I s s ue 20 • w w w.c p o strate g y.co m
Inclusion and sustainability through procurement Can Supply chain resilience be a competitive advantage?
Procurement 4.0:
best-in-class procurement and beyond —Ivan da Mata, CPO, Claro Brazil
Procurement and cricket for everyone
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Happy new year! Welcome, for the first time of 2021, to CPOstrategy - issue 20 for those counting at home! We have a fantastic issue for you, as we take a closer look at a major procurement transformation and explore how procurement can be a true competitive advantage in the sporting industry! First up, Ivan da Mata, CPO of Claro Brazil, is tasked with delivering a major procurement transformation journey for the telecommunications giant. Running alongside a significant digital transformation, his goal is to create a fast, business oriented and best in class procurement function. “Quite simply,” starts da Mata. “Procurement was not keeping up with Claro’s businesses’ fast pace transformation and so we laid out a roadmap that would see us achieve Procurement 4.0 for Claro Brazil by 2021-2022 and beyond.” Exploring procurement in sport is Nour-Eddine Boufertala, Head of Procurement at England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) the national governing body for all cricket in England and Wales. ECB is working to promote the game of cricket as widely as possible and as part of its Inspiring Generation Strategy for the national game, the ECB will look to put a bat and ball into more and more hands and introduce more people to the power of cricket over the next five years. And procurement is the key to doing exactly that. “We want everyone to enjoy playing cricket and to enjoy the game. What we have is not a complicated network, but a lot of people are included in the process and the procurement plays a key part in all of this,” explains Boufertala. We also look at supply chain resilience with Annie Li of Movado Group, Rod Robinson of COUPA talks about connecting minority owned enterprises with larger businesses through procurement and we detail five trends set to hit the healthcare industry in 2021. Enjoy the issue!
Dale Benton, Editor content@b2e-media.com
EDITOR IN CHIEF Andrew Woods
EDITOR Dale Benton
SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER Callum Rivett
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Nell Walker Kevin Davies
GRAPHIC DESIGNER Dhruti Vithani
CREATIVE LEAD Mitchell Park
VP GLOBAL FINTECH & INSURTECH Alex Page
VP TECHNOLOGY Andy Lloyd Craig Daniels
VP PROCUREMENT Heykel Ouni Greg Churchill Richard Deane
PRESIDENT & CEO Kiron Chavda
Contents
22
Can Supply chain resilience be a competitive advantage?
6
Procurement 4.0: best-in-class procurement and beyond
62
Five predictions for the UK healthcare supply chain in 2021
50 34
Procurement and cricket for everyone
Inclusion and sustainability through procurement
www.cpostrategy.com
5
Pro cure ment 4.0: b est-in-class p ro cu rement a n d b eyo n d
Procurement 4.0:
best-in-class procurement and beyond
Ivan da Mata, CPO of Claro Brazil, details the telecommunication giant’s journey towards best-inclass procurement...
Written by
Dale Benton
Produced by
Richard Deane
www.cpostrategy.com
7
W
hat does procurement mean
supply chain relationship management.”
to a business? Does it exist
As a leader in Telecommunications
solely to monitor the costs
in Latin America and one of the largest
and control the spending and look at
multiservice operators in Brazil, Claro
every possible avenue to save company
Brazil is present in over 4,200 Brazilian
money? Once upon a time this was most
municipalities with its networks provid-
certainly the case, but over the last two
ing services to over 96% of the Brazillian
decades the business landscape has
population. As the world continues to
borne witness to a major evolution of this
become increasingly digital first, Claro
once reactive and somewhat dismissed
offers integrated solutions for connectiv-
function. Procurement in 2021 is a very
ity, entertainment, productivity and digital
different beast even if the core principles
services in a truly convergent way, joining
remain the same.
fixed and mobile platforms, firmly estab-
“Nowadays Procurement walks hand
lishing itself as a leader in Pay TV and
in hand with the business areas,
broadband all the while being the fastest
with product development and with
growing operator in mobile services.
go-to-market areas,” explains Ivan da
Innovation then is key to Claro Brazil
Mata, CPO of Claro Brazil. “Time to
and in 2018, the company hired Ivan da
market is key for any organization’s
Mata as CPO to oversee a major procure-
success, so procurement needs to keep
ment transformation journey. With more
the supply chain information and supplier
than 20 years of experience in procure-
relationships up-to-date in order to bring
ment in different industry disciplines, da
solutions and innovation quickly from the
Mata joined the business at a time when
market to the organizations.
it was also delivering a significant digital
“The impact of Procurement is directly
transformation. His mission was clear:
related to the P&L and so procurement
support this digital transformation with a
is now closer to the end consumers
fast, business-oriented and best-in-class
of the organizations. In other words,
procurement function.
procurement went from a ‘cost control
This transformation journey focuses
and savings agent’ to a ‘business enabler
on three main goals for Claro Brazil:
function’, contributing not only to manag-
Category Excellence as a leverage for
ing costs, but also to generating revenue
cost reduction and gathering of business
through innovation, time to market and
insight, Team Excellence as a catalyst
Pro cure ment 4.0: b est-in-class p ro cu rement a n d b eyo n d
www.cpostrategy.com
9
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Pro cure ment 4.0: b est-in-class p ro cu rement a n d b eyo n d
Make fast sourcing decisions that quickly help you save time and money
and enabler of long-term results and
called ‘Procurement Turnaround’ which
Supplier Excellence as a guarantee of
specifically looked at the elimination of our
competitive advantage by innovation
purchasing process backlog and reducing
and risk management.
lead times all the while improving stake-
“Procurement was not keeping up with Claro’s businesses' fast pace transfor-
holder engagement.” In defining Category Excellence for
mation and so we laid out a roadmap
Claro Brazil, da Mata highlights that
that would see us achieve Procurement
procurement was internally oriented
4.0 for Claro Brazil by 2021-2022 and
and that it engaged with stakeholders
beyond”, explains da Mata. So the scene was set and da Mata embarked on a journey of transformation to establish and implement a procurement strategy that will result in significant excellence in procurement, an optimized structure and delivering key savings for the business. How does a journey like this begin? What does day one look like? For da Mata, day one consisted of
“ This greater proximity to business areas was key for gaining the organization’s recognition that procurement is a strategic function and is involved in the decisionmaking process. For me, it was the most important achievement we could get”
reflection and identifying what
— Ivan d a M at a
the business felt was its ‘weak-
CP O, C l aro B raz i l
est’ and biggest ‘pain points’ within procurement. “We really needed to
in a ‘fragmented’ way and therefore it
understand what needed to be resolved
simply was not leveraging spend. This in
through the adoption of proven best prac-
turn created the backlog of purchasing
tices based on benchmarks that resulted
processes, significantly high lead times
in a clear roadmap for the initial transfor-
and what da Mata describes as ‘low
mation with short term process simplifica-
value capturing.’
tion implementation,” notes da Mata. “This initial phase of the transformation was
“Our buyers were loaded with transactional activities and couldn’t see the www.cpostrategy.com
11
impact of their activities on companies’
improved value for money and simplified/
results,” he says. “Through our new spend
lean processes to interface with the busi-
categorization towards the marketplace,
ness areas,” says da Mata.
