On January 20, 2009, Marlin Equity Partners announced that they were making a significant capital investment in software company Emptoris. In this commentary soundbit regarding the January 22, 2009 Procurement Insights post, Jon Hansen touches on the reasons why this transaction may very well reshape the software vendor landscape.

Link to SoundBite: http://www.houndbite.com/?houndbite=7130

Use the following link if you would like to go directly to the article:(http://procureinsights.wordpress.com/2009/01/22/sponsor-news -marlin-equity-partners-invests-in-emptoris-beyond-the-headl ines-commentary/)

Jon and his Procurement Insights Blog offers a unique and unbiased differentiation than the other blogs in the procurement/sourcing/supply-chain market. His writing style is unique and his ability to draw attention to multiple sources of information and reference materials for each piece he writes is second to none. As a sponsor of his Blog, Jon as so far delivered on every promise he made, including an expert unbiased view into our business, with a unique perspective that actually helped us to modify our own sales pitch. His knowledge of the industry and immediate understanding of my organization’s business model proves that he is a leader in his profession. Based on this experience, I offer my full recommendation for Jon’s work as he is by far one of the best at delivering value for his services.” (William Dorn, Vice President, SourceOne Inc.)

“It is always rewarding to talk with someone who brings insight and intelligence to the conversation; it is especially so when they can then record and comment ...

“eWorld Purchasing and Supply is the UK’s most comprehensive forum focusing exclusively on the full range of emerging issues and new technologies for procurement and supply chain applications, using an innovative educational format to deliver high-value content for senior purchasing and supply chain executives.”

I am honored that my first engagement in Europe is at this prestigious event, and would invite all my EU friends and readers to mark the 23rd and 24th of September on their calendars. Here is the link to the event site.

eWorld 2008, September 23/24 (London, UK)
http://www.eworld-purchasing.com/programme.htm

I would also suggest that my U.S.-based readers check out the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Forum 2008 - Navigating shifting tides – Virginia leading the way November 16-19 (Hampton, Virginia)
http://dps.dgs.virginia.gov/forum2008/index.htm#Jon_Hansen

This event also promises to deliver a first-rate venue of speakers covering a variety of timely topics.

Over the next few weeks I will ...

The following position has been posted on the Procurement Insights Career Exchange Page (http://www.procureinsights.wordpress.com/procurement-insights-career-exchange/).


Vice President, Strategic Sourcing

Post Date: July 8, 2008

Reference No. 1-Jul8-2008

This position is with a business-focused Crown Corporation that manages real estate assets. Its portfolio includes 60,000 buildings and represents 50 million square feet of space, as well as 95,000 acres of government land.


If you have a position that you would like to list, or would like to indicate your availability to pursue a position with another organization, please send your information in confidence to jwhansen@sympatico.ca.

Sustainability Facts and Fiction: Linking Green Idealism and Practical Business Application

“In our rapidly evolving capitalist economies, where it is in the natural order of things for corporations to devour competing corporations, for industries to carve up and digest other industries, one emerging form of capitalism with a fork – sustainable capitalism – would certainly constitute real progress.”

From Cannibals With Forks – The Triple Bottom Line of 21st Century Business, By John Elkington (Capstone Publishing, Oxford, 1997)

Do Cannibals With Forks Constitute Progress?

So started the introduction to one of my most popular white papers titled, The Greening of Procurement: How Social Consciousness is Re-Shaping Procurement Practices.

When I first wrote about green or sustainable procurement (the latter extends beyond the realms of eco-friendly considerations to include socio-economic factors) last summer, I had no idea of how voracious an appetite the business community had for information ...

Whenever you purchase a Hansen Consulting and Seminars Inc white paper or service, you will receive a $25 HCSI credit certificate towards your next purchase.

Accumulating knowledge through sharing knowledge!

Whenever someone you have referred purchases a Hansen Consulting and Seminars Inc white paper or service, you will receive an HCSI $25 credit certificate towards your next purchase.

As good as money! Papers and services that qualify for redemption under the HCSI credit certificate program:

Double Marginalization and the Decentralized Supply Chain (White Paper)

The Ariba Interviews: Re-engineering the future of On-Demand? (White Paper)

SAP Procurement for Public Sector (White Paper)

The Greening of Procurement: How Social Consciousness is Re-Shaping Procurement Practices (White Paper)

Time Series Analysis, Bayesian Inference and the Development of a Dynamic Supply Chain Model (White Paper)

Strategic Sourcing Practices in Higher Education (White Paper)

Talent Attraction and Retention ...

Double marginalization is defined as the “exercise of market power at successive vertical layers in a supply chain.” Dating back to Lerner (1934) the problem that arises as a result of double marginalization is tied to an impetus to mark up the product’s price above marginal cost. According to a 2005 Caltech paper (Vertical Integration of Successive Monopolists: A Classroom Experiment) the sequence of mark-ups “leads to a higher retail price and lower combined profit for the supply chain than would arise if the firms were vertically integrated.”

In short, double marginalization drives the paradoxical outcome of higher buyer prices with lower seller profits. However the paper’s suggestion that vertically integrated supply chains represent a sound response to the double marginalization issue is highly questionable.

This is due to the fact that vertically integrated supply chains are often inflexible in terms of responding to the diverse stakeholder dynamics that are reshaping the ways in which organizations ...

Who Can Benefit from this Paper?

Anyone and everyone who has an interest in the issues organizations as well as individuals face in terms of implementing a sustainable purchasing program within their company.

White Paper Excerpt from The Greening of Procurement

Cannibals with Forks?

