What I've learned in Procurement Tech
Gartner's Procurement Transformation Survey & Download Festival
Hey Procurement Legends,
Before we get into my message this week, I want to share something awesome with you.
I’m collaborating with Gartner.
This isn’t paid - I simply loved what Ryan and his team were looking to achieve, and I thought some of you might as well. I’ve always said I’ll bring cool things to your attention, and this is one of them.
I’ve been talking with the Gartner team for around 6 months, answering questions, sharing thoughts, and feedback on their big research piece.
I’m incredibly happy they’ve gone down the route of Procurement Functional Transformation. It’s clear procurement isn’t there yet, and their research is second to none. Help them out, get some good insights back, and let’s make the most of a good opportunity.
Gartner sourcing & procurement researchers are currently conducting a survey on procurement functional transformation. To participate in this anonymous survey, which will take approximately 20 minutes, click the link below.
In exchange for your participation, Gartner will share a summary of findings if you choose to share your email address in the survey. Sharing your email is entirely optional. The full findings will be unveiled at an executive retreat on October 10, 2023.
Please click the link below to start.
Yesterday marked my 1st anniversary at Gatekeeper, Heading up Community and Organic Social Content.
It marked a year since I worked with a Procurement Team.
My last two roles were Heading up Contract Management and Commercial Teams.
They gave me so much confidence and exposure at a young age (I’m 31 and was in these roles at 28). The move last year felt more intimidating than any other - but it’s been the best year of my working life.
And I wanted to share, succinctly, what I’ve learned in this year. So get ready for a listicle.
If you want to hear any more on these, then leave a comment, and I’ll expand on them in future articles.
But - I really want to hear your thoughts on where we are at as a profession and what you’ve noticed in the last year.
Here goes:
The majority of teams and orgs not yet in the world of digital procurement are looking for one of two things: A P2P solution or Contract Management Solution. Both can create a solid foundation to build on - I’m of the mind, as per my previous decisions in my last roles to say that a Contract Management Solution really does form your Data Foundation. Read the article below for some insights around Data Foundations.
Many embarking on the digital journey don’t yet have the digital capability in their procurement skill set to know what they want…but people are open around their pain points which are usually very similar regardless of where they sit in the world.
I’ve learned more about Procurement and Contract Management from being outside of it and have been able to use my skills to do things I never expected - such as product development.
I’m seeing the same things spoken about time and time again such as the seat at the table and who procurement should report to. This is the wrong question. We should be focusing on delivering value to our colleagues and customers and figuring out how we get there regardless of this. Perspective shifts are needed.
Global supply chains are chaotic, and the impacts of microchips, labor, COVID, ports, data privacy regulation, and regulation in general are really forcing people's hands to make changes to deal with these.
My biggest takeaway - careers aren’t linear. 3-4 years ago, I was making a high six-figure income. I make less now but am happier. I also spend most of my time making content, researching, ideating, and creating new things. Yet, I know I could jump back into reviewing contracts or sourcing if I wanted to (or anything else).
And just one last note. Yesterday, my substack crossed the $1000 in revenue mark.
A small but massive milestone. My aim is to use substack to create a second revenue stream that enables me to do more with my World of Procurement brand.
With the revenue, I’m able to utilise more services, researchers, and tech, to help create the content here.
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PS. I was at Download Festival in the UK over the last week, and that means I have no content to share as per usual.
I hope you don’t mind the change in style. I like to use this newsletter to quickly share some thoughts with you and share some awesome things I’ve come across every week.
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As always, my friends, I truly appreciate that you read this.
Daniel
Love this. I’m writing about my Gartner collab tomorrow. Also well done for your revenue milestone and hope you enjoyed download my friend