the implementation of Category Plans and Strategic Sourcing we enabled our
These centers are:
Category Managers to consolidate the
Center of Excellence (CoE)
spend, proactively plan their activities
Focused on planning and continu-
and engage with the business areas and
ous improvement through KPIs, lean
suppliers more often, adding value to the
processes and procedures and Systems
solutions developed together with them.”
optimizations / Automation / Robotization
All the best processes and sourcing
/ Digitalization
strategies sound simple and effective on paper, but in practice there iss one
Center of Operation (CoO)
element that's absolutely fundamental
Focused on tactical and transactional
to any organization and any journey; the
activities such as Saving delivery and
people. For a procurement function that
lead time reductions, Rapid Sourcing
promises to be at the centre of the busi-
and Simplified operations
ness and to be aligned with each and every business unit in order to enable
Center of Business (CoB):
efficiencies, realising key savings and
Focused on strategic activities to
unlocking greater innovation, it is neces-
collaborate with the business areas,
sary to invest in its people. Da Mata
Strategic Sourcing, Category manage-
recognises this and so does Claro Brazil
ment, Special projects and Supplier
with its focus on Team Excellence as a
and Business Areas engagement
catalyst and enabler for long-term results. One of the outcomes of the
While a procurement function is noth-
Transformation Project was the creation
ing without its people, procurement is
of three procurement centers of activ-
defined by its relationships with suppli-
ities in order to segregate the transac-
ers. As the leading telecommunications
tional, tactical and strategic activities
services provider in Brazil, supplier rela-
of procurement. “With clearer roles and
tionships are key to maintaining that posi-
KPIs in place, the teams were developed
tion. As a procurement practitioner for
to deliver value through short lead times,
more than 20 years, da Mata recognizes
Pro cure ment 4.0: b est-in-class p ro cu rement a n d b eyo n d
Ilana Faria, Head of Procurement CoE and CoO, says that the “segmentation of the procurement activities was fundamental to improve all the KPIs of the area year over year. We have established clear objectives for each procurement individual and implemented a meritocratic people management process making our team far more engaged as they can see themselves as a key part of the business, impacting the companies’ bottom line results.”
Júlio Pinheiro, Head of Procurement CoB – Networks, compliments that “the reclassification of the categories towards the marketplace instead of inwards resulted in a much greater capture of value in the negotiations, especially because of the synergies we have identified between the different purchasing families and subfamilies.”
Márcia Lima, Head of Procurement CoB – Clients, adds that “the implementation of the Strategic Sourcing methodology and the rituals established to follow up the action plans was crucial to gain our internal customers confidence and resulted in a much greater proximity with business areas.”
Washington Gonzaga, Head of Procurement CoB – Corporate Services, highlights “the importance of the Category Planning methodology in establishing a much more organized procurement function, oriented to capture value by directing the resources to a set of prioritized actions along the year calendar and by mapping all categories opportunities.”
Flávia Fernandes, Head of Procurement Special Projects – “being responsible for the interface with Claro’s Corporate Business Unit we could clearly notice that the dynamic collaboration among our CoE, CoO and CoB teams have contributed significantly in achieving the speed and negotiation results that this internal customer demands.” www.cpostrategy.com
13
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Pro cure ment 4.0: b est-in-class p ro cu rement a n d b eyo n d
this and highlights that supplier rela-
Very often in a transformation of this
tionships can be and really are the key
size in an organization such as Claro
competitive advantage for any business,
Brazil, the very first challenge in procure-
regardless of industry.
ment is one of operational buy-in. After
“Supplier Excellence, as a guarantee of
all, procurement plays a key role in the
competitive advantage by innovation and
revenue streams of the business and for
risk management, is key to our transfor-
the CEO and the executive board they
mation journey,” he says. “We introduced
will need proof that this journey is the
a new P2P platform to engage with and
right decision for the business. For da
transform our relationships with suppliers
Mata, he was blessed to find himself in a
and integrate them into our supply chain
position of confidence and extreme trust
workflow, enabling improved control, risk
from day one. “We had strong support
management, performance management,
from the top management, especially
contracts compliance and spend analy-
our CEO, from the very beginning,” he
sis for continuous improvement. It also
says. “There was a clear comprehension
allows for increased automation and digi-
of the opportunities to be captured by a
talization, freeing people’s time to focus
strong Procurement function. They knew
on added value activities.”
that getting closer to the businesses and
“ Procurement was not keeping up with Claro’s businesses’ fast pace transformation and so we laid out a roadmap that would see us achieve Procurement 4.0 for Claro Brazil by 2021-2022 and beyond” — Ivan da M at a C P O, C l aro B raz i l www.cpostrategy.com
15
bringing them on board was crucial for
are often the breeding ground for great
the transformation success.”
success. Overcoming the challenge is in
Not only was this vote of confidence
itself a success but learning from them
important for da Mata to start this jour-
and using that insight and experience to
ney knowing he had the backing of those
prosper is where the real successes lay.
in charge, but it also allowed him to be
For da Mata, success has come in many
honest and to work with the business in
forms already. One key success for him
a way that delivered real tangible change
has been one that has allowed for greater
as opposed to lofty goals that continued
focus on value added activities.
to be just out of reach. As with any trans-
“For one, the implementation of
formation journey, there's a balance that
segregated teams (CoE – Center of
needs to be struck between transform-
Excellence / CoO - Center of Operations
ing and performing. With Claro Brazil,
/ CoB – Center of Business) within the
time to market is and always will be key
Procurement area and it working in
to the business, but how can da Mata go
perfect consonance was key to free-
about implementing change in a business
ing buyer’s time to focus on added value
that has already experienced incredible
activities, such as Strategic Sourcing,
success? How can he attempt to change
Category Planning and Strategic
the mindset and working culture without
Negotiations,” he explains. “Those added
causing disruption to that success?
value activities enabled buyers to better
“Changing people’s mindset was for
understand the categories and to be
sure the biggest challenge of our trans-
closer to the stakeholders, working head
formation journey,” reflects da Mata. “We
to head with the business areas.”
had many people doing the same thing
It’s no secret that, despite its moment
for many years and the change propo-
in the spotlight, procurement is a func-
sition touched pretty much everyone in
tion that must establish its credibility to
procurement. The introduction of a meri-
the wider business. While this is a notion
tocratic and self-developing environment
that is indeed changing, procurement
and highlighting a clear purpose for the
has a clear impact on the bottom line of
procurement professionals was key for
a company and so CPOs need to ensure
them to embrace the change and enabled
that the changes they implement and the
us to surpass this challenge.”
processes they bring in are right for the
While challenges are unavoidable, they
business at all times. In order to bring
Pro cure ment 4.0: b est-in-class p ro cu rement a n d b eyo n d
www.cpostrategy.com
17
change, trust is key. Results establish
Given the story of procurement, it
trust and credibility and this requires a
would be remiss of us not to look at the
lot of communication with the board-
significant role that supplier relationships
level. Deliver key successes and the
play in the procurement ecosystem. Just
credibility you now have means that the
as technologies and processes evolve,
pathway to delivering further success is
so do the relationships that an organiza-
a little smoother.
tion has with suppliers and vendors and
“This greater proximity to business
this is something that cannot be taken for
areas was key for gaining the organi-
granted. Not only that, when a company
zation’s recognition that procurement
undertakes such a significant transfor-
is a strategic function and is involved in
mation it requires the eye and the expe-
the decision-making process. For me,
rience of a key partner in order to ensure
it was the most important achievement we could get,” says da Mata. “Nowadays procurement has its seat in order to contribute in discussions to build up annual budgets and has a clear view of the strategic projects that the procurement work will have to support to enable their viabilization and implementation.”
