The Future of Procurement

Co-Host: Amanda Slevar – Director, Center of Excellence, SAP North America, Intelligent Spend & Business Network

Co-Host: Lindsey Freedman – Director, Center of Excellence, SAP North America, Intelligent Spend & Business Network

Special Guest: Sarah Di Tosto – Head of Program Success, SAP 

In the third episode of the special Flex and the City segment, co-hosts Amanda Slevar and Lindsey Freedman, introduce Sarah Di Tosto, head of the North American and Latin American Program Success team at SAP.  

Amanda and Lindsey kick off this episode speaking with Sarah to explore her background in the flexible workforce industry. They dive into global best practices, highlighting how the program success team at SAP provides value for customers, and discuss what’s top of mind for customers in managing their external workforce programs. During the “no dumb questions” segment of the show, they discuss what direct sourcing is and the reasons customers look to adopt direct sourcing in their programs.

So, let’s dive in, and don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe. We are your co-hosts Amanda Slevar and Lindsey Freedman you’re listening to The Flex and the City segment on The Future of Procurement Podcast. 

Follow SAP: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sap/

Follow SAP Ariba: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ariba/

Follow SAP Fieldglass: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sapfieldglass/

Follow Amanda: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amandarottphr/

Follow Lindsey: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindseykfreedman/

Follow Sarah:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-di-tosto-3bb13533/

Please like, share, and subscribe!
Send feedback and questions to [email protected]

Guest: Lisa Smith – Executive Advisory & Speaker

Host: Justin Morse – Vice President, Center of Excellence, SAP North America, Intelligent Spend & Business Network

Deciding to embrace technology to transform a procurement organization is no easy feat, especially when dealing with large, global organizations in a complex industry such as automotive, where procurement leaders need to balance cost savings, process efficiency, supply chain reliability and vendor relationships.

So, how do companies manage successful transformation programs while mitigating operational disruption?  Why is it so important to embrace technology and change in the quest to remain competitive?  What else, besides the technology matters for a successful transformation?

Our guest today, Lisa Smith, draws from her over 30 years of global automotive procurement experience at Toyota North America and Ford Motor Company to showcase how she’s been able to lead several successful procurement transformations using SAP technologies.  Lisa shares several insightful secrets to her success that transcend technology, such as change management, executive alignment and building relationships.

Today, Lisa uses her platform as a trusted global procurement leader as an executive advisory and speaker in the procurement and supply chain space, helping other organizations on their transformation journeys by providing influence, leadership and advisory expertise.

So, let’s dive in, and don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe. I am your host Erik Derenne, and you’re listening to The Future of Procurement Podcast. 

Follow SAP: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sap/

Follow SAP Ariba: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ariba/

Follow Lisa: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisagsmithllc/

Follow Justin: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinmorse/  

Follow Erik: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erik-derenne/

Please like, share, and subscribe!
Send feedback and questions to [email protected]

Guest: James Gellert – Executive Chairman, RapidRatings

Host: Erik Derenne – Director, Center of Excellence, SAP North America, Intelligent Spend & Business Network

The macroeconomic conditions of the last 5 years have been tough on businesses.  Between a global pandemic, geopolitical unrest, natural disasters, rising interest rates, inflation and supply chain shortages, it’s no wonder that the financial health of many companies is suffering, and often small and medium-sized private companies have suffered the most.

But what does this all mean for a company’s supply chain?  What risk factors do we need to be aware of when we see signals of poor financial health within our supply base?  How can businesses be better equipped to track and monitor these financial health risk signals to navigate the current economic climate? 

Our guest today, James Gellert, is a recognized international authority on corporate counterparty risk management, supply chain risk, the health of public and private businesses, and US rating regulation.

James began his career in the credit world, working in Debt Capital Markets at multiple global banks, most prominently running business for Deutsche Bank, bringing non-US corporates, financial institutions, and sovereign entities into the US public and private debt capital markets, as well as for issuance of global bonds. Since entering the technology world, he has run four private companies – three in data, risk, and media, and one, an investment banking boutique focused on raising capital and M&A in the financial information services industry. He sold three of these companies and acquired RapidRatings to focus entirely on financial risk for credit and supply chain risk professionals. 

RapidRatings has received awards and accolades for risk management in credit and supply chain, and James Gellert has been awarded the “Pros to Know” title in the supply chain industry.