“In our rapidly evolving capitalist economies, where it is in the natural order of things for corporations to devour competing corporations, for industries to carve up and digest other industries, one emerging for of capitalism with a fork – sustainable capitalism – would certainly constitute real progress.”

From Cannibals With Forks – The Triple Bottom Line of 21st Century Business, By John Elkington (Capstone Publishing, Oxford, 1997)

Do Cannibals With Forks Constitute Progress??

Taking his cue from Polish poet and aphorist Stanislaw Jerzy Lec, John Elkington’s book titled Cannibals With Forks: The Triple Bottom Line of 21st Century Business, attempts to answer the question, is it progress if a cannibal uses ...

Introduction

When organizations such as Boeing (http://kmblogs.com/public/blog/188133) refer to a complex adaptive network, what they are really discussing is using an agent-based model whereby the unique operating attributes of key stakeholders are first understood individually and then (through a collaborative effort) are linked collectively through establishing what they refer to as "flow paths." This latter exercise is tied into identifying the common points of connectivity between seemingly disparate stakeholders (and stakeholder objectives). In essence, it reflects a theory of process I discovered and developed starting in 1998 and what I have come to call "strand commonality."

What I like about the Boeing story is that it creates a context or a point of reference in real-world applicability than can be easily recognized in terms of establishing the advantages of the "Open Value Network" relative to making a significant contribution as a Knowledge-based "think tank."

In essence, knowledge ...

As a result of the continuing high rate of e-procurement initiative failures (which is somewhere between 70% and 85%), as well as the recognition of the important role supply chain practice plays in the health of an organization, purchasing professionals want more “substance” and less “sizzle” in terms of market intelligence. In short, they want to know how to make it work!

This increases the onus on the blogging community as a whole to thoroughly research and responsibly inform a readership base that is becoming increasingly hungry for knowledge and facts.

It is in this spirit of responsibility that the Supply Chain Bloggers (SCB) Council was formed in January 2008.

Adhering to the highest standards of ethical conduct in the research and dissemination of information throughout the entire blogosphere, the SCB logo is our seal of assurance to the reader that these standards have been, and are continuing to be met on a consistent basis.

Visit the following URL to find out more about the SCB Council ...

The Procurement Insights Blog is now available in Chinese.

With a combined (and growing) syndicated network that reaches 75,000 readers around the world, having the Blog's stories translated to the native tongue of different countries will enable a greater exchange of ideas that reflect the emerging global marketplace.

Here is the link to the most recent Chinese version post:

http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=zh-CN&sl=en&u=http://procureinsights.wordpress.com/2008/02/28/supply-chain-confidence-a-pi-q-and-a/&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=10&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dwithin%2Bthe%2Bcontext%2Bof%2Bpurchasing%2Bsupply%26complete%3D1%26hl%3Dzh-CN%26newwindow%3D1%26sa%3DG

The Canadian Institute (Business Information In A Global Context)

Making E-Procurement Work For Your Organization Conference

Overview

Implementing an E-Procurement system can speed up the procurement process, encourage more bids and competition, improve spending oversight, and ultimately save money and resources. Often, however, E-Procurement initiatives don’t live up to expectations. Poorly designed and executed systems can lead to wasted time and resources and even expose the organization to legal action. It is important to consider the objectives of the project and consider the obstacles you will have to overcome to be successful.

To address these issues, The Canadian Institute has developed its intensive E-Procurement conference on April 28-29, 2008 in Victoria. This is your chance to gather the information you need to advance and fine tune your E-Procurement initiative.

Day 2 – Tuesday April 29, 2008

9:15 Engaging Your Potential Supplier Base to Encourage Interest in your Online Initiative

Jon ...

Here is the link to the latest Paradigm Shift column in Summit Magazine titled Yes Virginia! e-Procurement that works:

http://www.summitconnects.com/Articles_Columns/PDF_Documents/w10_7_07.pdf

To complement our critically acclaimed conference series The Changing Face of Procurement, we are pleased to introduce the following new seminars:

Dangerous Supply Chain Myths (2-Day Seminar)

Awareness of the continuing high-rate of ERP/IT-based e-procurement initiative failures to deliver expected results is now entering mainstream consciousness. While vendors and those associated with the recommendation and implementation of solutions find themselves in unfamiliar waters, end-users are beginning to ask tough questions.

Unfortunately, and as demonstrated by a number of recent studies, there remains a handful of mainstream players from within the software, consulting and even association communities that continue to advocate traditional enterprise-wide approaches that are based more on maintaining the status-quo rather than focusing on true operational efficiency.

This series has been designed to dissect one such report from three industry heavyweights (ISM, CAPS and AT Kearney). Focusing on what ...

January 30th & 31st
Vancouver, BC
The Changing Face of Procurement (BCIPMAC)
To register or obtain a seminar outline contact: Office@Bci-Pmac.bc.ca


February 22nd
Houston, TX
The Changing Face of Procurement (APICS)
To register or obtain a seminar outline contact: karend@mcdonald-tech.com


April 3rd & 4th
Toronto, ON
The Changing Face of Procurement (OIPMAC)
To register or obtain a seminar outline contact: anixon@ontarioinstitute.com


April 29th
Victoria, BC
Winning Strategies for Vendor Engagement (The Canadian Institute)
To register or obtain a seminar outline contact: W.Cornish@canadianinstitute.com


May 22nd
St. John’s, NL
Yes Virginia! There is more to e-Procurement than Software (PMAC)
(Why some e-procurement initiatives succeed and others don’t)
To register or obtain a seminar outline contact: info@pmac.com *

* Note about online registration: If you are not a member of PMAC or have never registered for a PMAC event online, you will first need to obtain a Login and Password ...