“I think we don't always realise that we have a reputation with our suppliers, just like a company will have a consumer brand.”Consumer branding is a standard aspect of any business that’s well documented - lesser considered but equally important, however, is the prospect of your supplier branding.Presenting yourself to potential suppliers for a partnership is a skill, one in which Cameron Holder is highly proficient. Having recently departed his role as Head of Commercial & Procurement at Nando's, Cameron joins Martin this week to share their approach to supplier relationships, how to win over pickier suppliers, and how to nurture a relationship that works for everyone.This episode of Talent Talks covers:How supplier branding plays a huge role in the partnerships you can makeWays to win over the suppliers who may be in demand, and are more picky about who they work withNando's’ journey to taking a more consistent baseline approach to engaging with suppliersThe human element of procurement, and avoiding the conflation of being nice with being ‘soft’Links and references at: https://talentdrive.co.uk/

“In general when you're buying services, it won't have such a complex supply chain. But in terms of what you're buying, it's infinitely more complex.”Pinpointing the value of procured services on more metrics than pure cost is an issue worth solving, given the trillions in annual global spend that go towards services procurement.Zivio are leading the way with their SaaS platform - their CEO Jonny Dunning is our guest on Talent Talks this week discussing how technology is altering the procurement landscape.We dive into digitisation attracting talent, automation allowing higher level strategies to be employed, why data is power, and much more.This episode of Talent Talks covers:Trends in perception of procurement, currently seen as a relatively young functionGrowing sophistication in the design of procurement rolesThe talent shortage, and how candidates recognise digitisation regardless of categoryConsistent demand for automation, visibility and controlThe evolving landscape of procurement, with its increasing focus on dataThis episode of Talent Talks is sponsored by Nutral. Through their neutral vendor managed service, Nutral offers an easier, streamlined way to achieve better fulfilment, improved quality, 100% visibility & control of expenditure, less risk, and bottom-line savings. They place the interests of customers first when selecting suppliers – every time. Find out more at https://nutral.uk/ or https://www.linkedin.com/company/nutralsolutions/

“The common element is very similar between organisations. What you need to understand is the environment you're working within, the stakeholders that you have and their agendas.”Between impressively varied roles at Fulham FC, Harrods & and Allianz, Nick Brazier is evidence that when you understand your environment, third party management demands a similar skillset.Having now set up a third party management function at Close Brothers, Nick joins us on Talent Talks to break down the fine balance between risk management and agility, the need for a properly structured team, and how our industry can act to improve the talent pool.This episode of Talent Talks covers:Balancing risk management with agility and entrepreneurialismCreating a 3rd party management framework with buy-in across the organisationThe need for a properly structured team, making the most of everyone’s skill setsTalent acquisition, and what the industry can do to attract more great candidatesThis episode of Talent Talks is sponsored by Nutral. Through their neutral vendor managed service, Nutral offers an easier, streamlined way to achieve better fulfilment, improved quality, 100% visibility & control of expenditure, less risk, and bottom-line savings. They place the interests of customers first when selecting suppliers – every time. Find out more at https://nutral.uk/Links and references at: https://talentdrive.co.uk/

“How do you make sure that sustainability is not a compliance play, it's not a nice-to-do and a tick box? Put it right in your business strategy.”From Simon King’s eventful early career, to his hugely influential endeavours in the sustainability world now, he’s amassed experiences to inspire us all to embrace the green agenda.Whether it’s making the huge leap in efficiency through electric vehicle use, or promoting sustainability throughout your supply chain, this week’s episode of Talent Talks has tips for us all to make that essential change.Find out why it’s more important to roughly understand your impact than spend time on the minutia, how ‘Do, Lead, Deliver’ drives Mitie’s approach, and more in this 2nd part of a fascinating conversation with Simon.This episode of Talent Talks covers:The key differences between sustainability & ESGHow a sustainable links into attracting talentMitie’s ‘Do, Lead, Deliver’ approach to sustainabilityPromoting a green approach through to suppliersHow EVs can massively improve a fleet’s end-to-end efficiencyThis episode of Talent Talks is sponsored by Nutral. Through their neutral vendor managed service, Nutral offers an easier, streamlined way to achieve better fulfilment, improved quality, 100% visibility & control of expenditure, less risk, and bottom-line savings. They place the interests of customers first when selecting suppliers – every time. Find out more at https://nutral.uk/Links and references at: https://talentdrive.co.uk/