So, let’s dive in, and don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe. I am your host Erik Derenne, and you’re listening to The Future of Procurement Podcast. 

Follow SAP: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sap/

Follow SAP Ariba: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ariba/

Follow James: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesgellert/

Follow Erik: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erik-derenne/

Please like, share, and subscribe!
Send feedback and questions to [email protected]

Co-Host: Amanda Slevar – Director, Center of Excellence, SAP North America, Intelligent Spend & Business Network

Co-Host: Lindsey Freedman – Director, Center of Excellence, SAP North America, Intelligent Spend & Business Network

Special Guest: Marc-Andre Vachon – Senior Solution Advisor, SAP 

In the second episode of Flex and the City, co-hosts Amanda Slevar and Lindsey Freedman, introduce their first ever guest Marc-Andre Vachon.  

Amanda and Lindsey kick off this episode with an interview with Marc to explore his background in the flexible workforce industry. They dive into a recap of SAP Sapphire, highlighting some of the exciting sessions and key customer interactions. They also explore recent news, including the European ESG reporting requirements, discussing what this means for the external workforce. In addition, they tackle a fundamental question: “What is a green job?” and explain its significance in external workforce management. 

So, let’s dive in, and don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe. We are your co-hosts Amanda Slevar and Lindsey Freedman you’re listening to The Flex and the City segment on The Future of Procurement Podcast. 

Follow SAP: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sap/

Follow SAP Ariba: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ariba/

Follow SAP Fieldglass: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sapfieldglass/

Follow Amanda: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amandarottphr/

Follow Lindsey: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindseykfreedman/

Follow Marc:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/m-a-vachon/

Please like, share, and subscribe!
Send feedback and questions to [email protected]

Guest: Luke van der Waals – Demand to Deliver Value Stream Owner, SLB

Hosts: Justin Morse – Vice President, Center of Excellence, SAP North America, Intelligent Spend & Business Network

As companies grow and evolve, enter new markets and geographies and deal with internal and external disruptions complexity usually follows.  This could be an influx of data to manage and sort through, or new regulations to comply with, or quite simply added process complexity to operations such as supply chain or procurement.

So, how do companies handle these major disruptions and complexities as they grow?  What’s the secret to evolving the business to stay relevant with changing customer needs, industry trends, local and global regulations and emerging technologies?

Our guest today, Luke van der Waals, brings a unique perspective from his 20 years in the oil and gas industry working for SLB, or Schlumberger as many may know it.  He shares the importance of how continuous innovation into new technologies has allowed SLB to thrive as a leader in the energy industry for almost 100 years and what he’s learned from SLB’s own digital transformation.

Luke has been running supply chains in the Energy Industry for the past two decades, working with SLB. He has led teams in the UK, US, Malaysia, Romania and France, from managing the supply chains of large engineering and manufacturing centers, to the Europe & Africa Procurement hub out of Bucharest. More recently, he has been leading SLB’s digital and operating model initiatives for Planning and Supply Chain, currently managing the global digital and process backbone that the Planning & Supply Chain teams run on.

So, let’s dive in, and don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe. I am your host Erik Derenne, and you’re listening to The Future of Procurement Podcast. 

Follow SAP: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sap/

Follow SAP Ariba: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ariba/

Follow Luke: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/luke-van-der-waals/

Follow Justin: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinmorse/  

Follow Erik: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erik-derenne/

Please like, share, and subscribe!
Send feedback and questions to [email protected]

Co-Host: Amanda Slevar – Director, Center of Excellence, SAP North America, Intelligent Spend & Business Network

Co-Host: Lindsey Freedman – Director, Center of Excellence, SAP North America, Intelligent Spend & Business Network

In the debut episode of Flex and the City, Amanda Slevar and Lindsey Freedman, introduce their podcast, a segment of SAP’s Future of Procurement series, focused on the external workforce and services procurement – essentially all things Flexible workforce!

Amanda and Lindsey kick off with a recap of their backgrounds and how they both ended up in the flexible workforce industry… as well as explaining the inspiration behind the podcast’s title. They dive into a recap of the recent Customer Summit, highlighting exciting sessions on AI and sharing fascinating customer stories. They also explore recent news, including the FTC’s new rule banning noncompete clauses, discussing what this means for the external workforce. In addition, they tackle a fundamental question: “What is co-employment?” and explain its significance in workforce management. With a blend of informative content and casual conversation, they set the stage for a series filled with insightful, and humorous discussions on flexible workforce dynamics.