“ The journey has not ended and perhaps it never will as we are always evolving and seeking for excellence in our sector” — I va n d a M at a C P O, C laro Bra zil
Pro cure ment 4.0: b est-in-class p ro cu rement a n d b eyo n d
the direction it takes and the decisions it
achieve,” he says, “They have supported
makes are indeed the right ones. Da Mata
us throughout the entire implementation
recognises this and speaks to the key
process, from processes redesign right
relationship Claro Brazil has with Kearney
up to organizational structure. Put simply,
and Statesys in realizing the vision of this
working with Kearney was absolutely key
procurement journey.
in gaining momentum and credibility in
“Kearney has been instrumental in mapping the maturity level of our procure-
our transformation journey.” With all the talk of technology and
ment then comparing with benchmarks
an industry awash with a never-end-
within our sector and designing the path
ing selection of tools and suites, Claro
for our transformation, where we would
Brazil looked to Stratesys for the imple-
like to get and what we would like to
mentation of its P2P suite. Like any good
www.cpostrategy.com
19
working relationship, the value of the
could get speed on the implementation
connection will not end once the tool
project and best usage of the suite. We
will be implemented, it grows and
can’t ignore the role they have played in
evolves. “Stratesys has added a lot of
helping us with Change Management and
value with their knowledge, not only with
adopting an agile methodology. These
the suite itself but marrying their knowl-
are two things that can easily be taken
edge of market best practices to our real-
for granted in a transformation journey,
ity as a telco company and to our pre-es-
but Stratesys were there for us when we
tablished process” says da Mata. “This
needed them.”
process had to be redesigned so that we
It’s easy on paper to say that a partner
Pro cure ment 4.0: b est-in-class p ro cu rement a n d b eyo n d
really stood tall and went above and
journey planned for 2019 and 2020 with
beyond the traditional relationship
great success, there’s no denying of that,”
model of service and solution and
beams da Mata. “The journey has not
da Mata is all too aware of this. He
ended and perhaps it never will as we
highlights that the way in which a rela-
are always evolving and seeking for
tionship transcends that perspective
excellence in our sector,”
is through transparency, openness and
“We need to be bold and lean to keep
honesty. After all, the decisions you take
up with our business needs and mission
together are ones that could cost you
to offer the best services and solutions to
a lot of money or unlock major savings
our customers,” he adds. “The fast pace
across the entire organization.
of technology in our sector demands
“An open relationship with these
procurement to always be up to date,
partners was key for our achievements.
faster, simpler and effective in contracting
Problems were exposed transpar-
and delivering materials and services. In
ently and discussions seeking the best
order to keep the transformation alive, we
solutions and alternatives were widely
have a Strategic Planning of two years that
explored and coordinated together with
establishes where we want to be in this
our teams of experts,” he says. “When
period of time and which is unfolded in an
entering a transformation journey with a
annual action plan to capture the benefits
level of complexity such as ours, it was
of the transformation as soon as possible.
crucial to count with these reliable part-
“Our 2021-2022 plan will require us to
ners, that brought experience of dozens
have our P2P suite fully implemented in
of similar sizable projects that enable
the first year to enable a fully automated
speed and assertiveness to our journey.”
purchasing process further. In this way our
The future is uncertain, that’s for sure,
buyers will be able to engage more and
but what da Mata and procurement has
more with the business areas working truly
been able to do so far in its journey has
as consultants and influencers in the deci-
laid down solid foundations in which
sion-making process in what regards to
Claro Brazil can continue to build upon
engaging with our partners, vendors and
and unlock the door to greater innova-
service providers.”
tion through a best-in-class procurement function. “We have completed our transformation www.cpostrategy.com
21
Can Supply chain resilience be a competitive advantage? Annie Li, vice president of Value Chain Asia at Movado Group, looks to define supply chain resilience, how it’s become a must have in times of crisis, and how supply chain resilience can actually be a competitive advantage for business.
Written by
Dale Benton
Can Supply ch ain resilience b e a co mp et i t i ve ad va ntage?
What does supply chain resilience actually mean to you and to the procurement and supply chain professionals? To me, supply chains resilience is actually the ability to bounce back quickly to the norm situation with even better, higher performance. It's actually the capability to recover from the huge disruption and big difficulties.
Prior to 2020, prior to the COVID19 pandemic, what do you think the conversations around supply chain resilience were like? Well, before the pandemic, we talk about supply chain agility a lot. I remember we spent hours talking about agility, and how to measure out agility as a KPI in our management meeting. While in fact, agility is indeed a very important factor for our supply chain, and to me, agility is the high adaptability and the flexibility for supply chain. But agility is often without a focus on huge difficulties like in the current situation with the pandemic. So resilience is really to bounce back from the bottom, from the very tough situation like now, and agility is just missing this bounce back factor. So before the pandemic we were too focused on agility, and now I think resilience is more relevant. www.cpostrategy.com
23
So when looking to build supply
mitigates the impact of the risk. And
chain resilience. Where does one
also high transparency of the end
even begin and where would you
to end value chain is another critical
even start to make changes, to
factor. From the customer to our own
make bigger changes further
company, our planning process, to our
down the line?
finished goods supplier, and even to
Well, in order to improve the resilience
our supplier's supplier, which means
of the supply chain, I think it is critical
the second tier, third tier suppliers.
to have the risk management on top of
Only when we have full transparency
the management agenda. Anticipate
can you react fast with a whole picture
risk, prepare measures, and optimize
in mind. So for me, I would start from
actions for different scenarios before
risk management and work on the end
any type of disturbance or disruption
to end value chain transparency.
Can Supply ch ain resilience b e a co mp et i t i ve ad va ntage?
