And the Autumn events programme just keeps on coming! One of the highlights, certainly if you’re into procurement-related technology, is eWorld Purchasing and Supply, scheduled for September 24th at the QE2 Conference Centre in Westminster, London.
I’m not speaking this time but I will be there for most of the day at least. Over the past few years, the conference programme has been really beefed up, and whilst the exhibition is still an important part of the event, the content available is well worth checking out. And the beauty is that it is a free event: “Delegate places are offered free of charge to senior decision-makers from the commercial, public and third sectors with responsibility for implementing web-enabled procurement & supply chain strategies”.
You need to be careful though. There is quite a choice now of parallel sessions, and most of the speaking slots go to the sponsors / exhibitors. And the quality here is highly variable. Personally, I’ve tended to find solution providers who field a customer (or an external expert) alongside their own people often makes for a more interesting session than simply the sales director telling you how great the product is. And some sales directors are decent speakers, whilst some aren’t …
The keynote this time is titled “Procurement as a Catalyst for Supply Chain Transformation”, from Toby Munyard, Vice President, Efficio Consulting “on behalf of Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply (CIPS)”.
No idea what “on behalf of CIPS” means, but here is a bit about the session. “With a unique position that allows procurmeent to look both at the internal challenges and at the external market trends, now is the perfect time to step up to a wider transformation role”. Sounds good, and we hope you’re going to tell us HOW to do that transformation, Toby! Efficio have grown strongly in recent years in the consulting and outsourcing field so I’m hopeful that this will be worthwhile and interesting.
What else looks good? The “Lunchtime Panel Discussion: Disruptive Working Capital & Supply Chain Technologies” caught my eye, partly because this is such a hot topic, and partly because of the interesting panel, including Mark Perrera, CEO & Founder, Old St Labs and Procurement Leaders, and someone who is always worth listening to.
At the same venue, there is a parallel event that day, the Sustainable Purchasing and Supply Summit. This is one you have to pay for, but it’s two half day workshops you can do separately or go for both. The morning is for organisations in the early stages of developing a sustainable procurement strategy; the afternoon focuses on measurement and reporting aspects of your sustainable procurement strategy. Looks like some good speakers anyway, including Andrew Douglas, Professor of Purchasing Practice, Bristol Business School.
If you are going to eWorld, do take some time to speak to the solution providers who are there. Not just because they are in effect paying for your ticket, but because there are always things you can learn in terms of the latest developments, given the pace of technological change. Of course, they want to sell to you, but approach them with intelligent questions and an open mind, and anyone will learn something, I guarantee.
Read the original article at Spend Matters, by Peter Smith
