Procurement & Supply Chain | Kantar
The value of trusted partners in a major Procurement transformation Author Manju Kygonahally
Cognizant helps companies modernize technology, reimagine processes and transform experiences so they stay ahead in a fastchanging world.
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There are people who relish a challenge, and luckily for him, Stephen Day is one of them. When Stephen took the reins as Chief Procurement Officer at Kantar Group in April 2020, the UK was just weeks into a global pandemic that would upend life and business as we knew it. And that was just for starters. Stephen also had to get to grips with a huge transformation remit: from consolidating procurement activity and spend in a company where everything had been done locally in 70 countries, to delivering cost savings to Kantar’s new owner, Bain Capital, to establishing himself as Kantar’s first Group CPO and building a team of procurement professionals from scratch. As if all of that weren’t enough, Stephen was also on PLANTING a mission of his own: to improve diversity and THE SEEDS OF AN ENDURING PARTNERSHIP inclusivity in the Group’s supplier base and to transform procurement practices for a As the Cognizant’s CMT Business Unit sustainable, net-zero future. This was Leader in Global Growth Markets division, a all done without meeting anyone, technology and innovation partner to Kantar colleagues, candidates or Media since 2016, I found Stephen’s zest for suppliers face to face. these challenges enormously inspiring. My first thought on learning of his appointment was that he would need allies – trusted partners to support him on his journey to transform procurement at Kantar. With this in mind, I reached out to Stephen to offer Cognizant’s help, and the seeds of an enduring partnership were planted. Now, two years down the line, I’d like to share some takeaways from that relationship that other procurement leaders and technology partners may find valuable. Manju Kygonahally
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