue to remove barriers to economic advancement and diversify its spend through partnerships, advocacy and mentorship.
www.pepsico.com
Procurement has the opportunity to play a leading role in many of the biggest challenges that organisations face, from recruiting top talent and enabling unique customer experiences to tackling unethical labour practices and reaching net-zero. But, says Accenture, many functions still dedicate too much time and resources to traditional activities. Smart organisations, it adds, are aligning their procurement functions across six dimensions of value including financial, talent, inclusion and diversity, risk and sustainability.
www.accenture.com
In addressing supply chain sustainability, a centralised supplier sustainability monitoring programme is crucial in proactively identifying risk and helping suppliers progress their own sustainability journey. According to EcoVadis, five factors should be considered by supply chain leaders seeking to adopt:
1. Does it enable you to navigate risks across a broad range of industries and regions?
2. Does it cover a comprehensive range of sustainability topics in its assessment?
3. Does it facilitate universal comparison and provide actionable insights?
4. How easily can you integrate the solution into your existing procurement processes?
5. What services are available for programme and change management, onboarding and facilitating supplier improvement?
www.ecovadis.com
Amazon and EV manufacturer Rivian will begin using thousands of custom electric delivery vehicles in cities across the US by the end of the year, in a rollout that will contribute to the brand’s commitment to have 100,000 on the road by 2030. The vehicles are the product of Amazon’s ongoing partnership with Rivian and designed from the ground-up with safety, sustainability and comfort in mind. Amazon has been testing the Rivian delivery vehicles since 2021, delivering more than 430,000 packages and accumulating over 90,000 miles. Says Amazon CEO Andy Jassy: “Fighting the effects of climate change requires constant innovation and action, and Amazon is partnering with companies who share our passion for inventing new ways to minimize our impact on the environment.”
www.aboutamazon.com
Safety focused design with 360-degree visibility and driver/pedestrian safety features
First-of-its-kind embedded delivery workflow integration technology to manage deliveries automatically Driver experience enhancement technology
Sensor detection, highway and traffic assist technology, automatic emergency braking system, adaptive cruise control
With hybrid cloud the new reality for enterprises, challenges can be found in moving from mere adoption to unlocking true transformational value. In a recent IBM fireside chat Senior Vice President of Consulting John Grainger and Ted Schadler, Vice President and Principal Analyst at Forrester Research said the rush to get workloads into the cloud had created a ‘frankencloud’ approach with multiple cloud platforms and greater complexity. They proposed enterprises move to a single hybrid cloud platform, design the architecture from a client-centric point of view and ensure that it works in coordination with wider transformation agendas.
www.newsroom.ibm.com
Understanding and assessing the impact of your suppliers’ operations, as well as the challenges they face, is complex – how can companies support and empower vulnerable workers in the supply chain, or ensure inclusive practices are adopted? To help global businesses answer these questions
Business for Inclusive Growth (B4IG), a partnership between the intergovernmental Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development and major global brands, has set out its Inclusive Sourcing Methodology which outlines inclusive sourcing best practice in three development stages: engage your team and leadership on a common vision; build your inclusive sourcing roadmap; lastly, ensure your company is engaging in a transformational journey.
www.b4ig.org
A strong supply chain analytics strategy is crucial to achieving supply chain excellence. But, says Gartner, many organisations still face several challenges in adoption around having the scalable data foundation necessary to build analytics that accurately represent the supply chain, recruiting the relevant talent and skills and slow adoption as a result of lack of clarity on the analytics business case. To counter this, supply chain leaders should set the foundations for an analytics strategy by harvesting accurate and comprehensive data and ensuring the right talent is in place to maximise its value, using digital innovation and real-time analytics technologies, and testing several techniques and use cases to find the most effective.
www.gartner.com
IBM agrees a work order with the Defense Microelectronics Activity to provide security services that will enhance the US Department of Defense’s microelectronics supply chain.
Ford pledges to increase its battery production, shorten its supply chain and use lithium iron phosphate batteries to meet its EV production targets.
The US House of Representatives passes a bill aimed at boosting national semiconductor production in order to mitigate supply chain challenges and increase American competitiveness.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk explains that the EV maker is rewriting its software to integrate more functionality into fewer semiconductors.
Zipline announces it is partnering with a not-for-profit healthcare provider to go live with Washington State’s first commercial drone deliveries.
The global supply chain management platform market will likely reach $32.3bn by 2026, driven by increasing complexity of supply chains necessitating adoption of real-time visibility platforms. According to consulting firm Frost & Sullivan, logistics and transportation stakeholders in organisations are prioritising real-time freight visibility tools, as well as predictive and dynamic freight intelligence for end-to-end supply chain orchestration. www.frost.com
Wikifactory co-founder and Chief Growth Officer
Christina Rebel discusses the rise of the Internet of Production, digital collaboration and the future of design and manufacturing
We no longer need to be in a shared space to collaborate. COVID, the resultant shift to remote working and our increased digital adoption has seen to that. But what of designing, manufacturing, production? Well, that’s changing too according to Christina Rebel, co-founder and Chief Growth Officer of Wikifactory, the world’s first online collaborative manufacturing platform to design, prototype and manufacture physical things in virtual spaces. Here, she tells us more about the rise of the Internet of Production and explains its benefits, opportunities and impact on the global supply chain.
The Purchaser: Can you begin by introducing yourself and explaining where the inspiration for the Internet of Production and Wikifactory came from?
Christina Rebel : For many years I’ve worked at the intersection of sustainability, social innovation and digital fabrication. Before starting Wikifactory, I spent years co-creating programmes for conferences and launching innovation labs for institutions (EU Commission, UN) and universities (Kingston University, London College of Communications). I’ve also produced documentaries, developed websites and piloted demonstration projects for the likes of Daimler, BMW and Autodesk.
Inspired by a childhood in China during the years when it became the factory of the world, in industrial design, and economics as a teenager, my university formation in Politics and Economics – my work has always stemmed from qualitative and quantitative research, whilst being underpinned by empowering theories of social change.
It was during an event curation sprint at Impact Hub Westminster that I first came to meet and work with Wikifactory cofounders, Tom Salfield and Max Kampik, on WikiHouse. It was the first project of its kind to develop affordable and sustainable houses as a global architecture community that could be digitally and locally fabricated. Discovering the lack of a collaboration infrastructure similar to that empowering software developers in working together online on code, it was clear that the industry was still to have its ‘web moment’.
During that time, we were connected with our fourth co-founder Nicolai Peitersen out of recommendation that his recently published book, The Ethical Economy , shared the same vision for social and economic change through democratising access to design and manufacturing. Our shared vision led us to research and develop our ideas around the Internet of Production (IoP), and the idea for Wikifactory grew from there.
“As supply chain crises persist in the coming months and years, and a newfound strategic interest in local manufacturing grows, the next generation of hardware and product design startups will be empowered to develop products in a way that is more like software development”
CR: Global manufacturing is currently worth $44.5tn and additive manufacturing, more commonly known as 3D printing, is projected to grow from $18.33bn in 2022 to $83.90bn by 2029. This emergent technology could revolutionise small batch production by decentralising manufacturing and reducing global energy use from anywhere between 5 -27% by 2050. Wikifactory aims to facilitate that global transformation by making it possible for anyone, anywhere to leverage smart manufacturing for more agile, distributed production.
Unlike many startups, Wikifactory started in the pages of academic research and an economics book – so it has been years in the making. We focus on solving problems, as any business should, but instead of working on a customer niche, we want to bring about systemic change by opening up product development to everybody. We’re on a mission to make a positive impact on society by reshaping manufacturing and supply chains.
TP: How has manufacturing evolved and what are the key drivers behind the rise of the IoP and collaborative manufacturing?
The manufacturing industry has already evolved significantly in recent years. When the pandemic hit, cracks began to show in our supply chains and there was an urgent need for new ideas. With unprecedented challenges in the availability of human and material resources, suddenly five or 10 years of progressive change needed to happen in a matter of weeks.
Manufacturing has also been focused on more sustainable production for many years now, and our approach to the IoP has become even more relevant in that context. The IoP is a future-fit fix for the infrastructure, protocols and standards that connect, in a digital thread, the creative ingenuity of product companies with the on-demand
manufacturing capabilities in the network through the internet. It is a single online infrastructure which every element of the supply chain is plugged into. It allows Big Industry, factories, individual engineers and product designers to collaborate, design, prototype and manufacture on-demand, at scale, and exactly where the products are needed – helping businesses achieve a new level of digital collaboration with data, models, and knowledge in production.
The ability to do everything in one place dramatically improves efficiency and productivity, significantly increases speed to market, and supports sustainability by promoting local production. Considering the importance of materials in life cycle assessment, this would pave the way for more circular, regenerative production as well.