“In procurement, you’re trying to get meetings with people who don't want to see you, persuade them to do things they don't want to do, and negotiate a deal. Procurement and sales are very similar in skillset.”With over 13 years in Coca-Cola, a CPO role at Tata and an influential stint at Mitie, rolling out the UK’s largest pure electric fleet, Simon King has seen it all.While we’ve considered the need for obvious routes into the procurement profession, it’s always inspiring to hear from those who have found considerable success.We’re splitting Simon’s story into a two-part episode, this week covering the roots of his love and passion for sustainability, why soft skills are essential over technical knowhow, advantages of gaining interdisciplinary experience, and much more.This episode of Talent Talks covers:Simon’s start in analytical chemistry before his corporate careerLessons from almost 14 years within various roles at Coca-ColaAdvantages of setting processes in a greenfield functionTransferable skills between sales and procurementCombining the Coca-Cola process and Dairy Crest people-management in a role at TataThis episode of Talent Talks is sponsored by Nutral. Through their neutral vendor managed service, Nutral offers an easier, streamlined way to achieve better fulfilment, improved quality, 100% visibility & control of expenditure, less risk, and bottom-line savings. They place the interests of customers first when selecting suppliers – every time. Find out more at https://nutral.uk/Links and references at: https://talentdrive.co.uk/

“You'll start to think, ‘I'll be making a sourcing decision against one of the biggest elements of our impact within the next few years, which might almost commit me already to 2030’. It’s about getting that into the decision making now.”We often hear how our sector adds value, but seldom is it referred to explicitly as a revenue generator. With an ever-greater emphasis on ESG, setting environmental goals will very soon have a direct and tangible impact.The CPO at KPMG, Martin Lee, started his staggering career at Ford, and is employing a new take on the Triple Bottom Line concept - People, Planet, Profit.Martin joins his namesake and host of Talent Talks this week to consider how procurement measures its impact, where we have ground to cover in ESG targets, and how we can adapt our language to attract the best new talent.This episode of Talent Talks covers:Martin’s approach to the triple bottom line conceptProcurement’s role as a value & revenue creatorTangible steps to reducing environmental impact more favourably than carbon offsettingHow diversity & inclusion plays a huge role in ESG goalsLinks and references at: https://talentdrive.co.uk/

“It's not about the ‘what’, it's about the ‘how’, and I don't think we're doing enough with the ‘how’ at the moment in the private sector.”As social value remains front and centre of public sector procurement, and grows in relevance in the private sector, are there more complexities and variables than ever when it comes to initiating successful procurement transformation?The debate around transformation programmes, technology in procurement, social value, the role of aggregated data and more was the intriguing centrepiece of our Talent Talks Live event in March.It was a pleasure to be joined by Guy Battle, Jonathan Bearn, Kathryn Gillard and Paul Bestford to take on the steps to achieving procurement transformation with buy-in from stakeholders and a platform set for future success.This episode of Talent Talks covers:What procurement transformation entails, and how to achieve buy-in with key stakeholdersThe weighting of social value in procurement transformation programmesHow technology can provide value beyond its primary purposeWhether we’ll see an increase in anonymous, aggregated data to help CPOs make key decisionsThe Talent Talks Podcast is proudly sponsored by Barkers Commercial Consultancy. Barkers are a multi-award-winning ethical, procurement consultancy offering specialist services including cost and procurement transformation, contract lifecycle management, procurement managed services, bid writing services and digital procurement https://barkersprocurement.com/Links and references at: https://talentdrive.co.uk/