Obviously everything on paper
means the supply chain needs to
sounds simple, sounds easy, but we
manage the inventory carefully. We are
know it's a very complex ecosys-
looking at our inventory on a daily basis.
tem with a lot of moving parts. What
But when a company is on the way to
are the key challenges that one
recovery, then the supply chain will have
would face when looking at building
to ensure sufficient supply, because
supply chain resilience?
our sales are fighting on the front line
My learning in this pandemic is that
and we are actually supplying goods for
supply chain resilience requires a
them to sell. So the balance between
balance between supporting the
sufficient supply and inventory control
company top line and bottom line. So
becomes one of the biggest challenges
when the disaster strikes, the company
for the supply chain, and even for the
is laser focused on cash flow, which
whole company.
www.cpostrategy.com
25
There's a lot of eyes on the procurement supply chain because you're spending a lot of money, you're making big changes, people are going to want to see results. How important is it to talk about that and to communicate when the challenges are just too much, or when things haven't worked out, as opposed to just championing the successes? Well, I have to admit, sometimes things just can't work out. I heard from the management meeting from my sales
A n n i e L i , V P, Va l u e C h a i n Asia ,Movado Group Inc
“When we’re looking at supply chain resilience, it has to start somewhere and it will start with the people in the business.” — A n n ie L i VP Value Cha in As i a at M ovado G ro up, I n c
colleague, making comments saying,
our inventory level, especially with this
"If I had enough stock, if I have enough
pandemic, we are talking about cash
supply, I would have increased my sale by
is the king. So if we don't manage our
10%, by 15%." So in that situation, I would
inventory, we don't have the right cash-
admit that it didn't work out to me. We will
flow and we can't invest in marketing.
have to say at the end, when we reach the
How can we support more sales? So
quarter end or the year end, we will have
these are the things we need to continu-
to look at the top line and the bottom line.
ously communicate with our sales team,
It's not only to look at how many sales,
align with our sales team and with our
you have to look at our margin, and also
management to reach consensus.
Can Supply ch ain resilience b e a co mp et i t i ve ad va ntage?
When we talk about procurement, sometimes it's very easy to just focus on the internal perspective but can resilience be seen as a competitive advantage for a business? Resilience is actually a key capability for the supply chain and for the value chain. When I say value chain, it extends to the company, to the customer, and even extends downstream to our suppliers or supplier's supplier. In the past, we have experienced a lot of challenging situations, like in 2003 with SARS and in2008 with the financial crisis. In 2011, there was an earthquake and tsunami in Japan. This had a huge industry wide impact because our movements are mainly from Japan. So we had our key components completely out of supply. But because of the resilience of our company and the supply chain, we get more market share after the crisis simply because we react fast. When we're looking at supply chain resilience, it has to start somewhere and it will start with the people in the business. It'll have to start with the supply chain and the procurement professional. You can have all the best processes in place, but if you've not got the right people with the right skill sets, with the right mindset, and the right culture, those processes are worthless. People are a key factor of supply www.cpostrategy.com
27
chain resilience. As human beings, we all have the quality of resilience. And as a manager, it is our responsibility to enhance the resilience of our] team members in the workplace. If everyone in our office increases their resilience, the teams will improve their resilience and then the supply organization will be more resilient. So we just need our people to have that quality. And as a manager, we boost that quality as a team, as an organization. Then we can react faster to the change, to the risk, to the shock, to the impact. Then we can recover faster than others.
You might invest in people now, but then two to three months from now, something could happen that could require a different type of change or a different type of approach. How do
the team and the organization's going,
you go about ensuring then that you
can motivate the team to follow the
are constantly looking and assess-
company direction.
ing those competencies and ensuring that the people that you have are
How has it forced the hands of many
the right people?
people, of businesses, leaders and
I think communication to the teams is
board levels to take stock and recog-
critical. Be a leader with deliberate calm
nise that what might have worked for
with bonded optimism in this pandemic,
them up until now, maybe perhaps
in this crisis situation, and also share the
now they need to stop and think
business status, the current status and
about changing that and evolve and
the outlook, and make our people under-
do something new. As this pandemic
stand where the company's going, where
has created a new playing field how
Can Supply ch ain resilience b e a co mp et i t i ve ad va ntage?
has it forced people to look at their
markets were locked down. After May,
businesses and look at their supply
Europe and the US gradually started to
chain strategies and think differ-
reopen their shelves, and then the capac-
ently as to before?
ity of Chinese suppliers became insuffi-
The COVID-19 is unprecedented and
cient. So if you look at the whole time of
had a huge impact on the whole world
this epidemic, the demand and supply
and to the supply chain it has been the
were never in balance. It always is either
biggest challenge ever, I would say. In
too little or a little bit too much. So in
February, right after the Chinese New
such a situation, supply chain resilience
Year, the Chinese factories were locked
becomes more important than ever.
down, and then in March/April time, the
The supply challenge has been
suppliers in China went back to work with
highly visible to all business, and to all
limited capacity, but Europe and US, key
the people. It's not only a supply chain www.cpostrategy.com
29
challenge anymore. Everybody in the company knows. There are special meetings talking about supply situations and there are cross-functional top management people trying to align how to prioritize our supply and how to focus on the right customer at the right timing.
So what could you turn around and say has actually been a good thing to have come out of this whole last year or so in terms of how it's made procurement more of a recognized key part of the business or how it's forced that rethink? I think the importance of supply chain or procurement becoming more visible and risk management becoming a necessity. Another positive change is this pandemic is actually a burning platform for every company. When you have a burning platform, when you want to drive change, then the acceptance of the change will become easier. For example, digitalization used to take 10 years to drive, and now within three months they can achieve the number which they didn't achieve in the past 10 years.
Do you think that the changes that we've seen are here for good? Or that there will be a stepping back Can Supply ch ain resilience b e a co mp et i t i ve ad va ntage?
www.cpostrategy.com
31
“...a high adaptability to the forever changing world has been instrumental in achieving any form of success.� — A n n ie L i VP Value Cha in As i a at M ovado G ro up, I n c
Can Supply ch ain resilience b e a co mp et i t i ve ad va ntage?
to what was only as recently as last
things can stay, but if I weigh them,
year in terms of how we approached
I would think about risk management.
supply chain and supply chain
The sense of risk management is a very,
resilience?
very important thing. I hope it can stay,
COVID-19 has changed the whole world
and not only in supply chain function,
and we will never go back to where we
but in all the functions in all the company
were before the pandemic. There will
put risk management as a high priority
be a new normal post pandemic. Very
process and goes through this regularly.
simple example, business travel will reduce significantly, and the video
Looking at your experience, looking
conferences, Teams, or whatever
at the worldview that you have,
Google or Skype will reduce the travel
looking at the position you're in
expense tremendously. And we will have
now and what you've been up to,
to adapt into the new business world,
what's one piece of advice or one
no matter what we want or not. We just
key thing that you believe is crucial
need to, and we just have to.
to achieving any form of success? I believe a high adaptability to the
Looking at the changes we have
forever changing world has been instru-
seen, what's one change that when
mental in achieving any form of success.
you look at it you think ‘why weren't
Adapt to my situation, adapt to digital
we doing that before?’
transformation, adapt to new business
We talk about the positive side of the
directions in our company, adapt to a
COVID-19 and the changes that COVID-
new generation of workforce, are all key
19 brought us. Well, I hope all the positive
factors to any success. www.cpostrategy.com
33
Procurement and
CRICKE
for everyone Nour-Eddine Boufertala, Head of Procurement at England & Wales Cricket Board, explores how procurement is key to growing the wonderful game of cricket...