TP: Do you think our increasing adoption and use of digital technologies and new ways of remote or hybrid working has been a driver?
CR : It mirrors the trend in the adoption of digital technologies across creative industries like that of graphic, video, and content and even has the chance of eclipsing the scale of productivity that becomes possible when you democratise access to production. The thinking of John Maynard Keynes only increasingly inspires us even more, as manufacturing technologies become more affordable and more effective in producing a single product with
zero marginal cost and where it is needed. As these technologies have matured since we first started with Wikifactory, the opportunities for collaboration, not just on full products but on reusable components, can get really exciting for product companies to build upon these to create entirely new products, much like Lego blocks.
Digital technology has democratised access to a host of new tools and ideas, and now we’re seeing a renewed emphasis on global collaboration and communication across the world, with a view of then being able to deploy this locally, where it will be consumed.
The widespread adoption of remote working and digital collaboration spurred on by the pandemic could have tremendous benefits for the manufacturing industry and the individuals working within it. We’re seeing people work how they want, where they want, when they want – and this trend is here to stay.
TP: Can you tell me more about Wikifactory, explaining how it works, how it fuels collaboration and innovation and the benefits it brings to design, manufacturing and production work?
CR : Inspired by the workflows of agile and open source software development, Wikifactory is the world’s first online collaborative manufacturing platform to design, prototype and manufacture physical things in virtual spaces. All a user needs is a laptop and an internet connection.
Through our collaborative manufacturing marketplace, we offer the capability for rapid prototyping and serial manufacturing of parts using CNC machining, sheet metal, 3D printing, and injection moulding – all with online quotes provided within 24 hours. This adds to Wikifactory’s 3D CAD tool, which is compatible with over 30 file formats and enables real-time collaboration between engineers, designers, clients and manufacturers. Wikifactory’s documentation system, version control drive, and feedback system make the platform an all-in-one space for design through to production.
“ The ability to do everything in one place dramatically improves efficiency and productivity, significantly increases speed to market, and supports sustainability by promoting local production”
We have a fast-growing community of nearly 140,000 users in 190 countries who have designed over 9,000 products across a variety of industries. This global community consists of designers, engineers, makers, academics, hardware startups and enterprise teams who are making thousands of valuable products that solve real-world problems – from robotics and agritech to smart furniture and medical devices used in the fight against COVID-19.
TP: Can you run us through the four key stages – share, iterate, prototype, manufacture – and give some examples for context?
CR: The four key stages for Wikifactory are:
Share: users can upload their CAD files to the platform and grant permissions to get everyone on the same page. This helps to make the review process a lot more efficient and allows teams to communicate easily. The platform is CAD-agnostic in that so far it is not tied to a specific CAD software (it accepts over 30+ CAD formats) and it is also completely secure, so designs are protected.
Iterate: Wikifactory provides powerful inspection tools and logs every design decision for the user. A user can also implement 3D annotations on CAD assemblies and meshes and easily chat with others on the platform.
Prototype: through the platform and our collaborative manufacturing marketplace, individuals can specify how their parts should be made and request quotes from quality-assured manufacturers all around the world. Once matched, they can collaborate on how to create their part cheaper, more easily and with better results.
Manufacture: individuals and teams can build a supply chain and get their product to market via Wikifactory. From initial kickstarter batches to serial production, Wikifactory can support the team on their manufacturing journey. The company will help organise all the user’s product data in its cloud-based PDM and we
“Wikifactory is the world’s first online collaborative manufacturing platform to design, prototype and manufacture physical things in virtual spaces”
provide tailor made solutions to help meet the designer’s production needs.
A company that went through this whole process is Growing Concepts based in The Netherlands, which retails online and physical stores a range of designer terrariums. They first shared their design concepts on our platform and we assisted them with the design and manufacturing of their product. As part of the development process, we helped them iterate their concept, to then develop a range of prototypes of the terrarium component to offer a range of materials and finishings, and finally opted for a circular component made out of recycled wood bioplastic thanks to innovative manufacturer, LowPoly based in Spain. They now retail their terrariums online.
In this same way, we love to support budding startups in the launch of their Kickstarters and their pre-sale campaigns. We will ensure their iterations and prototypes are cleared for scaling and that they avoid potential disasters when they either overshoot or under-sell their campaigns.
TP: What are the challenges that transitional production and manufacturing place on the supply chain and how will Wikifactory/the rise of the IoP reshape global supply chains?
CR : Reshaping global manufacturing is a big ask, and sometimes it may seem like an impossible one. The biggest
challenge so far has been the complicated infrastructure that needs a lot of resources, and it was difficult to know where to start. We began with a tool for online collaboration around the virtual CAD design, and are now launching our manufacturing marketplace – closing the iteration loop with being able to send your parts to be made.
Wikifactory’s infrastructure allows for direct and transparent communication in this iterative process between the design and engineering team, together with clients and end-users through to manufacturers, together. The ease at which you can iterate, discuss and share designs helps innovation
and decentralised collaboration. The global marketplace and digital fabrication help to make those ideas a reality and for others to benefit from open-source designs.
TP: What will be the most significant changes to the way the supply chain and organisations operate and how will supply chain professionals have to evolve or adapt to excel in manufacturing in the digital age?
CR: The CIPD’s recent report, Addressing skills and labour shortages post-Brexit found that only 9% of UK businesses plan to invest in technology to address skills or labour shortages over the coming years. But there is no hiding the global skills shortage in science, engineering, computing and manufacturing. These industries are all heavily influenced by quickly evolving technologies, which offer opportunities to improve processes and the quality of end-products.
In the digital age, the individuals and businesses which excel are those best prepared to learn, adapt and change at speed. Supporting the adoption of new technology through investment in skills will be a key driver behind the success of any business or organisation –and this is particularly true for global manufacturing.
custom production. And given the rise of micro-factory facilities in the UK –there was never a better time to seek how to take design to production locally, and explore how to make local skills, manufacturing capabilities and material supplies (even circular materials based on local waste and industrial byproducts) a reality for the UK.
Graduates of engineering and design departments are now well versed with the advantages of additive and subtractive manufacturing for on-demand,
TP: Can you tell me more about the surge in innovation of physical products for COVID-19 mitigation and how this is an example of digitally enabled collaboration?
CR : At the outset of the pandemic, Wikifactory saw a 700% surge in new product innovation on the platform
which addressed at least one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, alongside a rise in ideas for vital medical supplies. We also launched a dedicated microsite and webinar series in April last year called Viral Response, inviting experts, makers, organisations and businesses to discuss how to accelerate the supply of products that were in short supply. More than 55 million items of PPE have been made by a distributed global community of designers and engineers.
TP: What were some of the products that were developed and how did the use of Wikifactory help lower cost and improve availability, distribution and speed of development?
CR: Our community of engineers, hardware startups, designers and makers are currently designing over 9,000 products across our platform and fabricating their products through our manufacturing marketplace, including:
• Agri-tech drones (Dronecoria) which accelerate and automate reforestation
• Augmented reality projector (Manyone) allowing users to operate through an interactive handheld device
• Hyperloop technology by the rLoop team who won awards for their prototype in Elon Musk and SpaceX’s Hyperloop Pod Competition
• Smart composters, water filtration, and growing systems of many kinds – from high end automated systems to DIY solutions for remote locations
“In the digital age, the individuals and businesses which excel are those best prepared to learn, adapt and change at speed”
• Prosthetic limbs and other medical bionic components have been designed globally and produced locally in Asia, in a refugee camp or as remote as where they’re needed Smart robots that don’t just connect to other devices, but can actually respond to music and other emotional cues
• Hundreds of projects by the global Fablab community borne out of the MIT Centre for Bits & Atoms
TP: What do you think are the key steps needed to adopt this new way of working? CR: It may not appear to be easy, but we have focused on the ease of access because that is what is leaving SMEs and startups behind in the race to adopt Industry 4.0. It welcomes engagement with end users from day one, in an iterative and incremental process.
Individuals and businesses don’t need to start with an entire product assembly. Start with the part that can take advantage of an alternative supplier for greater resilience, a custom part that could be optimised for design for manufacturing for reduced material usage or production costs, or even on a part that could be made entirely locally or even circular (now advanced enough to match precision, quality from fossil plastics).
Gain traction for this alternative and more agile supplier relationship, and build from there iteratively within the company, highlighting the greater supply chain resilience
“Not only does the Internet of Production enable greater participation and accessiblity, but it also opens the door for greater innovation in design thanks to its ability to bring people together to collaborate on products”
that it can offer to an increasing number of parts in your product assembly.
