Associate Partner at IBM, Curt Reppart talks about a new, selective transformation approach that helps his customers find balance in new and existing technology, processes and data.

Guest: Curt Reppart – Associate Partner, IBM

Host: Sarah Nelson – Senior Solution Advisory, SAP Finance & Spend

Host: Erik Derenne – Director, Strategic Solution Advisory, SAP Finance & Spend

Host: Justin Morse – Vice President, Solution Advisory, SAP Americas, Finance & Spend

When taking on any major business transformation or technology upgrade in your organization, two major decisions always take center stage.

1) Where do we begin?

2) Will we go Brownfield (lift-and-shift our existing system) or Greenfield (start fresh with new standards)?

Our guest today, Curt Reppart, has been helping companies navigate these questions for years and offers great perspective as an Associate Partner at IBM. Though it sometimes may make sense to do a Brownfield, lift-and-shift transformation or start completely fresh with a Greenfield implementation, often these options carry significant trade-offs such as carrying forward technical debt and poor processes or create massive disruptions to the business.

At IBM, Curt often suggests a third path to his customers and that is the Bluefield Implementation strategy, where customers use a selective approach that drives deliberate decisions about which configurations, processes and data to keep, redesign, or retire and where to adopt a more fit-to-standard approach.

Further, Curt makes a compelling case for Procurement being the ideal entry point for this transformation journey as it is often a highly disconnected, fragmented and over-customized area of the business in a space where collaboration extending beyond the four walls of the organization requires a certain level of standardization and conformity to succeed. This makes procurement the perfect catalyst for being intentional about what to keep and what to simplify.

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.

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Business Transformation Leader Tony Gainsford joins us to explain how he used Supplier Collaboration, Process Mining and Automation Tolerances to drive successful procurement transformation at Molex.

Guest: Tony Gainsford – Business Transformation Leader, Molex

Host: Sarah Nelson – Senior Solution Advisory,SAP Finance & Spend

Host: Erik Derenne – Director, Strategic Solution Advisory, SAP Finance & Spend

Host: Justin Morse – Vice President, Solution Advisory, SAP Americas, Finance & Spend

Oftentimes people think of a business transformation or a procurement transformation as simply a technology project. That the best way to transform and improve the way the business runs is to just find newer software, with fancier bells and whistles, and that alone will solve all the issues, improve all the KPIs, and drive value for the organization.

And if that still doesn’t deliver the expected ROI, the expected results? What next?

Our guest today is Tony Gainsford, Business Transformation Leader at Molex. Tony has spent decades running successful transformation programs at Molex and knows first-hand what it takes to avoid common transformation pitfalls and achieve desired outcomes. In fact, Tony led an effort to digitize collaboration with all their Suppliers across the entire order-to-pay process through the SAP Business Network and strengthened the relationship with his Suppliers in the process.

Tony highlighted just how important it is to have a solid vision before beginning a transformation project and the need to be flexible along the way as new information is uncovered. He reflected on the benefits of using process mining and data mining tools to identify the gaps, bottlenecks and workarounds and how changes to the configurations, tolerances, rules and processes can turn issues into competitive advantages. The biggest revelation is that even in this age of AI, automation and digitization, the human relationship is still a vital component of the transformation process.

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.

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SAP AI expert Ryan Skorupski takes us deep into the world of all things AI in procurement shining a light on what it is, what it can do, and what the potential implications are for the future.

Guest: Ryan Skorupski – Senior Director of AI/ML, SAP Spend Management

Host: Sarah Nelson – Senior Solution Advisory, SAP Finance & Spend

Host: Erik Derenne – Director, Strategic Solution Advisory, SAP Finance & Spend

Host: Justin Morse – Vice President, Solution Advisory, SAP Americas, Finance & Spend

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve undoubtedly heard that AI is here and it’s the next big thing for businesses. It will automate tasks, provide incredible insights into our data, streamline operations, cut costs, and improve revenue. Companies are pouring billions of dollars to create AI models, build data centers and infuse AI into every part of their processes.

But what exactly is AI? Where are we today on the AI maturity curve? What’s possible right now and what could be possible tomorrow?

Our guest today is Ryan Skorupski, a Senior Director of AI and ML for Spend Management solutions at SAP. With a background in finance, mathematics, data science and machine learning, Ryan brings a unique and knowledgeable perspective to the table. Today, he’s on the front lines for building the AI foundational model at SAP and applying it to the full suite of procurement applications and processes.