Pro cure ment and cr icket for ever yo n e
Written by
Dale Benton
Produced by
Heykel Ouni
www.cpostrategy.com
35
Pro cure ment and cr icket for ever yo n e
W
hen we think of procure-
will look to put a bat and ball into more
ment, and all the focus on
and more hands and introduce more
transformation of the func-
people to the power of cricket over the
tion that dominates the discourse, our minds and that of the CEO and CFO will
next five years. “Put simply, we want to inspire people
often zoom in on the seemingly obvious
to say cricket is a game for me, includ-
deliverables. Cost savings, increases
ing engaging children and young people,
to the bottom line and opening up new
transforming women’s and girls’ cricket
revenue streams for the business tend to
and supporting a range of different
be the ‘go-to’ key phrases in any procure-
communities across England and Wales,”
ment conversation. But what happens
explains Boufertala.
when the organisation is a government
“We have a lot of BAME initiatives and
organisation? And what does that mean
we want to work collaboratively with
for the deliverables and the benefits
British South Asian communities and
that the key stakeholders seek through
make the sport more accessible. We want
procurement? If profit and revenue isn't
everyone to enjoy playing cricket and to
the ultimate goal for a business, what
enjoy the game. What we have is not a
more can procurement achieve for it?
complicated network, but a lot of people
This is certainly the challenge facing Nour-Eddine Boufertala, Head of Procurement at England and Wales
are included in the process and the procurement plays a key part in all of this.” Like many procurement professionals,
Cricket Board (ECB). As the national
Boufertala’s procurement career didn’t
governing body for all cricket in England
start until later in life. Having worked
and Wales, the ECB supports the game
as an industrial engineer before catch-
of cricket at every level - from the grass-
ing on to supply chain and procurement
roots to the professional game. The ECB
(and ultimately training in the profes-
has 300 staff all across the UK who work
sion), Boufertala cut his procurement
closely with first class counties, county
teeth while working with Thales as a
cricket boards and other partners to
raw materials buyer. Here, he worked
promote the game as widely as possi-
across a number of markets including
ble. As part of its Inspiring Generation
aerospace, rail and military and eventu-
Strategy for the national game, the ECB
ally moved on to Hitachi Europe to focus www.cpostrategy.com
37
again on procurement in the rail industry. When the call came from ECB, as procurement manager, the big question staring him right in the face was; what use is his procurement experience in the fast paced major global industries when trying to grow the reach of a sport like cricket? It’s a question that Boufertala finds himself quite privileged to be in charge of answering. exactly known for as the function simply
“First and foremost, it was a truly unmissable opportunity for me,” he
did not exist. So, my vision and my task
beams. “But make no mistake, I was
was to build everything from scratch.”
coming from a well-established procure-
It almost goes without saying that
ment department in a huge global organ-
building a procurement function from
isation to a sector that procurement isn't
scratch is no simple task. This is where his
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Pro cure ment and cr icket for ever yo n e
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experience in working for major corpo-
plane is reflected close to 20 years
rations such as Thales and Hitachi helps.
later when the plane is in flight. At ECB,
“In terms of procurement, this is where we
Boufertala relishes the step-by-step
had the biggest contingency in terms of
nature of his mission.
headcount. It was a massive department with a lot of process,” he says. “It shaped me for what I'm doing right
The evolution of procurement is a long and ongoing tale, as industries the world over continue to adapt and to change
now. It shaped all my understanding
their approach to the function as the
of procurement. On one side you have
necessity and perspective of procure-
to build and maintain a functioning
ment continues to rise. Over the course of
procurement, on the other side you
his career, Boufertala has seen the shift
have to convince the internal stakehold-
from transactional to strategy oriented
ers about procurement.”
procurement and continues to see it to
By his own admission, moving to ECB
this day. But how does this differ in sport?
was the perfect move for Boufertala as it
Where is the procurement conversa-
presented him with the unique opportu-
tion when compared to other industries?
nity to see the direct impact of procure-
Boufertala’s role sees him look to inspire
ment. Reflecting on his previous procure-
future generations of cricket fans and
ment experience, he points to how the
indeed players, supporting the game from
reward for procurement in building a
the grassroots level right to the highest
“ P ut simply, we want to inspire people to say cricket is a game for me, including engaging children and young people, transforming women’s and girls’ cricket and supporting a range of different communities across England and Wales” — N o u r- Ed di ne B oufer t a la Head of P rocurement at England & Wal e s C ri c ket B o ard
www.cpostrategy.com
39
level, and reduce spend, improve level of service and enable innovation. These goals are by no means radically different than say, a Fintech company, but for ECB procurement has only entered the conversation over the past five years. “I think the sport industry wasn't ready to have procurement, because the context was totally different,” says Boufertala. “But right now, terms of procurement, we are lucky enough to take the best from each industry to make it simple and efficient. We weren't behind so to speak, but we will catch up very quickly with the other big businesses, because as a procurement professional netted from the aerospace and the rail industry, I can take the best of those worlds and adapt it to the ECB and to the broader sport.” This is where his experience in particular proves key. As a procurement professional who has lived and breathed procurement in large organisations, Boufertala understands the ins and outs of the function. Most importantly, he knows how to successfully and unsuccessfully bring about change in procurement. “We need to have something simple and quicker because people don't understand sometimes the supply chain and how it applies to cricket” he says. “I’m Pro cure ment and cr icket for ever yo n e
“Football used to be defined by talk about the big four (Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United). They were the only one at the top of the league every year, now there are a lot of people who can challenge for the titles,” he says. “This means that a lot of clubs can invest more and more on players and give high salaries to have the best players. “Of course, if they invest a lot, this is because they have something in the background that can help them make these investments. Procurement helps a lot here and this is fast becoming a competitive edge in sports because you can spend more on players if you have less spend or if you have better deals through procurement.” dealing with experts in cricket and they
With procurement being a relatively
need to understand what I would bring to
new thing for both the sport and for
the table. If I'm coming with an extremely
ECB, Boufertala needed to outline a
complicated process, it would be very
roadmap. The goals were clear, but the
hard for them to adhere to procurement.”
journey to get there not so much. As with
Here, Boufertala refers to the supply
many procurement journeys, ECB’s is
chain and procurement conversations
one defined by quick wins and curiosity.
happening in football, arguably the more
Boufertala speaks of needing to be curi-
successful and broadly known sport. He
ous and asking stakeholder after stake-
speaks of how over the last few years, foot-
holder questions about their role, their
ball clubs have started to invest in in-house
successes and indeed their pain points.
procurement best practices as they have
In better understanding what strengths
recognised that how much they can spend
and weaknesses were already present,
on the pitch (player transfers) depends on
Boufertala could then look to identify
how lean the organisation is internally.
the right path. www.cpostrategy.com
41
“It’s about finding quick wins to begin
impact of procurement and they will start
with and looking for solutions in the
to ask me more about other ways in which
market to improve the level of service
procurement can help.”
because the stakeholders don't have time
With a focus on creating simple, effi-
to do it,” he says. “Let's look at the goal
cient processes and bringing new tech-
of wanting more women and girls play-
nology to the procurement table, one of
ing cricket. Currently, the stakeholders
Boufertala’s first projects was a rehaul-
are only focusing on how we can make
ing of ECB’s existing travel management
cricket more attractive to that audience.
processes. Due to the nature of the sport,
Procurement can come in and really help
travel and overnight stay was essential
make significant progress there.”
and ECB had around 240 hotels that it
“If we reduce a cost here, you can invest
would use on an annual basis. ECB would
more in making the game more attractive.
deal directly with the hotels with a lot
So, for me, I really started from scratch
of physical interaction and face to face
to say this is what would be considered
dealings involved. Boufertala looked at
a quick win. Once we have a quick win,
streamlining this service and implemented
people would be convinced about the
an online booking tool that would allow
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Pro cure ment and cr icket for ever yo n e
PROVEN. AWARDED. TRUSTED.
