It’s a question I’ve been asking myself over recent weeks as I am currently in the enviable position of having some dedicated time and space to look for my next new – and hopefully exciting – leadership role within procurement.
I’ve been a procurement professional for over 15-years in both public and private sectors and I love it! Why? The ability to make a tangible business impact, the constant change and challenge, the need to embrace new and emerging trends from a technology and people point of view and therefore the need to design strong and widespread relationships…the list goes on. And with multiple re-orgs under my belt, I consider myself pretty experienced in finding good talent to help really shift the dial; to realize the full value it can have on any business beyond the traditional, but important, bottom- line savings; to build solid business partnerships, and, of course, the classic contractual safe-guarding.
And now, the time for change is upon us – with Industry 4.0 very much in the present, the impact is going to affect us in more ways than just how we interact with the next piece of technology.
In my experience (and through discussions with my networks) the consistent feedback we hear (and therefore the challenge the function faces) is how to become easier to deal with, how to dial up agility and speed, how to embrace and develop innovation to drive change, whilst at the same time establishing a seamless alignment with the business to achieve one agenda.
As a sweeping judgement, my view is that many procurement leaders face the issue of operating in siloes within our entrenched categories, and yet paradoxically seeking the next big idea. To date I’ve yet to meet a stakeholder who talks about wanting us to operate in self-imposed functional categories or that they really enjoy dealing with four different procurement teams for two requests! Our stakeholders share a desire for us to help drive transformational change; operate cross functionally; partner with them to identify and deliver better and more efficient results to help drive the business forward. Whilst traditional category management is not dead in the water, being a strategic advisor and partner to my counterparts is where I (and my teams) thrive…so what’s holding us back?
Firstly, it’s about mindset. I am sure this all sounds very familiar to every reader and I know most CPO’s have this as a key principle for their 3-5 year strategy. Shifting a mindset (and ultimately behaviour) is one that requires a deep-rooted investment in motivations and values. Then nurturing existing talent, and developing new teams that share the vision of the future organisation.
So, when it comes to recruiting for these high-performing teams I often hear “it’s so hard to find people with the ‘right experience’”. But when you delve a little deeper I wonder why are we still set on lazy job descriptions that value functional experience over people skills and vision? Why – in 99% of any job descriptions – do FMCG jobs require prior FMCG experience (for example)…and that this is valued over transformational leadership? Are we really looking for a perfect side to the Rubix cube? Surely, to move the dial we need to think creatively, with people over function, embracing cross- fertilisation of ideas from other sectors. Otherwise surely we are just self-perpetuating the issue and driving our own shortage of talent…
Guest Blogger: Chris Young
