Resilience is a must-have quality in business at the best of times, but during a global pandemic, it’s absolutely essential. Procurement practitioners work within a function that has seen dramatic changes over the past three decades. From the old stores department in the early 1980s, to category management, 4th party logistics, social procurement, etc in modern times. It’s no surprise to me that this cohort has adapted so quickly and mostly seamlessly to the current climate.
I have spoken with many procurement people of late and I can attest to their hard work and diligence as they continue to deliver value to their organisation during a time when its most needed. Some of them continuing to work from the office but most from home. Throughout they maintain crucial networks and contacts in the supply chain and stakeholders within and external to their organisation.
My own team at Procurement Australasia has performed exceptionally well delivering outstanding results for our clients under a vastly different environment. Congratulations team! I also want to give a shout out to Sharon Morris and her team at CIPS for the excellent job they are doing to ensure the procurement profession is well informed on all the latest information they need to assist the profession in delivering great results to their organisations. I look forward to seeing all the CIPS team back in our shared office when this is all over. As we keep hearing, this pandemic is not over yet and can flare up at any time as has been the case in Victoria where our colleagues are in stage 4 lockdown. I love being a procurement professional and I have never been prouder of the profession. Please stay well and keep safe and let’s look forward to the next networking event in the not too distant future.
Joe Arena, Chief Executive Officer, Procurement Australasia
