751: Extinction or Opportunity: What is Procurement’s Destiny? with Sebastien Bals

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time. Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement. Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

“No matter how strong or how solid your foundations might be, the environment in which we operate is changing at such a pace that if we do not evolve with it, we will become obsolete.” - Sebastien Bals, EVP, Chief Procurement Officer at Merck Group As technology – AI in particular – continues to transform the way we work and live, the future of procurement hangs in the balance.  In this episode, Philip Ideson and Sebastien Bals, EVP and Chief Procurement Officer at Merck Group, talk about the “two roads” facing procurement: one, defined by opportunity, innovation, and transformation, and the other marked by disruption, outdated roles and practices, and far more uncertainty.  They confront the larger, existential questions that keep many procurement leaders up at night, while recognizing that procurement’s willingness to adapt and adjust could be the very skills that keep them from traveling down the path to extinction. They also discuss: Overcoming procurement’s inferiority complex and demonstrating value in new digital contexts How procurement can keep and leverage that long-coveted “seat at the table” they now enjoy Securing procurement’s future in an increasingly digitized, AI-powered world Links: Sebastian Bals on LinkedIn Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Subscribe to Art of Procurement on YouTube

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time. Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement. Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

“The visionary leaders can see the opportunities but also recognize that, while traditional skills in procurement still remain very, very important, they need to evolve to realize the true value of technology.” - Andrew Daley, Managing Director, Digital Procurement & Supply Chain, Edbury Daley The skills and operating models procurement prioritizes are key to their success whether they are facing a single, large-scale transformation or if they are on a steady, continuous digitization journey.  Philip Ideson recently spoke with Andrew Daley, Managing Director, Digital Procurement & Supply Chain at Edbury Daley, in-person at SAP Spend Connect Live in Las Vegas.  Along with discussing insights from a recent research report on procurement technology skills, they explore the importance of centers of excellence, upskilling, and automation. Andrew also shares his views on: Why digital literacy, change management, and strategic thinking skills are critical for both practitioners and procurement leaders Strategies for attracting and developing top talent in procurement How AI and automation will impact traditional procurement roles, and the skills that will become more valuable in the process  Links: Andrew Daley on LinkedIn Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Subscribe to Art of Procurement on YouTube

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time. Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement. Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

“You have to build a business case and be mindful and purposeful about your continuous improvement and your education around the art of what is possible.” Joël Collin-Demers, Consulting Principal at Pure Procurement The rapid expansion in the procurement technology landscape in recent years has left many procurement leaders feeling overwhelmed by choice and complexity and second-guessing themselves about how to successfully take advantage of all the opportunities that technology provides. In this episode, Philip Ideson speaks with Joël Collin-Demers, Consulting Principal at Pure Procurement, about why continuous improvement, rather than transformation, might be the key to successful procurement digitization.  Joël explains how the tendency to view transformation as a means to a clearly defined endpoint often leads to overwhelmed teams and unrealized value. Instead of a one-off digital transformation overhaul, he advocates for a measured, strategic approach that starts with understanding business processes and builds technology capabilities incrementally over a sustained period of time.In this episode, Joel and Philip explore: Practical steps on how to embark on a digitization journey and develop an effective procurement technology roadmap, no matter where you’re starting from How to navigate trends and changes in the procure tech market, including full-suite versus single-point solutions How to leverage the relationship between procurement and IT to overcome constraints to digitization Links: Joël Collin-Demers on LinkedIn Subscribe to This Week in Procurement Subscribe to Art of Procurement on YouTube

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time. Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement. Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

In the final part of this four-part special series, we compare and contrast the actual policy positions of Democratic Candidate Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican Candidate Former President Donald J. Trump.  With less than two weeks until election day, procurement and supply chain professionals must have plans in place for the eventuality of either candidate being voted into office, focusing on the areas where they agree as much as where they differ. Listen in as Kelly Barner describes where the two major party candidates actually differ (and where they have a lot in common) based on their own campaign websites, policy platforms, and statements from publicly available interviews: The differences we can expect when supply chain policy is focused on critical industries versus an emphasis on keeping production domestic Looking at a diverse range of energy sources as well as the overall cost and supply of available energy Corporate tax rates that may go up or down And one thing both candidates agree upon: China Links: Kelly Barner on LinkedIn Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter  Art of Supply on AOP Subscribe to This Week in Procurement

In part three of this four-part special series, we will cover the policies and plans of Republican Candidate former President Donald Trump.  Former President Donald Trump is 78 Years old, and a former businessman/real estate developer as well as the former host of The Apprentice. He became the nominee on July 18, 2024 when he accepted the nomination at the Republican National Convention Listen in as Kelly Barner explores his policy positions and platform: Detailed positions on global trade and China The lack of detail regarding his position on emissions and the environment Strong statements about both the cost and availability of energy, and the importance of emphasizing domestic production over imports from other parts of the world  Links: Donald J. Trump for President website Transcript of the September 10, 2024 Presidential Debate on ABC Transcript of the June 27, 2024 Presidential Debate on CNN Republican Party 2024 Platform Document Donald Trump Republican National Convention Speech Transcript Transcript of Donald Trump’s interview with Time Magazine Video of Bloomberg interview from October 15, 2024 Kelly Barner on LinkedIn Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter  Art of Supply on AOP Subscribe to This Week in Procurement

In part two of this four-part special series, we will cover the policies and plans of Democratic Candidate Vice President Kamala Harris.  Vice President Kamala is 60 Years old and a former Senator and Attorney General from the State of California. She became the presumptive Democratic nominee on July 21, 2024 when President Biden suspended his campaign for re-election, and the official nominee on August 22 when she accepted the nomination at the Democratic National Convention. Listen in as Kelly Barner explores her policy positions and platform: Detailed plans for renewable energy and the environment The lack of detail regarding her position on trade and tariffs Strong statements about China, specifically around the race to dominate AI, domestic labor protections, and intellectual property concerns  Links: Kamala Harris for President website A New Way Forward for the Middle Class Transcript of the September 10, 2024 Presidential Debate on ABC Kamala Harris Democratic National Convention Speech Transcript Democratic Party 2024 Platform Document 60 Minutes Interview with Bill Whitaker Kelly Barner on LinkedIn Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter  Art of Supply on AOP Subscribe to This Week in Procurement