We have recently been the recruiting partner for several transformation projects where large PLCs have driven procurement to the forefront of their business.  Such opportunities are always attractive to strong candidates so this has enabled us to identify some outstanding talent in the following areas:

Graduates with 3-6 years procurement experience

At Edbury Daley we appreciate the importance of  identifying the Procurement Leaders of the future. We specifically target ambitious candidates coming through graduate schemes from the leading developers of procurement talent.  The competition for such people is strong in the current climate, particularly as the salaries represent excellent value for the broad range of skills they offer.

Category Management – Indirect Spend

In the aforementioned transformation projects, several of the organisations in question have looked for accomplished Category Managers with experience in classic areas of indirect spend.  We have identified some outstanding candidates as a result of these searches, particularly in Marketing, HR, FM and Professional Services.

IT category expertise in particular is in much greater demand than 12 months ago.  This article is quite interesting: Global IT spending to rise

Senior Sourcing Managers / Global Category Leads

With so many businesses still seeking to effect real change in how their procurement function operates, the need for “heavyweight” Category Leaders with the gravitas and credibility to influence senior stakeholders remains strong.  The ability to develop and implement a sourcing strategy at senior management level is not as easily available as many perceive but we have had great success in this area recently.

Supplier Relationship Manager

As previous readers of our research know Supplier Relationship Management has become increasingly high profile in recent years.  In fact, relationships with suppliers are more important than ever.  There are currently several outstanding candidates looking to move, ideally to an organisation seeking to develop its SRM capability.

If your business needs to identify the best available talent in Procurement or SRM, then it’s time to talk to us about how we can have a positive impact on your recruitment.

Edbury Daley is an independent specialist recruitment consultancy focusing on the Procurement and Supply Chain sectors. The experience and professionalism of our directors has enabled us to develop some innovative solutions based on traditional recruitment services, and we have a particularly strong track record of working with RPO’s.

Our achievements include:

Part of the Elan Global PSL, as procurement specialists

Valued supplier to numerous blue chip AMS accounts

100% success rate in 2011 with LOCOG (London 2012) through Adecco

We are the leading procurement specialist on a key account for Penna

We work well on particularly difficult to fill roles, often where PSLs have failed, due to our expert market knowledge and extensive network. Whilst our experience allows us to understand which specific skills are transferable, our work ethic ensures that we will work tenaciously and creatively through the recruitment process to source the very best candidates.

As a small but well established business we are well received by RPOs to work on their key accounts, for the following reasons:

We understand and respect the account structures used by leading RPOs and the protocol to be followed

We welcome the chance to work with blue chip accounts

We enjoy working collaboratively with RPO account managers forging good relationships due to our integrity

As a relatively small business, we pose no threat to client relationships held by major RPO organisations

By working with a finite number of key accounts we are able to take time to comprehend their needs, understand company culture, and ultimately provide a more effective service. We like to forge close working relationships with all our clients and this encourages us to go the extra mile to make sure we complete the assignment.

We work with a range of clients across a number of different industry sectors. This has enabled us to establish an outstanding candidate network allowing us to identify professionals in a wider range of industries. We are often able to focus on transferable skills from different sectors and this can provide excellent candidates from less obvious sources.

In addition Edbury Daley differentiates itself from the competition through our topical online research projects, these enable us to keep to the forefront of changes in the market and maintain a high profile. This combined with our tenacity and desire to succeed drives us to adapt to the changes within recruitment marketplace.

Our Services

Edbury Daley is an executive recruitment consultancy specialising in both interim and permanent appointments in the following professions:

∙ Procurement / Purchasing

∙ Supplier / Vendor Management

∙ Supply Chain Management

We focus on appointments in the following salary brackets:

∙ Permanent appointments – £25,000 – £200,000

∙ Interim Appointments – Day rates of £300 – £1000

We offer the following core recruitment services:

∙Database / Contingency Search – Permanent & interim

∙Executive Search

∙Advertised Selection

∙ Rapid Result

There is more information on each individual service available at htto://www.edburydaley.com/recruitment2

For more information please contact Chris McGowan on 0161 776 4605 or via chris@edburydaley.com

In fact we were very surprised by the figures announced earlier this week indicating that Q4 saw a 0.5% contraction in the economy.  During this period, the demand for procurement staff was as strong as at any time since mid 2008 levels.

Here’s a summary of our observations on the current market trends:

Recruitment activity for procurement staff across almost all areas of private sector is up significantly on the same period last year, particularly in the Electronics, IT, FMCG, Business services and Consultancy markets.