“ We weren’t behind so to speak, but we will catch up very quickly with the other big businesses, because as a procurement professional netted from the aerospace and the rail industry, I can take the best of those worlds and adapt it to the ECB and to the broader sport” — N ou r- Ed d i n e B oufer t a la H e a d of P rocure ment at England & Wale s C ri c ket B o ard
any staff member to have instant access
is good because it forces me to better
to all hotels in the system, saving time. A
understand every single department and
fine example of a simple and quick win
how procurement can improve the level of
that instantly improves the level of service.
service for them.”
“I created all the tender document
In any procurement journey, the road
process and procurement policy. Looking
from A to B is never as simple as it sounds.
at all of the best tools and best prac-
Contingency plans, risk assessments
tices to make sure that we have the best
and even unforeseen factors can impact
value for the best services. I’m still doing
and influence a journey and in 2020,
it to this day,” he says. “It involves a lot of
the COVID19 pandemic was an unprec-
communication. This is key to the success
edented factor that no one could have
when you build a new project or a new
prepared for. For ECB, an organisation
department, because people need to be
built around live sport and thousands of
with you. If they're not on my side, it's very
spectators physically in stadiums watch-
hard to make changes. But that's why this
ing live games, the challenges presented
is part of my job, convincing people inter-
are ones that to this day are continuing
nally and externally that what I'm doing
to prove difficult to overcome. www.cpostrategy.com
43
“We lost almost 800 days of live events in stadiums, to put a number on it,” says Boufertala. “In 2019 we won the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup. It was probably the best year ever. We hosted The Ashes series against Australia for men and women in the UK. It was a magical year for cricket. Then 2020 came and that momentum was impacted. In those circumstances, we worked hard to give the best entertainment possible to our fans.” As the year unfolded and governments and countries began to work towards a post-pandemic world, having spectators at sporting events was still proving difficult and unsafe. The ECB trialled the safe return of sports with 1,000 spectators in The Kia Oval in London and Edgbaston in Birmingham, but unfortunately had to cancel the second test due to public health guidance. But through challenge came opportunity, and this was an opportunity born out of sound procurement practice. “We are extremely lucky to have Sky and BBC as broadcasting partners. We had the first live women's game on BBC Sport since 1993. It was live on Sky and BBC and we had an audience of more than two million viewers,” he says. “We are extremely proud of that and it was the first live cricket event on the BBC for the last 21 years. I think in terms of the timing of Pro cure ment and cr icket for ever yo n e
the deal with BBC and Sky, it was perfect. We were not expecting COVID and everything that happened, of course, but at least we could give something to the spectator. Because ultimately the spectator is the end user. This is who we want to please at the end. So, we genuinely have something to be extremely proud of in what was a dramatic year.” These games were played behind closed doors in a bio-security bubble, something that Boufertala highlights as a first for sport in the UK. “Quite literally, we didn't have any layout, or existing examples that we could copy. We had to start from scratch,” he says. “This was an opportunity for procurement to shine because we needed to work fast and work efficiently with both internal and external stakeholders to help to make it happen and to do it in the right way.” “The team was instrumental in making it happen. Before we could get anywhere near opening, we needed to have PPE equipment on site so we went to tender. We had a fast-track process, and within two weeks we secured enough PPE equipment just to make it happen. It was a way to show how procurement can be efficient and how procurement can help.” Procurement was fundamental in securing the PPE equipment, security management for the site, as well as onsite www.cpostrategy.com
45
Pro cure ment and cr icket for ever yo n e
Nour-Eddine Boufertala Head of Procurement at England & Wales Cricket Board As a senior procurement professional, Nour has successfully delivered global transformation projects and achieved significant influence at both the VP and CFO-level though a blend of functional leadership, business development and positive supplier relationship management skills. Recognised as a collaborative leader with strong negotiating and influencing skills, Nour’s ability to motivate and lead people in diverse cultural environments has proved key to his success. As Head of Procurement at England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB), Nour works across the UK with first class counties, county cricket boards and other partners to promote the game as widely as possible. As part of its Inspiring Generation Strategy for the national game, Nour and ECB look to put a bat and ball into more and more hands and introduce more people to the power of cricket over the next five years.
tracking system and fever camera detection. Boufertala feels that the speed at which this could be achieved, together with the effectiveness, showcases just how procurement is a reliable department within the ECB. With the pandemic still a pressing concern, the future for live sport is one of uncertainty, but for ECB and the procurement journey there is still a long way to go. Boufertala speaks of the key focus on bringing the safe return of cricket at all levels, providing support and financial security across the whole game. Beyond that, the ECB will continue to look to deliver The Hundred, an incredible 100-ball cricket tournament that was due to start in the summer of 2020 and subsequently postponed to 2021. This, Boufertala notes, will be huge for the future of cricket in the UK. www.cpostrategy.com
47
“ T his is key for me; step back to see the strong values that the company has. It wouldn’t be possible to work in a company where I don’t trust the value, and this has enabled me to give my best and it is these values which will be the key to the success for procurement, the ECB and the sport itself” — No u r- Ed d i n e B oufer t a la H e ad of P rocurement at England & Wal e s C ri c ket B o ard
“I am convinced that it will be a massive
the disability game, and having more
success,” he beams. “Running at the same
South Asian communities engaging
time, we'll have international games and
with our sport at every level.”
the women's game. So this will be key
“This is why this is extremely reward-
for us for this summer. The success of
ing because we're working in so many
this will help us immensely in growing
different areas but all of them are
women and girls' participation, growing
extremely exciting for the future and
Pro cure ment and cr icket for ever yo n e
are extremely bright for cricket.” Boufertala has mentioned numerous
We're making people happy. We're engaging with a lot of kids and more
times just how privileged he feels to be
kids are playing again up and down the
in his position with the ECB. At almost
country. Oh, and we very recently won
every opportunity, it’s a privilege that he
the world cup. This is key for me; step
remembers and is certainly not some-
back to see the strong values that the
thing he takes for granted. “It's extremely
company has. It wouldn't be possible to
important to work in a company where
work in a company where I don't trust the
you trust the values,” he says. “I trust the
value, and this has enabled me to give my
values of the ECB and the values of the
best and it is these values which will be
sport in general. It's important sometimes
the key to the success for procurement,
to take a step back. What we are doing
the ECB and the sport itself.”
can be extremely difficult. But when we step back and think about what we have achieved, we're not saving lives, we're not doctors. We're talking about sports.
Inclusion and sustainability through procurement Rod Robinson, VP Supplier Inclusion and Sustainability at Coupa, tells us about his role in overseeing global supplier diversity efforts and connecting minority owned enterprises with larger businesses.
