Hey Procurement Legend,
Iβm working on some amazing stuff behind the scenes that Iβll be sharing real soon with you. No, itβs not a product or anything like this. Itβs some amazing collaborations and content.
PS. JOIN 3400+ Digital Procurement Pros here.
Iβm energised by the trajectory of procurement tech at the moment. For the last four years Iβve been a big critic. But it feels like every procurement tech company I speak with are deeply passionate about solving your challenges in the best way possible.
Thatβs a big improvement.
Are there any procurement tech areas/categories/solutions youβd like me to go find out more about? Hit reply to this email and let me know.
What I'm Reading
Iβve taken a bit of a reading break for the last couple of weeks.
But Iβm slowly getting through Deep Work, by Cal Newport. Iβm a huge fan of his works.
What I'm Thinking (about Procurement)
Everyone I speak to who doesnβt have procurement tech wants it but they say the same thing.
Budget.
Iβm not the budget holder.
Weβre not there yet.
Weβre just getting started.
And thatβs a great place to be.
Why?
Play with the tech your company has.
If youβve got Google Suite, build forms, that connect to sheets, that connect to gmail, that automates emails. You might want to get a free version of Zapier/Make if your IT team gives it a π.
Thinking digitally is available at all times.
Use what youβve got to collect better data and automate a few steps.
Measure where you are now and where you get to.
Take this forward as your business case and say we think we can do much more with dedicated tech.
This is how I got the budget in my last role.
One Procurement Tech Focused Insight
Weβre in the super early days of Gen AI. Itβs going to change everything dramatically.
I see advice about brushing up on Excel and PowerPoint.
You donβt need to do this.
I can ask Chat GPT to build me a dashboard, provide me with the instructions, and do that in less than 10 mins.
Donβt focus on antiquated knowledge.
One Piece of Content I've Found Useful
As a coffee lover (and a guy who just got a coffee tattoo donβt ask) Iβm always looking at the coffee supply chain. Yeah, Iβm that nerdy.
Fears Over Coffee Shortages Send Prices Soaring to New Highs
Summary: Coffee prices are soaring due to fears of shortages caused by adverse weather in Vietnam and Brazil. Companies like Lavazza are being impacted, leading to increased buying activity in the market. Climate change is contributing to volatile weather patterns affecting coffee production worldwide.
ICYMI
World of Procurement Content Recommendations
Check this out here - make sure you get one of these books.
How you can Support World of Procurement Elsewhere
Take our Contract Management Course for Beginners
Digital Products (mostly free)
Thanks
Daniel
Any feedback on this is welcomed.