Or create a new product innovation and design for additive or smart manufacturing from the ground up, taking advantage of the sustainability and regeneration advantages in the production process. As well as the potential of being able to involve your end-client or end-user more proactively in the process. This will ensure greater loyalty and adoption of your product when it finally gets to market.
TP: What are your predictions for the future of IoP and how rapidly do you predict its growth?
CR: As supply chain crises persist in the coming months and years, and a newfound strategic interest in local manufacturing grows, the next generation of hardware and product design startups will be empowered to develop products in a way that is more like software development.
Not only does the IoP enable greater participation and accessibility, but it also
opens the door for greater innovation in design thanks to its ability to bring people together to collaborate on products. By giving everyone the tools to design, iterate and prototype their ideas, we can attract a new wave of diverse and unique engineers into the sector. This increased accessibility means that the products being created are best suited to our society and provide fresh talent with skills and knowledge about technology and new tools that will appeal to companies large and small.
As companies embrace the opportunities available through the IoP by taking an integrated, collaborative approach, we can change the old way of doing things and create a futureproof global manufacturing ecosystem.
www.wikifactory.com
Christina Rebel, co-founder and chief growth officer
Christina has worked at the intersection of digital fabrication, social innovation, and sustainability. She is the former co-founder of 2 Pueblo which promotes entrepreneurship in rural communities. And has been involved in making Wikifactory part of the EU-funded programme Critical Making to promote diversity and inclusion in hardware development.
i nnovative and ins P ired items for work, leisure and sustainable living
This is what cycling in the digital age looks like. ESUB Tracks, created by German design firm, Werteloberfell, is a smart helmet that uses state-of-the-art technology to keep you safer on the road. For example, it has proximity sensors to monitor the area behind the rider and, if it ‘sees’ a vehicle approaching at speed from the rear heptic patches vibrate as a warning system. ESUB Tracks also includes a built-in microphone and speakers, indicator signals for turning and flat printed organic pholtovoltaics that charge all its systems as you ride.
www.werteloberfell.com
i nnovative and ins P ired items for work, leisure and sustainable living
It’s hot [at time of writing]. And, unless we collectively buck our ideas up, it’s only going to get hotter. REON POCKET 3 may not solve the climate crisis, but it’ll give you some relief from the heat. It is, says Sony, a wearable thermal device that directly cools or warms whatever part of the body you attach it to – think of it as your own, body-mounted air conditioning unit. It features sensing technology that automatically adjusts cooling temperature according to your movement and environment, and can be controlled via a dedicated app.
www.sony.com.hk
i nnovative and ins P ired items for work, leisure and sustainable living
Why should enjoying everything summer can throw at you mean you have to sacrifice your sustainable credentials? The question – perhaps – that inspired Taiga to turn its electric powertrain-driven attention to the humble jetski. Orca, with its direct electric drive and innovative hull shape that brings both agility and grace, reinvents on-water powersports. 100% electric with a peak power of up to 160hp and capable of seating two people, it’s built for all-weather use and can be charged at the dockside or using the existing EV charging network.
www.taigamotors.com
i nnovative and ins P ired items for work, leisure and sustainable living
We’ve all been there. You need a new music system for your home. You also need a new sculpture. Well, there’s Pantheone I for that [music is art, after all]. The speaker, the brainchild of Pantheone CEO Oren Adani and head acoustic engineer Adrien Stachowicz, takes its design cues from the actual Pantheon in Rome. It’s made from rigid, artist-grade resin that helps to dampen vibrations and improve sound while its curved aesthetic allows it to project sound in 360 degrees, but also creates a more natural acoustic listening experience.
www.pantheoneaudio.com
i nnovative and ins P ired items for work, leisure and sustainable living
What happens when artistry and design meet precision motorsport engineering? The limited-edition Hummingbird/Paul Smith folding bicycle of course. We need to get cars out of cities, and folding bikes are a perfect way to do so. This particular model is hand-built by British motorsport engineering group Prodrive, renowned for its use of groundbreaking composite materials. It weighs just 6.0kg and can be folded in under five seconds. The famous Paul Smith signature artist stripe is applied by Silverstone Paint Technology, which specialises in lightweight motorsport paint finishes.
www.hummingbirdbike.com
Employees are wasting time navigating outdated purchase order processes, complex vendor request approval workflows and often vague or complex financial procedures in their companies. It’s frustrating, makes purchasing difficult and confusing, and can slow the adoption of new software or digital technologies.
But not if those same employees have their own ‘procurement concierge’, which is what Zip offers. The Fintech
“ Employees at organizations big and small shouldn’t have to jump through hoops or navigate convoluted processes when buying the software, services or other business products they need to get their jobs done”
—
CO-FOUNDERS RUJUL ZAPARDE AND LU CHENG
was launched in 2020 by serial entrepreneurs Rujul Zaparde and Lu Cheng to dramatically simplify the procurement process within organisations – both Zaparde and Cheng had experienced firsthand how laborious and time-consuming a procurement process could be and felt they could, and should, do something about it.
Zip manages the procurement process automatically, asking employees the right questions based on previous answers,
automatically routes requests to finance, IT, data, security and so on, then gives everyone a clear view of where that request is in the process. The result is increased compliance, shorter cycle times and reduced duplicative spend.
www.ziphq.com
CAPGEMINI’S DICO VAN DIJK AND ARTHUR LANGEZAAL DISCUSS BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY, PROCUREMENT EVOLUTION AND HELPING CLIENTS EVOLVE THEIR PROCUREMENT CAPABILITIES
WORDS: TOM WADLOW
“WE ARE STARTING TO SEE PROCUREMENT TEAMS EXERT GREATER INFLUENCE ON COMPANY STRATEGIES AND DRIVE STANDARDS THAT EVERYONE IN THEIR ORGANISATION MUST FOLLOW”
— Dico van Dijk
The marriage between procurement and technology continues to grow stronger, with the power of digital tools to simplify complex procurement processes and reduce costs generating mass appeal across public and private organisations of all kinds. Meanwhile, those at the advanced stage of their digitisation journeys are reaping the benefits of solutions which offer a unified procurement platform that enables stakeholders to gain real-time visibility and identify even greater savings opportunities.
Indeed, such is the momentum being gathered, the global market for procurement software is set to reach $9.5 billion by 2028, up from a demand worth $5.5 billion in 2020. And the speed of change shows no sign of relenting. “This is what excites me about our profession,” says Arthur Langezaal, now Managing Consultant at Capgemini after arriving in early 2021 with many years of technology and procurement experience behind him. “Software development never stops, and therefore the opportunity for procurement best practice to improve never stops either. Add in the fact that no two business’s needs are the same, and there’s always a new challenge on the horizon.”
Langezaal is joined by Dico van Dijk, Senior Manager Procurement Transformation at Capgemini Invent, the consulting arm of the group. “As Arthur says, we never stop,” he affirms. “What also excites me is that even the larger and more mature organisations always have room for improvement – some have far less visibility over their suppliers than they should. Our job is to help them put that right.”
Whether it’s helping businesses to develop, implement and accelerate a full-scale, end-to-end transformation of procurement operations or assisting with the uptake of a specific improvement-enabling process or technology, both van Dijk and Langezaal identify automation as the key digital influencing trend. A particularly relevant example, says Langezaal, is the growth of digital purchasing and invoicing. Globally, and in Europe especially, momentum is gathering as the pace of new e-invoicing and e-reporting mandates continues to pick up. In 2020, as the world adapted and responded to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the OECD reported a 30% shift in digital contacts made by taxation authorities across the globe.
“As well as fulfilling key compliance issues, touchless invoicing is also helping companies to go paperless, saving crucial resources and contributing to key environmental targets,” Langezaal adds, with both he and van Dijk identifying a growing focus on environmental, social and governance (ESG) programmes as another driver of procurement evolution. With national and international commitments to transition to net zero economies well underway around the world, public and private organisations are having to play their part – this includes the activities being conducted up and down supply chains.
“EVEN THE LARGER AND MORE MATURE ORGANISATIONS ALWAYS HAVE ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT – SOME HAVE FAR LESS VISIBILITY OVER THEIR SUPPLIERS THAN THEY SHOULD. OUR JOB IS TO HELP THEM PUT THAT RIGHT”
— Dico van Dijk
“You only have to look at what is happening here in our Utrecht office,” explains van Dijk. “Our fleet of lease vehicles is now moving to fully electric and there is far more sustainability scrutiny regarding our facilities management. Office renovations must be completed with sustainable, durable and reusable materials that won’t go to waste, for example.”
