Twenty-five years after co-founding Corporate United, the first indirect GPO in the United States, David McCarty points out an inconvenient truth: the very tools procurement once developed to leverage spend are no longer as effective in today's supplier-dominated landscape.

In this episode of "Buy: The Way…To Purposeful Procurement," David joins co-hosts Philip Ideson and Rich Ham to discuss the evolution of Group Purchasing Organizations (GPOs), from their early promises of dramatic savings (15-30% back in the early 2000s) to their current state, where GPOs are much more limited in their ability to determine and optimize spend. 

With refreshing candor and a healthy dose of optimism about today’s forward-thinking GPO leaders, David confirms what many procurement leaders have long suspected: most GPOs are less effective today than when they were founded, partly because they've become a kind of checkbox solution that gives procurement a "false sense of security" rather than a true route to optimized expense management. 

For procurement leaders who are worried that their suppliers might be gaming the GPO system, David provides realistic guidance on how to select the right GPO partner (from looking at contract age and rebidding frequency to volume transparency and customization options). He also points out the key areas where GPOs can still deliver differentiated value, but only if they are leveraged appropriately and procurement puts the time and effort into measuring the value they expect to receive. 

While there are still benefits to using this model, it’s clear, says David, that in 2025, strategic procurement through GPOs requires a more discerning, purpose-driven approach than ever before.

Links:

• David McCarty on LinkedIn
• Rich Ham on LinkedIn
• Learn more at FineTuneUs.com

“In a transformation, make your good examples in the beginning, where you think you will make a difference.” - Joel Andersson, Process development and digitalization project leader - indirect procurement, IKEA

Building a mature indirect procurement function that’s strategically aligned with the rest of the business is a journey filled with problem-solving, stakeholder relationships, and continuous learning. It requires a ‘thinking-on-your-feet’ approach and a willingness to adapt as the business and its priorities evolve. 

For IKEA, this transformation began about five years ago when they moved from a self-organized approach to a centralized, strategic function that drives measurable value beyond just cost savings.

In this episode of Art of Procurement, Philip Ideson speaks with Joel Andersson, Process development and digitalization project leader - indirect procurement at IKEA, about the company’s indirect procurement transformation journey. 

Joel shares insights on how his team built credibility through early wins, implemented foundational technology, and is now exploring advanced capabilities including services procurement optimization and generative AI.

Listen in to hear:

• Why establishing visibility through spend analytics was their critical first technology investment before implementing a source-to-pay suite
• How demonstrating value through early "low-hanging fruit" wins created the business case for expanding the procurement function
• The unique challenges of indirect procurement compared to direct, particularly around stakeholder management and services procurement

Links:

• Joel Andersson on LinkedIn
• Subscribe to This Week in Procurement
• Subscribe to Art of Procurement on YouTube

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time.

Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement.

Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

"If you can't understand how procurement affects the ultimate end users in your organization, whether it's a state prison, or whether it's a manufacturing facility in Germany, then you're abdicating your role, you're just a robot. And that's why procurement has a superpower." - David Yarkin, CEO, Procurated

Long before "DOGE" became a buzzword in government efficiency, the state of Pennsylvania led a pioneering strategic procurement transformation that saved taxpayers millions… $140 million to be exact (and on a recurring basis, at that). The key to their success wasn't just smart buying strategies, but highly effective communication that helped secure executive support and turn resisters into supporters. 

In this episode of Art of Procurement, Philip Ideson speaks with David Yarkin, CEO of Procurated and former Chief Procurement Officer for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. David brings a unique perspective influenced by his background as a former press secretary and in procurement leadership. 

In this episode, David shares how he led Pennsylvania to unprecedented savings through strategic sourcing initiatives and a powerful approach to communication:

• How to build support for procurement transformation, even against significant resistance, while also staying aligned with company leadership
• Why supplier performance management should be a high priority for procurement and how a lack of visibility into early warning signs can lead to major failures
• How procurement leaders can break through organizational barriers by getting out from behind their desks and experiencing operations firsthand

Links:

• David Yarkin on LinkedIn
• Pennsylvania Did DOGE Before Elon Musk Made It Cool
• Subscribe to This Week in Procurement
• Subscribe to Art of Procurement on YouTube

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time.

Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement.

Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

More than one hundred years after John C. Dinsmore wrote in Purchasing Principles and Practices that “there should be no great chasm between the board of directors who represent the stockholders whose money is spent and the person who does the spending,” procurement is still struggling with the same fundamental problem of misalignment.

In the eighth episode of “Buy: The Way…To Purposeful Procurement,” Philip Ideson, Kelly Barner, and Rich Ham, CEO at Fine Tune, convene to grapple with the insights – and even a few uncomfortable truths – uncovered in their recent conversations with procurement veterans Rob Hills and Kate Vitasek (episodes 6 and 7, respectively).

Rich, Phil, and Kelly challenge conventional wisdom about cost avoidance (is it just “funny money,” after all?), the gap between negotiation and execution, and why procurement’s performance metrics have remained largely unchanged over the years, despite their obvious flaws. 

This conversation challenges procurement to think about the practices, processes, or assumptions that no longer serve them, and it also sets the stage for upcoming episodes that will begin to explore tangible solutions to these and other challenge areas. Tune in as the co-hosts gear up for their upcoming discussion with David McCarty and prepare to tackle new definitions of procurement value that could finally liberate procurement from its self-imposed “savings jail.” 

The path to purposeful procurement is becoming clearer with each episode…

“I understand that tension between procurement and legal could happen, but it really is a disservice to each other. It's like two brothers fighting. It doesn't make any sense.” - Paul Bagley, Director of Commercial Contracting, Acosta Group

Procurement and legal often find themselves at odds, despite the fact that they’re usually working toward the same goals for the business. We can usually trace this tension back to a few key areas like contract cycle times, risk management approaches, decision-making processes, or contract negotiations. But, when procurement and legal are true collaborators and combine their expertise, they can create measurably better outcomes for the business.

To get to that point, both sides need to get to the root of the tension and develop workable processes and expectations that leverage the strengths of both teams without creating bottlenecks or roadblocks… for anyone.

In this episode of Art of Procurement, Philip Ideson speaks with Paul Bagley, Director of Commercial Contracting at Acosta Group. Paul has a unique perspective as both an attorney and an experienced procurement professional. Because of that, he is able to directly challenge the notion that conflict between procurement and legal is inevitable, and he advocates instead for a more collaborative, supportive approach between the two.

In this episode, Paul explains:

• How effective category management is the key to creating alignment between procurement, legal, and business stakeholders
• The importance of empowering procurement with clear contract guidelines and fallback provisions so legal doesn’t become unnecessarily overinvolved
• Best practices for working with outside council or third-party legal teams
• Practical ways procurement can level-up their knowledge about legal’s role, improve their contracts, and stay current on what risks to look out for

Links:

• Paul Bagley on LinkedIn
• The Future of Digital Contract Management
• Subscribe to This Week in Procurement
• Subscribe to Art of Procurement on YouTube

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time.

Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement.

Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.

“You’re not going to be able to completely eliminate your tariff exposure. There are three frames under which to think about tariffs: How will you mitigate in the short term? How will you think about it in the medium term from your customer's perspective and pricing? And how will you think about a long-term realignment of supply chains?” - Richeek Maitra, Director, AlixPartners

With tariffs dominating the news cycle and sending global markets on a wild ride, procurement is scrambling to figure out the practical implications of tariffs on global supply chains and their own organization’s procurement strategy. 

In this timely Art of Procurement podcast episode, host Philip Ideson welcomes Richeek Maitra, a Director at AlixPartners and an expert on tariffs and their effects on the global supply chain and procurement operations. As Richeek advises, procurement shouldn’t (over) react to every single news story about tariffs, but everyone should be planning both short- and long-term strategies to safeguard their organizations from negative tariff-related fallout while still maintaining a competitive advantage. 

In short, procurement shouldn’t act as if the sky is falling, but they shouldn’t stick their heads in the sand and pretend it’s just business as usual either.

In this episode, Richeek explains:

• How procurement should interpret new tariff announcements and estimate potential impacts on specific spend categories and supplier relationships
• A practical response framework to tariffs that includes immediate tactical moves (like duty engineering) to long-term supply chain restructuring
• How to adopt a rational approach to China sourcing decisions that balances global trends with company-specific circumstances

Links:

• Richeek Maitra on LinkedIn
• Subscribe to This Week in Procurement
• Subscribe to Art of Procurement on YouTube

Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time.

Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement.

Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.