Written by
Andrew Woods
Co upa : Inclusion and sustainab il i t y t h ro u gh p ro cu rement
www.cpostrategy.com
51
Talk to me a little about Coupa’s
that was a real tipping point for compa-
inclusion initiative. What was
nies already on the path of driving their
the genesis of that?
supplier inclusion initiatives, and so it
Well, sometimes they say timing is
tied right into how we were looking at
everything. Obviously the ConnXus
integration of the ConnXus platform.
acquisition (Rod’s previous company)
While we had plans to integrate ConnXus
happened in May of 2020. There was a
into Coupa, there was obviously demand
lot of momentum around it as the market
from the market that caused us to accel-
became aware that Coupa had acquired
erate that. And so that's really the driver
ConnXus. There was a lot of inter-
of the inclusion initiative and this oppor-
est in supplier inclusion, from a Coupa
tunity for us to really show how impor-
customer perspective too as clients
tant procurement is and how we can
were calling with great interest as to
provide tools and resources to make it
how they could access these tools. Are
easier for our customers to take action,
they available in the Coupa platform?
while at the same time, helping those
Soon after that, the George Floyd inci-
minority, ethnically diverse companies
dent took place here in the States and
grow and prosper.
Co upa : Inclusion and sustainab ilit y t h ro u gh p ro cu rement
In terms of diversity within procurement, how would you define that exactly? Well, diversity in procurement is really more about the inclusion of underrepresented suppliers in the supply chain. That can mean, obviously in some markets like the US and North America, it's more focused around ethnicity and gender. In markets in Europe, it's more driven around gender. Obviously in the UK, there's definitely a focus on ethnicity, from the standpoint of customers we're working with, but it's really the under-representation of certain businesses. And typically, smaller businesses that are really responsible for driving jobs growth. And so, when you think about supplier diversity initiatives, small business procurement initiatives, it's really about driving economic impact. It's really the small businesses that drive economic growth in any economy. So that's really the gist of it. It's really about
“ Because we’re all aligned around the same goal, we feel that when small businesses succeed, when diverse businesses succeed, we all succeed.” — Ro d Ro b in s o n VP Sup p l i e r I n c l us i o n an d Sustai n abi l i ty at C o up a
market stimulation and economic impact.
And I guess from what you're saying, we can infer that, traditionally, some companies would have been struggling to diversify their supply base… Yeah, I think what happens is, we typically fall back to our default. I used to be a chief procurement officer and while companies tend to struggle, and historically www.cpostrategy.com
53
Co upa : Inclusion and sustainab ilit y t h ro u gh p ro cu rement
have struggled, in finding diverse suppli-
the 10-year run of building ConnXus,
ers, I personally knew diverse suppliers
we've built this large database of vetted,
existed. The problem was finding them.
diverse suppliers. ConnXus really
Typically, you'd have to go out and do
enabled companies to focus on tracking
manual searches of different databases,
and reporting spend. We provided access
depending on whether you were looking
to these companies that are certified
for women-owned businesses or ethnic
and classified and who provide all these
minority-owned businesses. The other
great insights relative to their bonafides
option was to pick up the phone and
and their credentials. Coupa, the premier
actually call a colleague, and that's not
business spend management platform,
very efficient, and so typically if you're in
transacting nearly $2 trillion a year in
a pinch, what's the easiest thing to do?
spend, can now connect the spend with
Well, the easiest thing is to fall back on the
the supply. And so that's the difference’
incumbent, and typically going with the
we're now positioned to help companies
incumbent, means you're not really having
look forward versus just looking back at
an impact. Like they say, you typically fall
what they've done historically. We can
into your comfort zone. And even if given
actually help connect those suppliers to
the option to hire the incumbent, which
the spend at a very large scale.
will drive no impact, but maybe identify-
Supplier diversity is quite prevalent,
ing a new, innovative supplier, will have a
obviously in the US, but other key markets
much more significant impact. Because
are the UK, where there's definitely more
it's more likely that you're going to have a
focus on ethnicity. But in other parts of
much greater impact in terms of innova-
Europe, it's more driven by when you
tion and potential for driving growth, if you
think about identity; it's more gender
were to take a chance on a smaller inno-
focused and trained on the immigrant
vative supplier.
populations as sources of growth and economic stimulation. Australia is another
In terms of the Coupa inclusion initi-
market where there's a focus on sourc-
ative, we're talking about diversity
ing from Aboriginal suppliers. South
here, how do you actually go about
Africa is another market. Obviously,
embedding diversity into a platform?
there's a lot of legislation driving black
Well, what I really love about ConnXus
economic empowerment in South Africa,
now, being a part of Coupa, is that over
so while our initiative would look a little bit www.cpostrategy.com
55
different, it's still around the same issues
reporting with various segments of their
of equality, economic justice and empow-
supplier networks.
erment. And believe it or not, there are supplier diversity efforts in China. The
You obviously work with some big
focus in China is more on gender and
partners on this project, talk to me
geography. And a lot of the growth, devel-
about some of those.
opment and knowledge around this was
There's an educational component where
really customer driven for us. It's because
we're providing tips, tools and resources
we have customers that have great inter-
to suppliers because we realised that
est in visibility, tracking and spin
in order to help our customers achieve their supplier inclusion goals, we also have to make sure we're making
Co upa : Inclusion and sustainab ilit y t h ro u gh p ro cu rement
it easy and providing tips in resources
model where she'll be able to sell directly
and coaching to help build and create
to large corporates via Coupa Open Buy.
more scalable, diverse suppliers. And so,
So that's an example of how we're lever-
we've embarked on this journey of provid-
aging our customer and partner relation-
ing webinars with partners and custom-
ships. Because we're all aligned around
ers like Amazon. We just had a webinar
the same goal, we feel that when small
on sharing with suppliers on how to go
businesses succeed, when diverse busi-
digital, how to take your business and
nesses succeed, we all succeed.
sell via e-commerce, through leveraging Amazon. As a part of that, we had a fire-
What would you say have been some
side chat with a minority, woman owned
of the challenges in creating an initi-
e-commerce company that is an Amazon
ative of this type?
bestseller. We went from concept to
You know, I think there's so much that
best-selling products inside of five years
can be done; that needs to be done with
and Amazon played a key part in that.
small businesses. What we find is they
She's now going to be selling on Coupa
need the right connections. They want
Open Buy. So, taking her business from purely business-to-consumer, to now looking at a business-to-business
contracts because that helps to drive revenue growth as their operational support needs are required, and then there's capital needs. It's like, where do you start? One of the things that's been refreshing is that we've formed an SMB advisory board to really help us prioritise these needs. We have actually been able to help a supplier who is facing some very rapid growth, but were in need of a fulfilment partner. We were able to provide a couple options for fulfilment. And so now, this particular supplier will be able to remove a key barrier to growth www.cpostrategy.com
57
and continue to accelerate their growth. That’s an example of an operational support need that is a barrier between this great, innovative, diverse supplier and getting to that next level of growth. And so, to answer your question, it's really prioritising the resources, and those are going to vary based on the stage of a company's growth. And so, I think that's probably one of the challenges, in just making sure we continue to capture the voice of the supplier while making sure we understand the needs. And they're also giving us great feedback on what they'd like to see in the future and the issues they're facing. And some of the challenges that they see post-COVID. So yeah, that's been quite refreshing to see.