At the same time, explain van Dijk and Langezaal, security and risk management continue to be at the forefront for all procurement leaders and their functions. It is impossible to ignore the geopolitical
and economic volatility that has been building since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, huge supply chain challenges have developed, not least around shipping products from A to B, a reality which has forced organisations to reconsider their approach to risk management.
Here, technology can play a crucial role says van Dijk, highlighting Capgemini’s recently onboarded partner Basware as a provider of a particularly effective supplier management software capable of mitigating risk.
Use Basware Procure-to-Pay to gain 100% enterprise-wide spend visibility, enabling companies to spend smarter and build agile business operations.
“SITTING DOWN WITH CONDUCTING PRODUCT IS ONE OF THE MOST TO ACHIEVE
— Arthur Langezaal
MOST EFFECTIVE WAYS
ACHIEVE BUY-IN”
Langezaal
The pandemic has also prompted a more acute understanding within the c-suite of the value that procurement functions can bring to their organisations. “Procurement is certainly in the spotlight more than it was a few years ago,” van Dijk adds. “We are starting to see procurement teams exert greater influence on company strategies and drive standards that everyone in their organisation must follow.”
This recognition has, to an extent, also underlined the need for sustained investment in continuous improvement. Put simply, executives are more aware that if their procurement operations
function like clockwork, the rest of the business will likewise operate more effectively and profitably. However, resistance to change among those working in procurement continues to be a major challenge that Capgemini actively seeks to address.
“Obtaining buy-in from client procurement leaders is essential to everything we do,” Langezaal says. “There is some resistance to going digital, but at the same time we see companies operate in the belief that they are more digitally advanced than they actually are. Many are not making the most of the technology, expertise and data they already have.”
ARTHUR LANGEZAAL, MANAGING APPLICATION CONSULTANT, CAPGEMINI
The old adage “time is money” has never been more relevant than in today’s rapidly changing market.
Organizations that succeed are agile and able to adapt quickly to crises and customer shifts. To do that, they need both visibility over all suppliers and company-wide spend, as well as the means to pivot quickly. However, departments reliant on manual processes are unable to reap the benefits of end-to-end visibility. Procure-to-pay (P2P) automation provides the opportunity to spend time where it counts — on analysis and strategically relevant tasks.
One of the biggest obstacles to visibility when it comes to P2P is that most procurement departments are not integrated with their finance team. As a result, expenses are siloed, invoices can go missing, and spend control is limited, all of which slows down month-end closing.
This is what DNA, one of the largest telecommunications companies in Finland, was facing, before they chose Basware, a leader in P2P automation technology that could integrate with existing technology and automate everyday P2P tasks. Before working with Basware, procurement was dispersed over several systems and
had no connection to the company’s finance function. There was also a significant amount of maverick spending taking place. Driven by external and internal reporting requirements, DNA set out to transform its P2P process with the help of Basware. Cohesion and transparency across both functions were critical in this transformation.
DNA has achieved its goals of enhanced predictability and faster month end closing. Maverick spend has reduced and manual invoice processing is a thing of the past. Also, supplier relations have improved as suppliers now have a solid understanding of the procurement process and its requirements.
Today, a supplier’s online store can be integrated with DNA’s purchase-to-pay system in less than an hour, and catalogs can be delivered in minutes.
Therefore, an effective P2P automation strategy is not just about streamlining manual tasks – it should also integrate different stakeholders and information across the organization for 100% visibility.
Learn how P2P automation helped DNA spend more time on what matters — growing their business — in this case study.
Indeed, he goes on to explain how data is the starting point for any digital procurement transformation. Without a clean dataset, the much-craved supplier visibility will be distorted and could lead to ill-informed decision making. Overcoming resistance to change and acquiring buy-in from stakeholders is therefore a crucial part of both Langezaal and van Dijk’s remits.
So far, their combined experience and expertise has proven to be a winning formula that has delivered results for sometimes hesitant customers. Langezaal’s technical background has been supplemented by more than 20 years’ work in procurement teams at various organisations, joining Capgemini around two years ago. Meanwhile, van Dijk began his career at IBM in
“SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT NEVER STOPS, AND THEREFORE THE OPPORTUNITY FOR PROCUREMENT BEST PRACTICE TO IMPROVE NEVER STOPS EITHER”
— Arthur Langezaal
an operations role based in Amsterdam dealing with laptop, mainframe spare part inventories.
“The real game-changing moment came while I was on my honeymoon in Australia,” he recalls. “I was called by a project lead in the US who was dealing with the implementation of a supplier relations management system for Coca-Cola. They asked me to become a functional consultant and from there I never really looked back.”
customers. Together, and between their respective teams, they offer a deep level of technical and business understanding to help clients build well rounded procurement capabilities.
Drawing on the expertise of partners is also critical, they say. “Sitting down with customers and conducting product demonstrations is one of the most effective ways to achieve buy-in,” Langezaal explains. “I will bring in expert partners to offer additional reassurance and build trust in the solution we are proposing.”
“Our partner network is fundamental to what solutions we can put in front of clients,” adds van Dijk. “Basware is a good example of a recent addition to our portfolio of options. We struck up a partnership in 2021 and are currently maturing our collaboration by onboarding more of our consultants with their software.”
Langezaal and van Dijk complement each other’s skill sets, each helping the other to solve problems on behalf of
“OBTAINING BUY-IN FROM CLIENT PROCUREMENT LEADERS IS ESSENTIAL TO EVERYTHING WE DO”
— Arthur Langezaal
The partnership with Basware will enable Capgemini to inspire more procurement innovation within organisations in the coming years. Procurement trends are notoriously difficult to predict far into the future, especially during the kind of unstable times we find ourselves in at present.
That said, Langezaal and van Dijk are confident that those organisations which have taken the leap into digitising some or all of their procurement function will see dividends in quick time. In the
longer term, ESG will remain a key theme underpinning many strategic decisions. Asked to conclude with one piece of advice on developing and executing a sustainable procurement plan, the duo came to very similar conclusions.
“It is no longer just about calculating the emissions in your supply chain and setting percentage-based targets,” van Dijk says. “Consumers and investors want more – they want a story that resonates. But that story must be transparent. I recently gave a talk on sustainable procurement and brought along a tea bag product as an example. It claimed to be ‘sustainably sourced’, but when I looked online, I could not find anything to back this claim up.”
“We must do measurable things,” van Dijk adds. “There are technologies out there, such as blockchain, which can provide that visibility and transparency for companies to substantiate their sustainability claims. And we are seeing some progress. I am optimistic this will continue because awareness around ESG issues has never been higher than it is now.”
www.capgemini.com
“When you take a step back, it’s actually quite ridiculous. Chief Procurement Officers that manage $1billion of projects and have employees across the globe are relying on manually updated spreadsheets”
We learn from experience. As the saying goes. Take Anders Lillevik as an example. He is a vastly experienced procurement professional, has spent close to 25 years in the sector and held successful CPO roles for several leading global organisations.
But, he saw a problem: procurement technology, despite both its scale and fundamental importance to the successful performance of the business, is outdated, monolithic and fragmented with many key tasks and processes still managed primarily in Excel spreadsheets. While the processes that follow invoicing and expense accounting are well managed, Lillevik has previously explained, everything before that process is still predominantly manual. So he chose to make a difference.
Lillevik founded Focal Point in March 2020, his goal to provide an all-in-one platform that tracks and optimises processes, empowers self-service and more accurately measures results. According to Focal Point, modern procurement is broken. To fix it, the company automates and formalises every step of the procurement process, enabling businesses to maximise the value of all spend on third parties, ensure the safety and security of every transaction and enhance customer experience.
www.getfocalpoint.com
When Provis Estate Management was established in 2019, it had a clear and direct goal: to elevate the country’s real estate market through unrivalled expertise, technology-driven innovation, a commitment to exceptional service, customer centricity and adding value, and a dedication to business excellence like no other.
In little more than three years, the business has consistently delivered on these expectations, offering a range of services that include property management and consultancy, owners’ association management and consultancy, sales and leasing, clubhouse and lifestyle services, and retail management among others. For Provis and the more than 57,000 residential units it serves and the 23 commercial assets and four shopping malls it manages, the mission remains to continue to set the benchmark for integrated real estate service solutions across the UAE.
The sheer volume of customers served means that to achieve this goal a strong, effective and ‘match fit’ procurement and supply chain function and strategy are crucial.
“ we believe stronglY in t H e P ower of effeC tive P lanning a C ross t H e P ro C urement fun C tion and in regular ‘ fitness CH eC king ’ of t H e team ’ s strengt H s and C a Pabilities ”
The Procurement & Supply Chain division at Provis leads the supply chain and procurement activities across a portfolio that includes residential, commercial, retail and more. Since 2021, the role of the functions has changed from one of largely serving as a cost centre for the wider organisation, to having a more connected and global outlook that sees supply chain and
procurement as more strategic, more aligned to the business objectives and playing a vital role in adding value for the company and its customers.
