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Provider Pros to Know
This year's Provider Pros to Know offer industry insights you can use when tough times call for you to wring every last bit of savings out of your supply chain.
Don Lesem, Vice President, Product Lifecycle, Global Products and Services, IHS (www.ihs.com). Operating globally without reliable information is like changing lanes without checking your blind spot. Supply chain complexity is now compounded with economic uncertainty. Undetected changes in supply availability or compliance can result in costly product delays, redesigns or lost sales. Accelerating “proactive vs. reactive” business-critical information strategies can be the difference between “success versus failure.”
Rory King, IHS (www.ihs.com). If you do only one thing, evaluate indirect MRO material and chemical inventory for a measurable "quick win." In about a month, optimization can show how to simultaneously reduce costs and maintain (or improve) production capacity. The best part – optimization dynamically readjusts inventory to meet your defined business objectives, so it promises sustained benefits as business conditions change.
Additional Pros to Know on the IHS team include Sheri Rhodine (Sr. Director, Product Marketing, IHS) as well as Mark Strandquest (with expertise in Indirect Supply & MRO Management), Cindi Hines (Global Trade Standards and Regulations), Tom Keyserlingk (Design for Environment), Jeremy Johnson (Chemical, Greenhouse Gas, and Carbon Performance).
Albert K. Beaney, Category Practice Leader of IT and Telecommunications, ICG Commerce (www.icgcommerce.com). In these tough economic times, Beaney advises clients to employ a contrarian strategy of carefully planned and coordinated strategic investments in IT and Telecom assets and services to reduce overall expenses, improve productivity and, at the same time, allow them to make strategic capital investments in a buyer's market. As a result, Beaney's clients have realized over $100 million of savings.
Tom Beaty, President & CEO, Insight Sourcing Group (www.insightsourcing.com). Stick to two core principles. First, keep it measurable – ensure that savings initiatives deliver actual auditable cost reduction or "hard dollar savings" as opposed to difficult to measure process savings, cost avoidance or other soft costs. And keep it simple – avoid solutions and tools that are too complex, too expensive, or over engineered for your core needs.
David Blinick, President, Blinco Systems (www.blinco.com). Take a proactive, rather than reactive, approach to complying with global trade regulations to mitigate risks raised by new and increasingly restrictive, punitive rules of engagement of regulatory compliance. Software-as-a-service global trade management solutions provide the ability for organizations to monitor regulatory requirements and attain a reasonable level of compliance management and reporting competency.
Robert F. Byrne, President & CEO, Terra Technology (www.terratechnology.com). Want to "go green"? The easiest way to reduce waste in the supply chain is to improve your planning processes to avoid manufacturing unwanted goods. By avoiding production, rather than recycling waste or improving packaging, resources are not consumed at all, decreasing inventory, reducing costs and improving profits.
Norman Conway, President & CEO, Prorizon Corporation (www.prorizon.com). As important as it is to prepare for the eventual upturn in the economy, it's more important for customers to solidify their operational foundation now! This strategy helps prepare for the future.
Nigel Davies, Senior Vice President, Supply Chain Solutions, CDC Software (www.cdcsoftware.com). Seek out specialized solutions that can help you company cope with increased market requirements on delivery precision and short lead times, with global competition and increasingly complex supplier networks, with financial impact analysis and transaction control, and with better utilization of warehouse and transportation resources.
Albert Jacobs, Vice President & COO, Puridiom (www.puridiom.com). Don't just invest in technology, invest in technology that supports best practice strategies for managing the supply chain, including the entire procure-to-pay process, and that offers the best opportunity to reduce cost, manage risks, improve performance and compliance, while delivering a real value proposition."
James V. Kelly, C.P.M., CEO and Managing Principal, JVKellyGroup, Inc (www.jvkg.com). Look for innovative ways to work with your supply chain solution and service providers, including gain-share arrangements that allow you to leverage services that might otherwise be unaffordable. Also, immediately review spending across the entire organization, and re-prioritize sourcing projects to focus on faster wins and quick hits as well as on unmanaged spend.
Ashif Mawji, CEO, Upside Software Inc. (www.upsidesoft.com). The importance of keeping existing customers satisfied is paramount today as many studies illustrate the heftier price tag of attracting new customers versus keeping existing ones. Leverage contract lifecycle management software to optimize relationships by providing clear indicators of contract/project progress so users can keep up-to-date and better anticipate customer needs.
Tim McEneny, President & CEO, PurchasingNet, Inc. (www.purchasingnet.com) Partner with solution and service providers that will work collaboratively with you to understand your unique needs and create return-on-investment (ROI) analyses that can help both get necessary supply chain improvements projects approved and also demonstrate Supply Management's value to senior executives.
Jim Piermarini, CEO, CTO, Profit Point, Inc. (www.profitpt.com). While a company may be inclined to focus on technology to solve problems, don't forget that the best results will come from focusing on the people and process side of the equation, and then looking to technology.
Nader Sabbaghian, CEO, BravoSolution (www.bravosolution.com). To weather an economic downturn, Sabbaghian has a threefold vision to help businesses to take advantage of key supply management opportunities while mitigating risk, first by ensuring they adhere to a rigorous process for conducting supply management activities, and to enforce compliance with those policies. Next he says companies should carefully track supplier performance, and Sabbaghian has delivered a set of tools and services worldwide to help clients with this step. Finally, he says companies should closely examine supplier-partners in low-cost-country sourcing arrangements.
