The sooner procurement is engaged in a business need, sourcing project, or contract process, the better the outcome will be for the business. This principle is widely accepted within procurement as truth, but has it ever been proven? If procurement could provide data to support earlier engagement and stronger upstream relationships with the business, the entire value equation would change.

Brian Peters is the Senior Director of Global Procurement Services & Delivery at Gilead Sciences, and he has a theory. He believes that if procurement has better upstream relationships, he will be able to measure the benefits in terms of:

• Higher savings
• Improved business outcomes
• Increased stakeholder satisfaction
• Shorter cycle times
• Improved supplier experience

In this conversation with host Philip Ideson, Brian talks about his theory regarding the ROI of procurement's upstream relationships and the process he and his team are going through to prove it is true.