Ryan takes us back through the history of AI and Large Language Models (LLMs) and how they are being used and applied in the business world. He emphasizes the importance of data in training the models and grounding the models to provide not just procurement-specific AI, but ultimately AI that’s fine-tuned to your specific company needs. Ryan also cautions that there is still much we don’t understand about how AI works and how to best utilize AI within the business, so it is imperative that everyone from IT to the business becomes trained on the capabilities of AI, the limitations of AI, and how best to infuse AI into our operations.

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.

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SAP Solution Advisor, Andy Moe reflects on his past experiences in Category Management to share the secrets of great category managers and why having a category strategy is crucial in today’s turbulent economy.

Guest: Andy Moe – Director, Solution Advisory, SAP Spend Management

Host: Sarah Nelson – Senior Solution Advisory, SAP Spend Management

Host: Erik Derenne – Director, Strategic Solution Advisory, SAP Spend Management

Host: Justin Morse – Vice President, Solution Advisory, SAP Americas, Spend Management

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Procurement at large corporations with massive amounts of spend across a variety of categories is not easy. Especially in these highly unpredictable socio-economic times where disruption seems to be the rule rather than the exception.

What was once simply a function of finding the best prices, procurement is now tasked with balancing price, quality, availability, and delivery times while mitigating risk, maintaining good supplier relationships, favorable payment terms, sustainability regulations, and much more.

So how does procurement take on this herculean task?

Enter the category manager…

Our guest today is Midwest Director of Solution Advisory at SAP Ariba, Andy Moe. Andy draws on his background in Category Management at a large manufacturing company to explain why having a strategy for category spend is vital to handing market uncertainty and maintaining stability in the supply chain.

Andy uses the concept of a physical binder, a relic from his past life, as a prop to explain all the critical facets of a good category manager – how to use data to create an action plan to maximize the effectiveness of each category of spend and ultimately defend these decisions to key stakeholders in the organization.

As technology evolves and the job of a category manager becomes increasingly more complex, these activities have moved away from the analog, physical binder and toward digital solutions that combine data and insights with strategic procurement tools. This allows the best category managers to respond to disruption in real-time and in the best possible way for their company.

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.

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SAP Procurement Webinar Series: ⁠https://events.sap.com/noam-discovery-your-grow-journey-procurement/en_us/home.html⁠

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SAP Solution Advisor, Matt Donegan draws from his past experiences in Supply Chain Operations to spotlight the conflicting priorities of Procurement and Supply Chain and how to balance them successfully.

Guest: Matt Donegan – Senior Solution Advisory, SAP Spend Management

Host: Sarah Nelson – Senior Solution Advisory, SAP Spend Management

Host: Erik Derenne – Director, Strategic Solution Advisory, SAP Spend Management

Host: Justin Morse – Vice President, Solution Advisory, SAP Americas, Spend Management

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For companies that manufacture things, the supply chain is the lifeblood of the organization. Production lines must run with maximum efficiency to deliver high-quality products to their customers on-time and at a competitive cost. This means that the materials necessary for the final product must be procured from suppliers that can be trusted to consistently deliver with quality and speed to keep the production lines running.

Procurement departments are often working off a different priority list, where low costs, low risks, better payment terms and more favorable contractual obligations are the main focus areas.

So, how do we align the priorities of procurement with the needs of supply chain operations?

Our guest today is fellow SAP Ariba Solution Advisor, Matt Donegan. Matt combines his background and education in Supply Chain Operations with his current role in advising customers in Procurement solutions to uncover the conflicting priorities that can create friction and risk in many manufacturing organizations.

Having worked on both sides of the aisle, Matt brings a unique perspective on the tricky balancing act of managing cost, quality and timeliness across the supply chain that combines technology, collaboration and a human element that fosters good relationships and trust with your customers, your stakeholders and your suppliers.

As technological, economic, political and environmental disruptions continue to strain global supply chains, having the right tools, processes and culture to weather the storm will be crucial for survival and will separate tomorrow’s successful companies from yesterday’s afterthoughts. What story will you write for the future of your company?

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.

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SAP Procurement Webinar Series: https://events.sap.com/noam-discovery-your-grow-journey-procurement/en_us/home.html

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Stacy Yoeckel, Founder of Modern Data Compass, joins us to talk about the complexity of data in a modern procurement organization and the importance of a good data strategy for our new AI-focused world.