Similarly, the real estate sector has evolved to incorporate new challenges that require supply chain and procurement professionals to be more dynamic, more focused on supplier partnerships and having the ability to adapt to an ever-changing market.
The industry is no longer concerned with securing the cheapest option on the market, but rather with what adds real impactful value and whether there are suppliers who can quickly take on any task and deliver it on time and well. But that’s why Provis is so successful. As a dynamic organisation with a team that has never said no to a challenge, there is nothing that Provis cannot procure while always looking for added value. One of Provis’ important goals is to run assets on behalf of its clients as efficiently as possible, while also providing them with exceptional service and the best possible value.
In a nutshell, the company always aims to serve its customers and strives to raise the level of its services. That means establishing a minimum set of KPIs that everyone is committed to meeting and considering what add-ons can be provided to maximise value for our clients. Provis is part of an entire ecosystem that is built around customer expectations and appropriately serving them through commitment to excellence and exceptional customer service.
From a procurement perspective, there are several core areas of focus and continued improvement that allow Provis to contribute to the exceptional standards expected across the company. For example, we believe strongly in the power of
effective planning across the procurement function and in regular ‘fitness checking’ of the team’s strengths and capabilities. Perhaps most important however, is the unique way in which we approach the building and maintaining of the supplier ecosystem, a network of strategic business partners that is built on foundations of trust, honest and open relationships and the nurturing of true partnerships.
Choosing the best suppliers to serve our clients is one of the most important factors in our success. It’s not just about making sure they’re paid on time, that they meet the minimum standards and that their employees are treated fairly. We go much further than that, taking into account their in-country value, procurement activities, and how they’ve embedded sustainability into their own supply chains - right down to how they go about saving energy across their business. All of these factors ensure that Provis selects the best suppliers and engages with those who perform well.
Another thing that Provis thrives to provide is a client-supplier partnership. That is why we work hard to ensure that our partners trust us and constantly look for ways to incentivise or benefit our suppliers, as these collaborations are managed through constant feedback. It makes no difference however whether the feedback is positive or negative; what matters is that it is consistent and ongoing. This is accomplished through
“ THE PURCHASER MAGAZINE | ISSUE ELEVEN
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t H e building and maintaining of t H e su PP lier eC os Y stem is built on foundations of trust, H onest and o P en relations H i P s and t H e nurturing of true Partners H i P s ”
supplier forums, physical meetings, and essentially having an open door policy to anyone with whom we work at any time.
That is why an open, transparent and healthy ecological forum is deployed between Provis and its wider suppliers, where lessons, plans, challenges and risks are shared and lead to greater client/customer benefits on the ground.
That’s not all. Provis is keen to practice responsible supply chain management by inviting suppliers to contribute to
Spark provides a comprehensive range of security solutions to protect both commercial and residential clients. These include security guarding services, security audits and security equipment installations at entities such as educational institutes, healthcare providers and banking establishments, aviation companies and other private and government clients, in addition to critical infrastructure and national and international events.
Spark guarantees a trustworthy and reliable service, provided through our proven track record of security management and achieved through our technological and innovative approach.
Such strong relationships have obvious benefits. In particular, the strong relationships with partners that have enabled rapid mobilisation when required – the COVID pandemic being a good example. Key to this collective mindset is mutual trust and simple, honest communication.
At Provis, we keep it simple and short. It’s a dual conversation in which discussions allow us to set the right benchmarks for our clients. It’s also an ecosystem in which we interact with humans, and we’re always an email, phone call, or visit away. That is why we have simplified the process as much as possible, especially when it comes to tending and onboarding new partners and planning for future projects.
In a nutshell, responsible and sustainable procurement is a journey undertaken at various levels within Provis procurement, one that focuses on different areas including local economic development, responsible supply chain, deployment of technology lead and suppliers as partners approach.
Procurement doesn’t rest. In an everchanging world and an increasingly complex real estate market, we at Provis are firm believers in constant evolution and regular ‘fitness testing’ of an organisation’s procurement strength. Such an approach has proven valuable at Provis,
Eumecon Abu Dhabi was established in 2006 as part of the IT business unit of Eumecon Germany which was founded by Mr. Farid Al-Saadi in 2003.
Our services are conducted from the head office in Cologne, Germany and Abu Dhabi, UAE. We have been hired by many European companies to build up and develop their Middle East businesses in the field of IT & telecommunication, communication, production plant and medical technology.
We earn our customer loyalty and create value by providing turnkey IT solutions in the field of application development, hardware and networking solutions, audio visual and communication solutions, for government sector, hospitality industry, private sector and oil field services companies.
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as it’s not only about the fitness of the function itself, but the team, its capabilities and readiness.
As a result, we have adopted this view across the function. For example, we’ve fitness tested across category management, looked at the challenges facing procurement in general, assessed and improved vendor management, supply chain mandates and so on. We are proud to have signed transparent and agile SLAs with all stakeholders, which sets the expectations for us against the challenges we face.
This is where our team adds value, especially because the challenges we face vary depending on the client – some are willing to pay whatever it takes to bring their assets to the next level, while others have very specific expectations. We’re an integrated asset management and property management solutions provider and, as such, we have to be able to accommodate every one of our clients. But, within that, we have to understand the importance of how to manage those expectations. The trust we’ve built between our different clients internally is one of our best achievements so far.
“ we ’ ve fitness tested a C ross C ategor Y management, looked at t H e CH allenges fa C ing P ro C urement in general , assessed and im P roved vendor management, su PP lY CH ain mandates ”
“ t H ere is not H ing t H at P rovis C annot P ro C ure w H ile alwaY s looking for added value ”
As with every sector worldwide, the real estate industry was impacted by the disruption caused by the global COVID-19 pandemic with many of the same challenges faced by others: global supply chain problems, availability of materials, readiness to mobilise suppliers and so on. Provis is in a business where we depend heavily on our suppliers’ personnel. Typically, that meant a range of challenges from having facility management contracted employees
available when we needed them through to ensuring we had security guards ready and available across our sites.
Provis was also among the first organisations to deploy working from home immediately in response to COVID, without having a noticeable effect on its operations. To manage the shift, the company did things like developing policies for work from home, engaging with suppliers to ensure total readiness
to provide the solutions needed, resetting some of the KPIs that we typically set for suppliers in response to the challenges they faced and even improving and implementing emergency response plans with our different suppliers. Moreover, Provis was very fortunate to leverage on the excellent relationship it holds with its parent company, which has put many of the policies into action instantly.
Navigating out of the most significant disruption caused by the pandemic, Provis remained dedicated to continuous and ongoing evolution in line with its commitment to excellence. Looking ahead, we want to become the benchmark for procurement and supply chain, and we spend a lot of time engaging with other organisations and studying best-practices.
In a nutshell, we are looking at serving the entire market in terms of projects and we are proud and happy to be able to do that effectively. We are one big family and that’s a great legacy to be building but our aim is to continuously keep raising the bar. To do that, our fitness as a function has to evolve, as does our planning and the work we’re doing looking at framework agreements and service
level agreements for different clients. It’s all about the value we add.
www.provis.ae
Yes. A real life Transformer – it’s even what the T in TIGER X-1 stands for, in case you were in any doubt. And, by all accounts, Hyundai’s Transforming Intelligent Ground Excursion Robot [TIGER naturally sounds far cooler] is every bit as high-tech, sci-fi inspired and capable as its screen-hogging namesakes.
TIGER is the Japanese automotive manufacturer’s first uncrewed Ultimate Mobility Vehicle (UMV), an autonomous, four-legged and four-wheeled robot that can drive, walk and carry cargo and other loads to some of the most hard-toreach places. The project is being developed by Hyundai Motor Group’s New Horizon Studio, which was established in 2020 to develop UMVs drawing on research and innovation leadership from Silicon Valley and other innovation hubs.
It’s designed on a modular platform that allows different bodies to be attached for various cargo carrying applications, whether that’s goods delivery, instrumentation or
surveillance work in inaccessible or complex terrain too tough for offroad vehicles, or even product and goods delivery in urban settings.
And it can tackle any of them, regardless of how tough. TIGER uses leg-wheel technology, which means that it keeps payloads more steady and, because it’s built with symmetry in mind it can travel backwards, forwards, left and right to get its cargo where it needs to go – Hyundai explains this makes it perfect for 360-degree surface elevation in aras struck by natural disasters and urgent aid delivery, or even exploring the surface of other planets.