If you’re a procurement, HR, or external workforce professional interested in all things flexible workforce…and pop culture references you won’t want to miss it.

So, let’s dive in, and don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe. We are your co-hosts Amanda Slevar and Lindsey Freedman you’re listening to The Flex and the City segment on The Future of Procurement Podcast. 

Follow SAP: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sap/

Follow SAP Ariba: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ariba/

Follow SAP Fieldglass: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sapfieldglass/

Follow Amanda: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amandarottphr/

Follow Lindsey: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindseykfreedman/

Please like, share, and subscribe!
Send feedback and questions to [email protected]

Guest: Guest: Jeff Clark – CEO, Nitor Partners

Hosts: Erik Derenne – Director, Center of Excellence, SAP North America, Intelligent Spend & Business Network
Justin Morse – Vice President, Center of Excellence, SAP North America, Intelligent Spend & Business Network

Corporate procurement was a different animal prior to COVID-19. Ever since the pandemic, many organizations were forced to rethink their procurement strategies and really focus on areas of Supplier Risk, Supplier Collaboration, Supply Chain Resiliency and Digital Transformation.

So, how has COVID-19 and other recent global supply chain disruptions and macro-economic changes effected the role of the CPO? What new skillsets are now required by CPOs to address these shifts in corporate procurement strategy? And how will AI and other emerging trends continue to affect the function of the CPO?

Our guest today, Jeff Clark, will provide his expert point of view on how he’s seen an evolution in the role of CPO over the last several years as well as guidance on where he sees the role evolving in the future and which skills will be most important for the CPO of the future.

After 14 very successful years at SAP Ariba in a variety of roles, Jeff has led Nitor Partners as CEO since 2022. His passion and vision for Nitor is to radically change how Procurement and Supply Chain organizations achieve digital transformation in the 21st century.

Jeff has a proven track record of success and a deep understanding of the intricacies of procurement. His talent for building world class teams, nurturing robust vendor and client relationships, and implementing efficient procurement strategies has consistently delivered success for Nitor clients.

So, let’s dive in, and don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe. I am your host Erik Derenne, and you’re listening to The Future of Procurement Podcast.

Follow SAP: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sap/ 

Follow SAP Ariba: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ariba/ 

Follow Jeff: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-clark-3029b77/

Follow Erik: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erik-derenne/

Follow Justin: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinmorse/

Please like, share, and subscribe!
Send feedback and questions to [email protected]

Guest: Justin Morse – Vice President, Center of Excellence, SAP North America, Intelligent Spend & Business Network

Host: Erik Derenne – Director, Center of Excellence, SAP North America, Intelligent Spend & Business Network

Procurement is a strategic lever for many key aspects of a business: sustainability, sourcing, legal, IT and cost containment to name a few.  Furthermore, leading procurement organizations are able to drive a competitive advantage in revenue growth, regulatory compliance, operational agility and more.

So why are procurement and supply chain professionals usually not viewed as a go-to resource for the C-suite when making core business decisions?  Why are they often relegated to daily operations and cost management activities while often understaffed and under-utilized when it comes to strategic initiatives?

Our guest today, Justin Morse, will help us understand the top 3 obstacles procurement faces to earning C-suite trust and more importantly, provide a roadmap for procurement leaders to overcome these obstacles and succeed in today’s environment.

Justin is the Vice President of the North America Center of Excellence for the Intelligent Spend and Business Network solution area at SAP. With over 20 years in supply chain technology, Justin brings deep expertise in procurement best practices across various industries. Specializing in solution advisory and thought leadership, Justin engages closely with CPOs and Procurement leaders to tackle supply chain challenges and drive strategic imperatives.  One of his main focus areas this year has been discussing the role Procurement plays in executive leadership to drive strategic direction for businesses.

So, let’s dive in, and don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe. I am your host Erik Derenne, and you’re listening to The Future of Procurement Podcast. 

Follow SAP: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sap/ 

Follow SAP Ariba: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ariba/ 

Follow Justin: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinmorse/  

Follow Erik: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erik-derenne/ 

Please like, share, and subscribe!
Send feedback and questions to [email protected]