“It isn't about the price of the consultancy, it’s the impact of the outcome they're delivering, so cheap can become very expensive.”The difference in spend between contingent labour and consultancies globally is incredibly small, yet the technology and systems to work with them lags far behind.As CEO of Constellia, Rob Levene keeps close contact with their Consultancy Procurement Council to maintain a finger on the pulse of what issues need solving in the consultancy space.In this jam-packed episode of Talent Talks we look at the 6 biggest concerns with consultancy services, which tools are needed to alleviate those pain points, and how to reassess the value that firms place on consultancy services.This episode of Talent Talks covers:The combined public and private sector experiences that led to Constellia’s inceptionTransitioning the MSP model across sectorsA lack of established technology solutions for consultancy, despite a similar level of spend to contingent labourThe 6 top risks that category managers are facing right nowReframing the financial impact of consultancy to consider value over costThe Talent Talks Podcast is proudly sponsored by Barkers Commercial Consultancy. Barkers are a multi-award-winning ethical, procurement consultancy offering specialist services including cost and procurement transformation, contract lifecycle management, procurement managed services, bid writing services and digital procurement https://barkersprocurement.com/Links and references at: https://talentdrive.co.uk/

“From my perspective, data is the foundational resource that we now need to use in terms of how we think about our procurement transformation.”As apps like TikTok innovate the tools that curate content for us, it’s clear that the future of procurement is one in which we won’t settle for inadequate tools.We’ve been seeing gradual digitisation for decades, and as the need to process data and implement automation grows, we speak to Kantar’s CPO Stephen Day about how digital tools will help us tackle industry challenges.In this rich conversation touching on so many of the profession’s most pertinent issues, Stephen shares how to implement digitisation in a way that justifies its continued use, the skill sets sought from new procurement professionals, how data can help drive a more diverse and inclusive industry, and much more.This episode of Talent Talks covers:How Stephen build up his varied series of prior roles and experiencesWhat digitisation means and how it should be implemented with consideration for stakeholdersThe benefits of an empowering, empathetic leadership styleHow data can be used to improve diversity, inclusion and representation in the industryThe skills sought in the next generation of procurement professionalsThe Talent Talks Podcast is proudly sponsored by Barkers Commercial Consultancy. Barkers are a multi-award-winning ethical, procurement consultancy offering specialist services including cost and procurement transformation, contract lifecycle management, procurement managed services, bid writing services and digital procurement https://barkersprocurement.com/Links and references at: https://talentdrive.co.uk/

“With our size and scale, we can deliver value for money through social value, but also leave a lasting legacy in communities.”The scrutiny that comes with multi-billion pound projects in the public sector gives National Highways a strong impetus to put social value first in its operations. So how do we achieve the same in the rest of the industry?In a Talent Talks first, we feature a panel of 3 guests from the same procurement department - Malcolm Dare, Sanyalax Morrison, and Andrew Stephenson - to share the reasons behind National Highways’ increasing focus on social value.Join us as we discuss the methods of spreading the issue across the sector, the sometimes-overlooked aspects of engaging with SMEs, the proactivity necessary to hit carbon neutrality targets, and much more.This episode of Talent Talks covers:How to define social value and the 4 huge reasons to prioritise itThe process of elevating social value to be achieved on a sector-wide levelWhy we need to act now in order to hit 2030 goals for carbon neutralityIncreasing engagement with SMEsThe Talent Talks Podcast is proudly sponsored by Barkers Commercial Consultancy. Barkers are a multi-award-winning ethical, procurement consultancy offering specialist services including cost and procurement transformation, contract lifecycle management, procurement managed services, bid writing services and digital procurement https://barkersprocurement.com/Links and references at: https://talentdrive.co.uk/