Key to this is the sophisticated leg and wheel locomotion system. When retracted - think goods delivery in urban settings - TIGER drives like an all-wheel drive vehicle and is in its most efficient mode. When the terrain is difficult or impassable for wheels alone, its individually moveable legs extend to give greater traction and drive. If it gets completely stuck, it’ll walk out of trouble.
And if it can’t walk, there’s still a way. TIGER represents New Horizon Studio’ s overarching ambition to provide future solutions for those that need to travel anywhere and, with that in mind, the innovative little UMV can be connected to an unmanned aerial vehicle capable of flying it to locations inaccessible on the ground, and charging its batteries while doing so.
Says Dr. John Suh, Head of New Horizons Studios, “Vehicles like TIGER, and the technologies underpinning it, give us an opportunity to push our imaginations. We are constantly looking at ways to rethink vehicle design and development and redefine the future of transportation and mobility.”
www.hyundai.com
Axel Lundstrom, VP of Indirect
Procurement at Danone discusses how procurement has evolved to become a powerhouse of strategic effectiveness and sustainability
Words: Jonathan Dyble
Procurement has found its way to the very heart of business planning and performance, garnering greater strategic influence and impact than ever before. Particularly over the past two and a half years, enormous strain has been placed on the global supply chain from multiple sources including the COVID pandemic, Brexit, worker shortages and blocked maritime trading routes, airport disruptions and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. For many organisations, the resulting disrupted manufacturing operations and materials delivery means that business continuity now hinges on the effectiveness of their procurement teams.
“A lot of potential has been unearthed in procurement because of these recent challenges,” states Axel Lundstrom, VP of Indirect Procurement Danone North America, a purpose-driven company and an industry leader in the food and beverage category. “Procurement has been an overlooked category for a long time, and we’re now witnessing the effects of that neglect. We are seeing examples in our everyday lives, from chip shortages causing limited options in your new vehicle to delays in new home appliances and furnishings. This is evidence that many supply chains weren’t built resiliently or strategically.”
Lundstrom speaks from experience, having seen this picture unfold first-hand. A Danone North America employee of 15 years, he began in technical and operations-focused roles, leveraging a background in mechanical engineering to ensure the smooth day-to-day functioning of the company’s factories. Ten years ago, he made the transition to procurement.
“It was an area I wanted to better understand because it provides a much greater business context,” Lundstrom explains. “I like addressing complex problems, and with procurement you see a broader view of how the company operates, its challenges, and how they can be solved.”
“With procurement you see a broader view of how the company operates, its challenges, and how they can be solved”
“If current challenges are to be overcome, procurement teams need to think more strategically and find ways to do more with less”
In this last decade, Lundstrom’s role has evolved significantly. Where his primary responsibility had previously been focused on improving the firm’s margins and bottom line, today his team is equally concerned with ensuring that key products are always available.
“It’s a big change,” he affirms. “This wasn’t a priority when there was an abundance of resources out there. However, today, there is a lot of pressure on organisations to think about how they are going to get the right materials from suppliers to the factory, to then produce products to send to the customer. Customer service level KPIs have always landed in the laps of sales and customer-facing staff, yet now it’s also a driver for both operations and procurement teams.”
Between an expanding role and growing reliance, it would be easy to think that organisations would simply rebalance the scales to invest more in supporting procurement teams. But for Lundstrom, simply pumping more money in is not a sustainable solution for addressing core issues long term. “If current challenges are to be overcome, procurement teams need to think more strategically and find ways to do more with less,” he explains.
“That means focusing on consolidating SKUs, brands and orders, bringing in more repeatability and ultimately simplifying the operations.”
In 2021, we helped our customers save 215 billion gallons of water and avoid 3.6 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions. Leverage our experts and make measurable progress toward protecting people, planet and business health.
Lundstrom’s advocacy of incremental and continuous improvement is reflected in Danone North America’s own procurement strategy, with the firm currently focused on optimising its transportation network. This includes a meticulous emphasis on fully utilising the capacity of the company’s carrier network, while at the same time reducing the number of miles that each vehicle has to travel to reach its destination.
from A to B, reducing the amount of time that our warehouses need to be open and the
“Small changes can have a massive impact,” Lundstrom adds. “With these efforts we’re reducing the amount of labour and man hours needed to get the same amount of product
utilities we use, which in turn lowers our costs as well as our carbon footprint.”
Be it future proofing the business with efficiency gains or reducing its environmental impacts, sustainability is a core focus of Danone at present, with the company also working to reduce its Scope 3 emissions by improving relationships with suppliers.
“We are starting to take a much longer-term view on our key partnerships,” Lundstrom explains. “Previously, the company would rarely entertain an idea of a longterm agreement – we have a farm that we work with on a cost-plus agreement that spans 25 years. This is almost unheard of, but we believe that if you can show your commitment to a supplier, they will show the same commitment in return. And that helps you unlock so much potential.
“As an example, we are currently working with cleaning and sanitation partner Ecolab to find new ways to use resources more efficiently,” he continues. “By using less chemicals and increasing our machine uptime, we are finding ways to decrease transportation mileage and lower the carbon footprint in both our suppliers’ and our factories. By using the 3DT Omni system, we are able to quickly analyse real-time data and make adjustments to continuously optimise our systems. This combination of technology and resource management is an example of how we are moving into the digital age.”
“If you can show your commitment to a supplier, they will show the same commitment in return. And that helps you unlock so much potential”
As well as strong relationships, the VP of Indirect Procurement equally expresses the criticality of supplier diversity in enabling organisations to innovate and unlock new opportunities. Just as employee diversity can drive critical thinking, Lundstrom points to supplier diversity as another competitive advantage.
“It’s the same with suppliers – if you stay in your own box, you shouldn’t be surprised if you are not generating new ideas,” he states. “It’s not necessarily about forcing a KPI. People want to put a number on everything, but sometimes when those targets are set, you can lose sight of what the real goal is. Instead, it’s about getting the right culture and understanding in place as to why diversity is important and what benefits diverse suppliers can bring to the table.”
This critical thinking is a key attribute emerging across all parts of the business at present as part of a wider transformation strategy. Named Renew Danone, this is centred around enabling Danone to realise a sustainable and profitable growth model.
“Sustainability is much more than just the ESG,” Lundstrom states. “When we talk about sustainability, we tend to talk about the three Ps – people, profit and purpose. The reason why many of us came to Danone is that you don’t see that at every
company. Sometimes there is more of a focus on profit than on purpose, or even a greater focus on purpose than profit, but they have to be balanced. This is what Renew Danone is focused on achieving – that equilibrium.”
Indeed, the company’s procurement department will offer major contributions to this vision moving forward, helping to cultivate initiatives and partnerships that continue to enhance the organisation’s bottom line and ensure
“Procurement is able to play a massive role in driving sustainability because it has an extensive view and impact”
product availability while positively impacting people and the planet.
“Procurement is able to play a massive role because it has an extensive view and impact,” Lundstrom affirms, turning his attention to the coming years. “If I can find ways to reduce emissions with one supplier, there’s a good chance that they are also supplying somebody else who then has their footprint reduced too. So, you can see how that butterfly effect continues to grow as you make a change.
“Pragmatism is of course important. We need to be smart and focus on building strategies that enhance resiliency in the
supply chain,” he adds. “That’s not something that’s easily done. It’s going to take many years to fix the current problems, but we need to move away from band-aids and find solutions, partnerships, and technologies with more permanence. Building those strategies takes a lot of effort, but they also have the largest impact, and I think that we’re starting to see people appreciating that now.”
www.danone.com
Trucks, aircraft, drones, bicycles, autonomous delivery robots – there is another way to deliver what you want, when you need it. And it’s faster, more energy efficient, sustainable, zero emission and low footprint, all electric... you get the idea.
That way is Magway, an incredibly innovative, new take on delivering goods that relies on a network of 1m diameter utility pipes and linear synchronous magnetic motors. These, says the tech company, generate a magnetic wave of electric current capable of propelling
Magway’s pod-like goods transporters along a nationwide track network at up to 31mph. And, because Magway’s pods travel milliseconds apart through their respective pipes, the system can deliver the equivalent of 3,000 articulated lorry loads through a single pipe every day.
Magway is automated and powered by electricity and, because it works away underground, it isn’t impacted by congestion or weather. Perfect for achieving the company’s vision: to drive the electrical revolution and deliver a cleaner future.