Talking of the C-word there, it's obviously been a strange year for every kind of enterprise. How do you think Covid has impacted on procurement, and certainly with regards to diver-
of the local programs and governmen-
sity within procurement?
tal assistance, like the PPP loans, which
That's an interesting question. I think,
were helpful in that regard. On the other
a number of businesses, particularly
hand, I'm seeing suppliers, these smaller
service businesses, per se, restaurants,
businesses, even thrive and have become
obviously, have been more hit harder than
challenged because of the explosive
some of the other segments. So, we have
growth they're seeing. And many of these
certainly heard some interesting chal-
companies already selling online, are
lenges with businesses that have strug-
e-commerce driven, like the example of
gled. Some have recovered due to some
the company that I mentioned earlier.
Co upa : Inclusion and sustainab ilit y t h ro u gh p ro cu rement
Because they are digital, they're starting
popped up. She's actually evolved the
to see more growth.
product, with some additional skews, that
This one supplier we are working
have turned it into PPE protective head-
with, develops head protection gear, or
wear, with a shield. Now it's being used
hair protection gear, called a Hairbrella,
by medical professionals, service profes-
which is designed for women to protect
sionals and delivery people and suchlike.
their hair in the rain to stop it messing up.
So, COVID has actually created an oppor-
Right? It keeps everything in place. But
tunity for growth for some organisations.
what Tracy found is, as we got into the
I'm seeing the same thing with another
pandemic, was that different use cases
supplier that's focused more on the www.cpostrategy.com
59
promotional products arena, in uniforms,
I mean, obviously procurement's
where they're shipping directly to their
gone through quite a revolution over
enterprise customers, their employ-
the past four or five years anyway
ees’ homes. So, your shipping volume
and then COVID has happened at
may have been going from Oakland to,
a time of increasing diversity and
Indianapolis, now you're sending it to
sustainability, procurement really is
200 different locations. So, this is COVID
quite an arena for change, isn't it?
being a catalyst for accelerating the digi-
Yeah. And it's changing the role of
tal business plans of these companies to
procurement. I mean, it's increasingly
the extent where they have the support
driving procurement professionals to
they need to be able to make that tran-
a new role of real value-added strate-
sition. What we're seeing now is, those
gic business partners. And one of the
who are well positioned to make that
things I'd like to see continue to happen.
transition, are thriving.
I'm seeing it now but I'd like to see this
Co upa : Inclusion and sustainab ilit y t h ro u gh p ro cu rement
continue, with procurement as more of
we have an opportunity to get a head
an integration between supplier diversity
start on who the right suppliers are, plus
and procurement. I think we're seeing
the sustainability metrics and diversity
those silos come down now, particularly
requirements. It enables procurement
with Coupa customers, because the
to spend more time on the strategy
platform is built to eliminate them.
versus the blocking and tackling. Again,
But I think it puts procurement in
today's social climate has put a renewed
a place where they're able to plan.
spark in inclusive procurement and
With the technology, there's not so
many companies have great inten-
much chasing data; because you have
tions, but it can be difficult. But what
visibility, because you're able to track
I'm really happy about is that at Coupa,
and report. Now we can look forward
we're really breaking down the silos and
and really be a part of the planning
providing the technology and the tools
process. And if we can do that, then
to really make this sustainable. www.cpostrategy.com
61
predictions for the UK healthcare supply chain in 2021 The COVID19 pandemic has forced a major rethinking of the healthcare supply chain the world over. Simultaneously it has also signified the importance of the supply chain in driving healthcare’s digital transformation. 2021 will see efforts made to enable financial recovery and improved patient care delivered at lower cost and it is no secret that we will see a focus on building more resilient supply chains through greater levels of collaboration among stakeholders and the adoption of cloud-based technologies and data automation. Here, we take a look at GHX’s predictions for 2021...
Written by
Dale Benton
Fi ve pre dict ions for t h e UK h ealt h c a re s u p p l y ch a i n i n 2021
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Automation and ‘Private Sector Approach’ will create a more resilient healthcare supply chain There will be an increasing number of medical facilities, clinics and hospitals that turn to automation to streamline processes across the healthcare sector. The key to greater supply chain resilience and efficiency will be the availability of actionable data, and 2021 will be the year that organisations deploy solutions like Inventory Management software or scanning technology to helps achieve this aim. Organisations will also start to adopt a ‘private sector approach’ to supplier relationships with movement away from an ‘us and them’ mentality to develop more synergies with suppliers.
Fi ve pre dict ions for t h e UK h ealt h c a re s u p p l y ch a i n i n 2021
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Fi ve pre dict ions for t h e UK h ealt h c a re s u p p l y ch a i n i n 2021
The era of post-modern ERP will dawn in healthcare, marked by widespread adoption of cloud solutions and enterprise modernisation In 2021, the big winners will be the organisations that move to a cloud-based ERP and invest in enterprise modernisation to ensure the integrity of their data. Health networks need the ability to adapt to trends, including telehealth, managing remote clinicians and extending the supply chain to the patient’s home. Organisations that make the move to cloud ERP and modernisation will improve processes and make better-informed decisions based on accurate and current data-driven insights.
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The industry’s focus on supply chain resiliency will transform healthcare into a “team sport” The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the power of collaboration in solving complex problems. During the year ahead, expect to see more collaboration, including further progress at the regional level, greater investment in data management and forecasting initiatives by suppliers and providers, reliance on more clinical evidence to drive purchasing decisions, heightened transparency between providers and suppliers (even contractually obligated transparency) and exploration of stockpile strategies that share cost, rotate to avoid expirations and create supply buffers to avoid future shortages.
Fi ve pre dict ions for t h e UK h ealt h c a re s u p p l y ch a i n i n 2021
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Fi ve pre dict ions for t h e UK h ealt h c a re s u p p l y ch a i n i n 2021
Data standards will be more broadly adopted to support immediate pandemic and future emergency response needs COVID-19 raised awareness of the importance of standardisation, whether identifying products and locations or reporting potential and actual supply continuity risks. In 2021, expect a greater drive in adoption of data standards, which will help the healthcare ecosystem increase efficiency, lower costs and improve patient safety. www.cpostrategy.com
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Non-acute settings will receive a digital upgrade to improve their resiliency as demands on primary care increase The NHS Long Term Plan highlighted the transition of care from an acute tertiary level to community and primary as a prime target area over the next 10 years. Additionally, the ongoing prevalence of COVID-19 will result in care delivery increasing in non-acute settings. This will present challenges within the supply chain for things like stockholdings and requisitions for replenishment, which will become more disparate and consequentially more difficult to manage efficiently. The development of drop-in, top-up points for community staff and robust technological solutions for the management of inventory are going to be crucial in delivering efficiencies and appropriate governance in non-acute settings.
Fi ve pre dict ions for t h e UK h ealt h c a re s u p p l y ch a i n i n 2021
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