Profit from the Source

4

Go Bionic

Create a Procurement Function That Combines the Virtues of Human Creativity and Digital Technology

Martin Ashborne, CPO of Apex Motors, one of the world’s largest automakers, stared intently at the PowerPoint slide that we had just presented him, his eyes darting from side to side as he tried to take in the significance of what the featured chart was telling him.*

On the x-axis were the words procurement focus, with a scale running from “cost reduction” to “profitable growth.” On the y-axis were the words procurement mandate, with a scale running from “supporting the corporate strategy” to “shaping the corporate strategy.” In the lower left corner was Apex Motors along with their rival automakers. But we could just as easily have ...