Art of Procurement

"For anybody getting into the CPO role, whether internal or external, you ultimately have to start with your own assessment of the organization and quickly come up with what your priorities are." – Darshan Deshmukh, President at ProcureAbility The role of Chief Procurement Officer has changed significantly over the last decade, with the focus shifting primarily from cost savings to value generatio...

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 ca...

"For anybody in procurement that's ever uttered the phrase 'seat at the table,' it's not always a comfy seat. This is one of those moments where, if we want to be a part of the leadership discussion on the directional momentum of the company, we have to find the way, find the person, and find the time to have this conversation about supplier diversity." - Kelly Barner, Co-founder and Head of Opera...

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 ca...

The stakes are always high for procurement, but at mission-driven non-profits like the American Cancer Society, procurement is working to – quite literally – help save lives.  In this powerful fourth episode of "Buy: The Way…To Purposeful Procurement," co-hosts Philip Ideson, Founder of Art of Procurement, and Rich Ham, CEO of Fine Tune, speak with Brian Kyle, Vice President of Supply Chain and Ac...

" When we start thinking about and putting the end customer at the center of everything we do, it changes our perception of what's important and therefore what we measure in the outputs from our contracts. " Gordon Donovan, Vice President Research - Procurement & External Workforce, SAP Services spend makes up a large, strategic part of the value procurement provides to the business. But, it's als...

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 ca...

"It's still on us, as procurement professionals, to invest the right amount of time in building relationships and building our narrative." - Ashish Dhongde, Associate Director Procurement Beauty and Wellbeing North America, Unilever Unilever has built a notoriously well-integrated procurement program, and they are widely recognized for the strong partnership between procurement and the rest of the...

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 ca...

As Albert Einstein said, "We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them."  After taking an honest look at some of procurement's most pressing challenges and flaws in episodes 1 and 2, Philip Ideson and Fine Tune CEO Rich Ham shift their focus from problem-spotting to solution-seeking with special guest, Oliver Hurrey, one of the world's foremost experts on purpos...

Building off the previous discussion about "purposeful procurement," Philip Ideson, Kelly Barner, and Fine Tune CEO Rich Ham are back to take a bold, honest look at the systemic flaws that have all too often shaped procurement's behaviors and limited their impact.  In this candid conversation, we share and discuss real-world examples about how current incentive structures elevate short-term thinki...

"Show me the incentive, and I will show you the outcome." Warren Buffet's vice chairman Charlie Munger's succinct and insightful take reminds us of the power of incentives—and provides a backdrop for this project. In this first episode of the "Buy: The Way…To Purposeful Procurement" podcast, produced collaboratively by the teams at Art of Procurement and Fine Tune, Fine Tune CEO Rich Ham, Philip I...

" I look at building a business case in terms of storytelling, and the story that you have to be able to tell in procurement is around better, faster, and cheaper ." – Pratik Patel, Director - Category Management - Labor/North America Technology Spend, Mastercard Understanding how to address skeptics, overcome objections, and communicate procurement's value will ultimately determine how much buy-i...

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 ca...

" Instead of taking an inward look at your sourcing and procurement models, consider the easiest, simplest experience that you can provide to your internal customers ." – Ryan Bradford Procurement is in the midst of a transformative period, but at the heart of all this change is one thing that is always relevant: the customer experience.  Procurement has traditionally done itself a disservice by a...

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 ca...

"Procurement is going to make a transformative leap. It may be in a year. It may be in three years. But it's going to happen. So start experimenting." – Remko Van Hoek, Full Professor of Practice SCM, Executive Director CSCMP Supply Chain Hall of Fame, hosted by Walton, University of Arkansas ­- Sam M. Walton College of Business It's time to make procurement fun again.  That's what Remko Van Hoek,...

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 ca...

"We're in a new world where we're trying to converge all these different areas, not only to fix problems, but to drive different kinds of capabilities for procurement, ones that are not theoretically possible with the old approach." – Nick Heinzmann , Head of Research at Zip Procurement is continuously improving and maturing, but over the past few years, a series of distinct trends has gathered mo...

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 ca...

"One of the markers of a leading procurement function is when you see suppliers as more than just a source of supply but also as a source of value and innovation." - Samir Khushalani , Partner at McKinsey & Company Procurement is in a unique position right now. They have to balance immediate priorities and meet the needs of the business today while also navigating new realities and an uncertain fu...

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 ca...

"The industry is evolving faster than our willingness to accept it." - John Ward , Portfolio Director, ProcureCon North America, Worldwide Business Research  For 25 years, ProcureCon has served as a cornerstone for procurement education and community-building with their well-known annual conference series.  In this episode, Philip Ideson talks about the evolution of ProcureCon (and procurement in...

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 ca...

"As we stand here at the start of 2025, it's clear that this moment isn't about minor tweaks or incremental gains. It's about embracing fundamental shifts that challenge our long-held assumptions." - Philip Ideson , Founder and Managing Director of Art of Procurement As we head into 2025, which also marks the 10th anniversary of Art of Procurement, Founder and Managing Director Philip Ideson pause...