Guest: Stacy Yoeckel – Founder and Chief Data & AI Strategist, Modern Data Compass

Host: Sarah Nelson – Senior Solution Advisory, SAP Finance & Spend

Host: Erik Derenne – Director, Strategic Solution Advisory, SAP Finance & Spend

Host: Justin Morse – Vice President, Solution Advisory, SAP Americas, Finance & Spend

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Data has always been the lifeblood of an organization, and the stakes have never been as high as they are now with generative AI technologies rapidly storming onto the scene to consume massive amounts of your data with the goal of producing intelligent insights to propel your company to new heights. Unfortunately, without clean data and proper context, AI will only take you so far…

So, what’s the secret to getting the most out of your data to fuel this AI renaissance?

Our guest today is Stacy Yoeckel, founder and chief data and AI strategist at Modern Data Compass. Stacy helped us understand the differences between Data Analysts, Data Engineers, and Data Scientists and how all three play a vital role in gathering, modeling, and transforming data to be useable and useful to the rest of the organization.

Stacy has spent decades obsessed with data, focused primarily on procurement analytics for several companies across a variety of industries. This experience combined with her passion for looking at data and finding patterns, led to the launch of Modern Data Compass, where Stacy advises companies on their strategies and readiness roadmap for getting the most out of data, analytics and AI.

With the rise of generative AI and an exponentially growing volume of structured and unstructured data, having a strategy for clean, semantically contextual data in no longer a “nice to have” …it is non-negotiable. The question is, will you take control of your data before it (or the AI using it) takes control of your organization?

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.

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Sean Sollitto, Co-Founder of Relish, joins us to talk about the importance of trusting Supplier data from bank account validity to sanctions screenings and how technology can reduce risks in the process.

Guest: Sean Sollitto – Co-Founder and VP of Business Development, Relish

Host: Sarah Nelson – Senior Solution Advisory, SAP Finance & Spend

Host: Erik Derenne – Director, Strategic Solution Advisory, SAP Finance & Spend

Host: Justin Morse – Vice President, Solution Advisory, SAP Americas, Finance & Spend

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Risks are lurking around every corner in the enterprise procurement space and nowhere is that more prevalent than when it comes to managing and trusting supplier data. Paying fraudulent bank accounts… Working with sanctioned suppliers… Paying incorrect tariffs… Not knowing these things can result in big fines and major problems for an organization.

So, what’s a procurement department supposed to do?

Our guest today might just have the solution. Sean Sollitto, co-founder and VP of Business Development at Relish, sat down with us to discuss how they’ve developed an AI-driven solution to address this very issue. Relish Data Assure automates the Supplier information process at every step of the Supplier Lifecycle journey. This means not just once during supplier onboarding, but repeatedly, to ensure you can feel confident in who you’re doing business with.

Prior to co-founding the enterprise application firm, Relish, Sean spent years focused on eCommerce and Procurement across operations, architecture and consulting, which has given him a unique ability to understand technological and operational context to identify solutions and drive valuable outcomes.

As the technological landscape gets increasingly more complex and procurement gets tasked with managing an ever-growing amount of data, assurance of data integrity will not just be a nice-to-have, but a priority. Ensure your company has a strategy to gain trust in their supplier data and know exactly who they’re doing business with and who they’re paying.

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.

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Guest: Aaron Horn – Senior Solution Advisory, SAP Finance & Spend

Host: Sarah Nelson – Senior Solution Advisory, SAP Finance & Spend

Host: Erik Derenne – Director, Strategic Solution Advisory, SAP Finance & Spend

Host: Justin Morse – Vice President, Solution Advisory, SAP Americas, Finance & Spend

What happens with the priorities of maintenance engineers in asset intensive industries don’t align with the polices and compliance goals of procurement? Friction…barriers…transformation roadblocks to name a few. Our guest today would even go so far as to say he “hated” the procurement processes he was asked to follow.

But what if there was a better way for these teams to collaborate?

Although he’s a Solution Advisor at SAP today, helping customers drive procurement excellence, in a prior life our guest Aaron Horn worked as a Maintenance Reliability Engineer in the Oil Refining industry. Aaron draws on this background to give a unique perspective on the challenges of managing the conflicting priorities of maintenance managers and procurement teams and the importance of collaboration and feedback in bridging the gap.

As more companies look to technology to enable business and procurement transformation initiatives, Aaron emphasizes the importance of maintenance professionals being involved in procurement decisions and conversations to better align priorities and embrace continuous improvement to adapt to changing business needs. The surprising conclusion – fostering empathy might be just as important as the underlying technology and AI.

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.

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