David Saroli, CEO, Osiris Innovations Group (www.osirisinnovations.com). Leverage technologies that make supply chain management a more transparent and efficient process for both suppliers and buying organizations – by adopting technologies that help your suppliers lower their own costs, your company ultimately can reap the benefits of reduced costs and stronger supplier relationships.
Chris Timmer, Vice President, Customer Solutions, LeanLogistics (www.leanlogistics.com). Successful logistics management in any economic climate requires a holistic approach to the supply chain. Purchasing logistics services carefully can realize "paper" savings on annual budgets. But, visibility and tracking of the services you purchase is necessary to realize "executable" savings.
Dave Adams, CIO and Executive Vice President of Operations, GT Nexus. For those in international trade, make good use out of Web technologies to solve everyday and strategic challenges – it can save you tens of millions of dollars.
Eric Allais, President & CEO, PathGuide Technologies. Don't give into the temptation to hunker down and retreat from pushing well intended initiatives. The status quo, existing methods and overhead to ship product, gets protected. This "hope for the best" strategy simply squanders the opportunity to inject cost efficiencies into your logistics during times when your fulfillment operation should get lean and productive out of necessity.
Harry Allan, CEO, ClearTrack. Integrate disparate systems to resolve supply chain disruptions: "If you can't see the opportunity, you can't measure the opportunity, and if you can't measure the opportunity, then you can't manage the opportunity."
Mike Anguiano, Co-CEO, CVM Solutions. Strategy is key when times are tough, so identify suppliers that are or may be at risk, and identify new and existing suppliers that can provide the services you need to help your vendors stay competitive.
Amy Baxter, Vice President, Business Process Services, ProcureStaff. Apply sourcing and procurement methods that are broadly used and accepted in a market like the U.S. – like a vendor-neutral sourcing strategy for human capital category – and apply it to new regions of the world to mine new savings in new markets.
Joey Benadretti, President, SYSPRO USA, SYSPRO. Has your organization strayed from its initial successful business plans to focus on "make-to-stock" operations and complex supply chains, resulting in production that is poorly timed with little regard for the needs of the market? Re-focus on Lean, "make-to-order" operations and tight supply chains.
Jim Bengier, Global Industry Executive, Retail, Sterling Commerce. Leverage industry initiatives like the Cross-Channel Retailing Consortium, focused on helping retailers identify ways to integrate the selling and fulfillment processes to optimize processes and thereby improve the customer experience and reduce costs.
Richard Benyon, CEO, Decideware, Inc. The current economic climate has sharpened the focus companies should place on managing great performance from strategic suppliers in complex, high value categories like Marketing, IT and Professional Services.
Tim Brown, Principal, Profitability Analysis and Green Supply Chain Design, Chainalytics, LLC. Need to make supply chain changes, but can't swing the capital investment? Brown suggests cost and revenue driver analysis to sharpen policies for unprofitable customers, alter inventory strategies for underperforming products and ultimately improve the bottom line.
Jay Burgess, Director, Plan4Demand Solutions Inc. Recognize that your supply chain planning tools may not be recognizing the significance of economic trends. Often, supply chain planning tools use historical performance as a primary predictor of future performance. However, in a quickly down-turning economy, these tools could project a heavier inventory position than what is actually required, leading to a significant risk of excess and obsolete inventory which are especially difficult to accept in a climate of challenging cash management and decreased investment opportunities.
Bob Burich, President, Georgetown Consulting. Leverage distribution requirements planning as a forecasting tool to ensure that you have the right amount of inventory availability given your company's sales numbers.
David Bush, Iasta. Through the use of modern technology and modern sourcing processes, Bush helped the world's largest ground transportation company met their tough cost savings objectives – $43 million in the first sourcing wave alone.
Bill Carlson, Vice President, Marketing and Business Development, GHX. Carlson's goal is to create a common infrastructure for the entire healthcare industry, providing visibility to supply inventory and consumption information of high-cost medical supplies.
Vincent Chiodo, Senior Vice President, Transplace. Consider if the technology you are selecting will be a strategic enabler that helps you meet your business objectives. Companies must have the people and processes necessary to apply that technology to achieve supply chain improvements.
Sean Chou, Chief Technology Officer, Fieldglass. In order to make informed, strategic labor decisions during these increasingly difficult economic times, Chou urges customers to follow a strategy based on extensive reporting and analysis.
David Clevenger, Vice President, Corporate United. The key to success in the current economic environment, suggests Clevenger, lies in a combination of disciplines called strategic category management, which are designed to address spend management in an evolving, global economy.
Dr. Morris A. Cohen, Founder and Chairman of the Board, MCA Solutions Inc. Look to aftermarket services for opportunities to increase revenue and profits, reduce costs, stimulate market growth and absorb the shocks of business cycle variations.
Tim Cummins, CEO, IACCM. Take a multidisciplinary approach to supply management, engaging with stakeholders across different functions to understand their requirements and building partnerships across organizational silos.
Sean Delaney, Managing Director of Iasta UK, Iasta. The economic crisis isn't limited to the United States, and it is Delaney's goal to help European company's realize every available opportunity to maximize their cost-savings. Delaney's clients save millions of dollars, a critical action in a strained economic environment.
David Diamond, CEO, Arigo. Use advanced optimization algorithms to establish priorities consistent with your organization's needs and identify top sourcing options.
Charles Dominick, President and Chief Procurement Officer, Next Level Purchasing. Don't skimp on training for your company's supply chain staff. Now is the time to be firming up skill sets that can produce results and support company operations regardless of the economic climate.
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