The Growth of Value & Creativity from Procurement’s Next Generation with Williams Racing’s Olivia McNamara and Reckitt’s Julie Katz – Episode 64

Episode show notes

“I’m not here to cut costs, I’m just here to add value. However you want to dress that word of value, it’s totally up to you.”

The next generation of bright procurement prospects bring with them a focus on understanding what they’re procuring in a way that we haven’t seen before.

This episode of Talent Talks covers:

• The creative difference between direct and indirect procurement
• Focusing on value, and moving away from cost-cutting alone
• Top skills needed in the modern procurement profession
• New generations wanting to truly understand what they’re procuring
• How to better present procurement’s role to the wider business

This episode of Talent Talks is sponsored by 4C Associates – a leading European procurement and supply chain consultancy, who work collaboratively with forward-thinking clients to deliver real business value across a wide range of transformation and cost optimisation service offerings. Visit https://www.4cassociates.com/ for more information.

“I always say we’re the glue between everyone in the company in a way. In effect we’re basically influencers. We try to push the business in the right direction, and at the end of the day we’re not the budget holders so we need to really understand their requirements, and work together as a team to look outside and see what’s best for the business together.” – 5:00 – Julie Katz

“I always look at direct procurement – no offence to people in that industry – as a vending machine. It’s very much ‘I need this, just get it for me’, produce the part, the PO, whatever is needed. Indirect is much more strategic, which is one of the elements I love about procurement, because it has that insight for creativity.” – 6:50 – Olivia McNamara

“I like to call my stakeholders very fluffy. They’re people who don’t really want to be tied to a box. If you present them with a procurement process, let’s say it’s a box, they won’t even see the shape. It’s very much having to adapt yourself to that thinking. You need to get them to endorse you. My entire metaphor is that procurement’s a teaspoon, and you’re making a cup of tea.” – 8:40 – Olivia McNamara

“When we start to work with the rest of the business and they’re happy, then they’ll always come back to us, and we’re really a business partner. When they don’t know us, and they don’t even know sometimes that we exist, they don’t really know how to approach us, or why, or when.” – 16:00 – Julie Katz

“From my point of view, we’re moving away from the baseball bat mentality of only needing to cut costs, towards the mentality of looking at ROI more than anything else. What’s the value? I might have savings, but it’s not the priority.” – 28:00 – Julie Katz

“Sometimes you do have a seat at the table and you can do so many amazing things together with your business partners, with finance, legal, suppliers etc, and can build amazing machines. But if you’re not integrated, and you’re just basically the paperwork, the admin, which actually takes all of the fun out of the job, this is where you actually don’t get to have the proper value of procurement.” – 32:10 – Julie Katz

“It’s so brilliant that procurement is linked with innovation, because it is that. It’s that creativeness of thinking outside the box to bring value. I always present myself, especially when I’m marketing to stakeholders, that I’m not here to cut costs, I’m just here to add value. However you want to dress that word of value, it’s totally up to you.” – 35:50 – Olivia McNamara