“We want to look back and tell our grandchildren ‘we did that’”
JOSH BAKELAAR
JOSH BAKELAAR, MARK ANWAY AND RAY RASMUSSEN DISCUSS THE SIGNIFICANT SUPPLY CHAIN TRANSFORMATION
THEY’RE DRIVING AT HEALTHCARE PROVIDER OU HEALTH
Alot can change in two years. Take OU Health’s Josh Bakelaar, Mark Anway and Raymond Rasmussen, for example. To be immersed in change programmes or transformation projects in the supply chain space, particularly in healthcare after everything COVID has thrown at it, isn’t unusual. But their story is something else. For the last 24 months they have lived and breathed total transformation, driving a complex and all encompassing programme of change across the Oklahoma-based not-for-profit healthcare provider’s supply chain operations the likes of which are rare. And all during a period of significant disruption.
And while many would baulk at the sheer volume of change required the trio, who all joined the business in mid-to-late 2020, have focused on a people, quality, safety and service-led transformation programme underpinned by a strong philosophy based on considerable shared experience and defined by a dedication to ongoing leadership and vision alignment.
The results are, frankly, remarkable. In the two years since coming on board, Bakelaar, Anway and Rasmussen have – among other things – led a complete restructure of the entire supply chain team and onboarded new teams in areas like inventory control and
value analysis; developed and implemented an extensive strategic supply chain plan; significantly improved fill rates; converted to a new primary distributor and implemented just-in-time distribution; developed and deployed supply chain visualisation dashboards… we could go on. But first, to start at the beginning.
“It’s not unfair to say that, two years ago there were some key challenges to address, in terms of what a best-practice supply chain for a hospital would look like,” says Vice President, Supply Chain Bakelaar. “I was hired
in May 2020 to lead the transformation programme and we faced a series of challenges across the supply chain. We had low fill rates – prior to COVID the industry standard was around 98%, whereas in late 2020 our lowest fill rate bottomed out at 75.9%. There were leadership challenges and talent gaps that needed to be addressed, which are pretty typical in the healthcare sector, but not to the extent we were facing. There was work to do around a more clearly aligned vision about what we were trying to accomplish, and then several other challenges around things like inventory, systems and processes, GPO support and resources, and our adoption of the Workday ERP system.”
It’s an environment that’s in contrast to the typical ways in which an effective healthcare supply chain should operate, says Anway, who joined the organisation in October 2020 as AVP - Supply Chain Strategic Sourcing. “Typically you’d expect far greater fill rates from a supply chain that truly partners with the nurses and physicians, and takes a proactive approach to the other supply chain specific roles like inventory management,” he says. “Specifically with regards to sourcing, it’s important to develop a real partnership around the decision making process, deciding those at a system level, having supplies on contract, and having a good collaboration with your group purchasing organisation (GPO).
“ IT’S SOMETHING I REPEAT ALL THE TIME: LEADERSHIP AND VISION ALIGNMENT –IT REALLY IS OUR SECRET SAUCE”
JOSH BAKELAAR, VICE PRESIDENT, SUPPLY CHAIN, OU HEALTH
“Essentially, none of that was happening. We were making decisions hospital by hospital, sometimes department by department, which is a challenge for a supply chain,” Anway adds. “When you consider how a supply chain can typically be successful, there’s some key things you expect to see around leveraging system knowledge, processes and efficiencies to the maximum capacity and there were a lot of gaps for us to fill in that regard.”
Bakelaar, Anway and Rasmussen are each experienced supply chain professionals acutely aware of the importance of effective and transparent leadership, nurturing a strong and positive vision and culture, and then using their respective positions to ensure these are aligned throughout any change programme.
“It’s something I repeat all the time: leadership and vision alignment – it really is our secret sauce,” states Bakelaar. “Previously I think the supply chain organisation lacked a clear vision of where it wanted to get to, whereas
you talk to Mark, Ray or me and you’ll find that while we might tell you slightly different versions of things, we’ll all be completely aligned in our overall vision; it’s absolutely a key component to the way we approach our work.”
Beginning late 2020, and before the creation of a formal strategic plan, the trio began driving change through an approach centred around three core areas within the supply chain: people, about aligning leadership and staff to a new supply chain vision for the future; quality and safety, in which they sought
to identify the key process gaps that were contributing to poor performance; and service, which was focused on building the relationships and partnerships needed with key stakeholders to quantify, secure and implement the necessary investment to stabilise operations. A process, says Bakelaar, that “involved a great deal of conversation and consideration around some important questions like ‘where are we as a team and where are we looking to go, what do we need to change to do that and what kind of supply chain do we want to be?’. It was about aligning to a clear vision for supply chain with the executive team.”
Each of the three core areas had significant opportunities and brought many successes throughout FY21. Take the first, people, as an example. The organisation faced issues including retention and hiring, below market compensation, and having the necessary teams across the entire supply chain to enable the transformation work necessary. “When we arrived the supply chain as a whole consisted of around 60 employees and now we’ve grown to more than 100,” says AVP – Supply Chain Operations, Rasmussen. “We didn’t have any after hours support for the
clinicians, which we’ve now changed so we’re available 24/7/365. Other challenges we faced in areas like inventory control, contracting and value analysis, we didn’t even have teams – and they’re all pretty standard for any healthcare supply chain. We really did start from scratch.”
“I remember very clearly not long after I had arrived, one of our team members told me they were actively looking for other jobs right at that moment,” recalls Bakelaar. “A year or so later when we were communicating our strategic plans and our key areas of focus for the next fiscal year I had an email from that same person telling me how great the vision was and how much they wanted to be part of it. It really speaks volumes to our approach around the importance of people and the whole idea of having everyone aligned on the common vision you’re setting.”
“ WHEN WE ARRIVED THE SUPPLY CHAIN AS A WHOLE CONSISTED OF AROUND 60 EMPLOYEES AND NOW WE’VE GROWN TO MORE THAN 100”
RAYMOND RASMUSSEN, AVP – SUPPLY CHAIN OPERATIONS, OU HEALTH
“ WE WERE MAKING DECISIONS HOSPITAL BY HOSPITAL, SOMETIMES DEPARTMENT BY DEPARTMENT, WHICH IS A CHALLENGE FOR A SUPPLY CHAIN”
MARK ANWAY, AVP – SUPPLY CHAIN STRATEGIC SOURCING, OU HEALTH
In the area of quality and safety, the team focused on identifying and improving existing process gaps that were contributing to ongoing poor performance within the supply chain. Successes include improved fill rates – in May 2021 the figure was 97.1%, for example, closing the existing offsite warehousing to implement a just-in-time inventory system with their primary distributor, and converting the organisation’s GPO.
Similarly, in the area of service rapid improvement was made in the building of relationships and partnerships with key stakeholders. “When I first joined I was getting calls daily from our executive team with supply chainrelated issues,” explains Bakelaar. “To mitigate this I worked to instill in our supply chain leadership team a real customer service-type mentality with a service recovery approach. In the middle of all this change we were constructing a new tower, so that level of service was crucial. Our job is to make sure we’re here to support the needs of our stakeholders whatever they are. A huge part of the work in this area was our implementation of a new contract and project management tool [a cloud-based solution that brings ease of use, collaboration and visibility to sourcing
operations], which has played a key role in the transformation we’ve been through.”
In little more than a year, this sweeping programme of change is impressive. But any transformation programme means that evolution must be continuous. With that in mind, towards the end of 2021, and building on their work, Bakelaar, Anway and Rasmussen worked on developing and implementing a strategic supply chain plan that would guide future objectives according to five key pillars of people, quality and safety, service, stewardship and growth. The overarching vision of that strategy is that the OU Health supply chain will be a clinically integrated partner committed to achieving best-in-class performance and continuous innovation to support value-driven, patient-centred care for all Oklahomans and those in the surrounding regions.
Under this vision the team brought continued success and furthered the organisation’s supply chain during FY22, which ended in July 2022. The depth and breadth of process improvements and initiatives far exceeded initial expectations. “We set out to complete 40
“ A BIG FOCUS FROM MY TEAM THIS YEAR WAS STANDING UP THE RIGHT GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE TO SUPPORT THE DECISION MAKING, GIVING STAKEHOLDERS THE VEHICLE TO DO THAT, AS WELL AS GETTING THE RIGHT LEADERSHIP BUY-IN TO EMPOWER THAT DECISION”
MARK ANWAY, AVP – SUPPLY CHAIN STRATEGIC SOURCING, OU HEALTH
process improvement initiatives and achieve $10m savings,” Bakelaar explains. “By the end of the year, we had stakeholders actively approaching the team and asking for our input and assistance, and we ended up completing 52 process improvements across our five key pillars and achieved savings of $11.7m.”
Within this, Bakelaar, Anway and Rasmussen highlight six key initiatives: improvements in supply chain onboarding with a focus on increasing retention and reducing turnover; improved capital processes including providing greater levels of visibility and scrutiny
and opening up opportunities to leverage system purchasing power through effective governance, strategic planning, negotiation and execution; a significant focus on rounding and par refresh processes; and developing a clinically integrated supply chain programme.
“We go out on the nursing floors every quarter and round on our stakeholders, check supply rooms, meet the leadership teams and ensure we’re delivering a high quality of service,” says Bakelaar, discussing the work carried out in rounding and PAR refresh. “It’s a very prescriptive process that means, instead of firefighting and reacting to challenges, we’re proactively ensuring everything is at the standards we expect. It’s also valuable for giving our stakeholders and clinicians a face and
We understand that there is a patient at the end of every shipment. That knowledge fortifies our commitment to building a robust distribution network that seamlessly connects our manufacturer and provider partners, ensuring critical medications reliably and securely reach their destinations every day.
building the relationships necessary. With regards to the PAR refresh, we set out to complete 25 over FY22 and ended up doing 38, giving an indication of the size and scope of work accomplished by the team. As part of that, we made a lot of investments in dashboard visualisations, which is crucial in giving our teams the data and information they need to enable better decision making.”
That decision making has also been improved by the development of a clinically integrated supply chain programme, says Anway. “One thing that’s unique to our work as a healthcare provider is the value analysis process. In the simplest terms, that means the ability to provide clinical stakeholders a process to make the best decision on the use of products to treat patients. So, that’s not just looking at the
cost or quality, but considering any decision from every relevant aspect and driving a group decision making process.
“A big focus from my team this year was standing up the right governance structure to support the decision making, giving stakeholders the vehicle to do that as well as getting the right leadership buy-in to empower that decision so that it’s effective and benefits the entire organisation,” he adds. “Before, you’d have our adult facility, our children’s hospital or community hospital making those decisions separately, whereas our work has been
about combining all those into one service line approach that drives effective decisions and provides significant value.”
A key part of successful transformation work is the ability to draw on the knowledge and experience of core strategic partners such as AmerisourceBergen, which provides drug distribution and consulting work. In this instance, the business will partner with OU Health in supply chain transformation work related to pharmacy operations, including around inventory management, purchasing and contracting.
To maintain pace and alignment on future transformation and evolution in the OU Health supply chain, Bakelaar, Anway and Rasmussen have developed a maturity model that sets out how the supply chain will provide greater value to the organisation as it moves along the maturity curve. At a high level, this demonstrates the function’s transformation from a reactive, transactional department through a foundational and collaborative evolution – its current status – through to a best-practice, clinically integrated supply chain model aligned with patient and financial outcomes.
“By the end of this year, we should be moving into the collaborative stage,” says Bakelaar, “which is underpinned by the forging of partnerships and managed processes including proactive contract lifecycle strategies per category, supply standardisation, utilisation and value, leveraging analytics and visualisations to inform decision making, system-wide capital planning and strategy, proactive inventory operations and more. A big part of this has been our work around process maturity and, from a managed process perspective, our plans for this fiscal year
are to start measuring how our processes are performing. For example, if Mark’s team and the core groups make a decision about what product we want to buy, how long does it take to actually get on the shelf? So once we can measure that, we can make better performance predictions and further improvements.”
The alignment to such a singular and transformative vision that the three have nurtured at OU Health has paid dividends, both in the success already delivered and the mindset that’s been instilled across the wider team.
“The hardest part for me from FY20 to FY22 and the real transformation we’ve undergone is getting the team to realise that we haven’t arrived yet,” Rasmussen states. “We know what FY25 can and should look like, and our challenge as leaders is to cast the vision and continue to keep them moving in this direction.”
“When we’re starting from such a transactional and reactive process, as we get more momentum one of the challenging things is not to climb up this curve too quickly, because we’re not ready to do some of the things set out there,” adds Anway. “From my perspective and that of my team, having such a clearly defined maturity model has been very helpful in instances where somebody maybe feels we need to tackle something today, but we know it’s a step set out for the future. Everyone’s guilty of this, wants to do the last bit of the curve because that’s when you earn the status of best-in-class or industry leading. Unfortunately I think a lot of teams try to do that before they
are ready, so setting out our direction like this has helped make sure we’re moving at the right speed, even if it feels like it’s small improvements month over month.”
“We’re aiming for what the leading supply chains are doing,” concludes Bakelaar. “We’re really maximising a lot of the areas we’re addressing and have chosen every detail on our maturity curve very carefully and intentionally as part of our plans. It’s important to remind ourselves that this is a multi-year journey and we’re focused on setting a strong foundation that enables us to do everything we plan to, and do it well.”
www.ouhealth.com
“ THE HARDEST PART FOR ME FROM FY20 TO FY22 AND THE REAL TRANSFORMATION WE’VE UNDERGONE IS GETTING THE TEAM TO REALISE THAT WE HAVEN’T EVEN ARRIVED YET”
RAYMOND RASMUSSEN, AVP – SUPPLY CHAIN OPERATIONS, OU HEALTH
Welcome to Leuven, the innovation hub of Belgium. In 2020, the city was named the European Capital of Innovation. Having a favourable climate for knowledge-driven business, Leuven is a hotspot for technological development, research, and hightech entrepreneurship. With world-class tech universities, the city has created a network of high-tech companies, particularly in nanotechnology and intelligence systems.
As with many innovation hubs and cities known for their tech companies and entrepreneurship, Leuven is home to several great working spots, including shared and co-working spaces and startup hangouts.
The Philipssite , which is the former factory site of electronics firm Philips, is now an office and sports complex in the district of Heverlee. There’s also De Hoorne , a creative community and co-working space where you’ll find lodging, working, partying and living merge – you’ll find a host of creative work spots
and co-working spaces surrounded by bars. restaurants and rooms to rent upstairs.
Also, the area around Imec HQ is worth exploring. It hosts several companies and startups, is very green and sits closely to the engineering faculty of KULeuven. It was here that IMEC, the Interuniversity Microelectronics Centre international research and development organisation began, and it’s still the location for brilliant minds and a stimulating environment.
PHILIPSSITE IMECThere’s plenty of places to stay in Leuven, from larger hotel brands through to some great and unique boutique hotels. I would recommend checking out The Fourth – Talefrond, which offers a taste of luxury in the city. The building dates back to 1479, when it started life as a meeting place for different guilds in Leuven and, through the years, has also been a theatre and bank. It started its ‘fourth life’ as a hotel in 2016 and combines luxury and attention to detail with state-of-the-art technology and design.
The Ibis Leuven Centrum and Park Inn by Radisson Leuven are also worth a stay. The former is located in the heart of the city, just around the corner of the Old Market Square, meaning everything you need is accessible on foot. Park Inn is an ideal place for business or leisure stays and is located on the busy Martelarenlaan, giving easy access to cultural attractions and transport.
IBIS LEUVEN
Wim has more than 15 years of experience focused on mmWave R&D, first as a researcher and later as a programme director for Imec’s activities in cellular, wifi and mmWave transceivers. In that role, he was essential in shaping the R&D roadmap and business opportunities for emerging wireless technologies. Wim was also a visiting researcher at UC Berkeley, focused on researching 60GHz high speed wireless communications. He holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering and a degree in Business Economics from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven. www.pharrowtech.com
WIM VAN THILLO CEO AND CO-FOUNDER, PHARROWTECH
ELITE MEN’S CYCLING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS, 2021
Leuven is not only a hot spot for technology, it’s also known for its world-class restaurants, which you can experience in the pedestrianised alley, The Munstraat, which dates back to the Middle Ages and today has become the culinary main street of Leuven thanks to its many cafes taverns and restaurants. If you’re visiting during the summer months, The Munstraat takes part in the Hapje Tapje gastronomic tour, the oldest culinary festival in Belgium where restaurants invite you in for snack and drink tasting.
For more informal gatherings with friends check out Florida Food Bar, which is located in the Vaartkom, a former industrial site, or sample Belgian street food at a ‘frituur’. If you’re looking for a more highend, seasonal culinary experience, don’t miss Barba which offers an a la carte experience in a great and inviting atmosphere.
Famed for its breweries and hosting the global headquarters of Anheuser-Busch InBev, Leuven has much more than beer to offer! Having a rich heritage, the city boasts stunning gothic architecture. The Town Hall is a shining example of the wow factor that Leuven’s Brabantine Gothic architecture is aimed to inspire. If you are looking for a daytime stroll, don’t miss the chance to explore The Groot Beguinage of Leuven.
Fancy a livelier evening? Leuven has a vibrant nightlife to offer. Known for its countless enjoyable bars and cafés, ranging from student drinking holes to trendy cocktail lounges. For your best chance to experience all that the city has to offer, head over to Oude Markt – Europe’s longest bar made up of several different venues.
www.visitleuven.be/en
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