Using our own data, we have observed the resurgence of the permanent recruitment market with a 127% increase in activity between Q4 2009 and Q4 2010.   This is in part due to an increase in business confidence and less pressure on head count.

Demand for accomplished category specialists in key areas of indirect spend like Marketing, Professional Services, IT, Telco, Facilities and Travel is strong, particularly for those who offer the vital combination of stakeholder engagement and change management expertise.

Many Procurement & Supply Chain Consultancies are actively recruiting into their consulting force.  In recruitment terms this is generally viewed as a good sign of an increase in activity and spending within target client organisations, also stimulating demand for the very best candidates.

Fortunately the market is characterised by a large number of excellent people looking for new roles, particularly those who have stayed in the same role during the recession but are now looking for their next career move.

This is also boosted by the availability of many people in the public sector who are concerned about their futures. However there is very little evidence of private sector companies recruiting public sector Buyers in any significant numbers so far.

After a lengthy period of relative stagnation, moves at the senior end of the market are starting to become more regular now. It will be very interesting to see when the CPO market really takes off but we anticipate it being at some stage later this year.  We’ll keep you updated on this next quarter.

The availability of interim candidates is markedly down since the middle of 2009.   In our opinion that particular niche market has now genuinely recovered, and we have already seen evidence of day rates starting to creep back up this year.

There is a noticeable increase in competition for “up & coming” procurement professionals. Such people are often graduates with 3-6 years professional experience and are perceived as being relatively inexpensive by CPO’s given the range of modern procurement skills they can offer.

At Edbury Daley we are specifically working to identify the best emerging talent in the profession. If you are a looking for that next step in your career please talk to Chris McGowan (chris@edburydaley.com 0161 776 4605) about the roles we are working on at present.

Good news for all involved in the FMCG market, Hannah Jackson will be returning from maternity leave on 1^st March. If you are seeking a new role in the sector or need to add new talent to your team, particularly in core categories like Packaging, Ingredients or Raw Materials then you can contact Hannah now via hannah@edburydaley.com

Procurement Systems & Skills Survey – are we in balance? Our latest research topic is still available online.  We’ve already had some very interesting contributions and would really welcome your input before we start our analysis. You contribute to our research here http://www.edburydaley.com/wp/category/surveys/ and also access our research archive which is increasingly popular.

Having difficultly finding the talent you need for your procurement team? Are you facing some of the challenges we have touched on in this market report? If so please call Andrew Daley on 0161 776 4603 to discuss how we can help, or contact him via andrew@edburydaley.com

Our question is whether the widespread use of such technology and systems is creating a generation of procurement professionals who lack some of the critical skills that are required for full commercial competency and agility.

This survey explores the link between systems and core skills.

The permanent market is much improved for Senior Buyers, Category Managers, Procurement Managers and SRM specialists since Q3 2009. There is certainly more confidence amongst employers and the number of vacancies is up on earlier this year and late 2009.

It appears that the battle for talent that was a key feature of the pre recession market is starting again although there appears to be more restraint on salary increases at present. The busiest area is the £50-£70k bracket.

The interim market has stabilised after a difficult period last year. There remains pressure on both day rates and recruiter’s margins but the number of interim procurement specialists looking for a contract is certainly down from Q3 2009.

In both markets there are encouraging signs that some industries which suffered the most last year are beginning to look forward again and make key appointments. The sectors include banking, retail, leisure and FMCG.

 Back in Q1 2009 and through our research into the impact of the recession on procurement (see link below) we predicted that there would be a significant rise in demand for experienced staff from procurement consultancies. They anticipated a busy year as potential clients looked for quick wins and specialist advice on cost base reduction.  This demand hasn’t materialised as much as we anticipated as some potential clients decided against engaging consultants to the extent that had been hoped. 

The technology sector remains quite cautious with a number of hiring freezes still in place and the demand for IT and Telco category specialists from end users has not recovered to the extent seen in other areas.

As we expected in our recent research into SRM (link below) there appears to be a growing demand for specialists with experience of developing and implementing leading edge supplier management strategies. We anticipate demand outgrowing supply in the next 12 months as numerous organisations have realised the value and potential competitive advantage that lies in more productive relationships with key suppliers, particularly as a result of the impact of the recession,  a trend observed last year in the research mentioned above.

We have been contacted by a lot of jobseekers with SRM experience and are in the process of developing a specialist recruitment practice to focus on this area.  You can join the SRM networking group we  have set up here: http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=2837993&trk=fulpro_grplogo

Would you like to comment on any of the issues addressed here? Join the discussion here: http://www.edburydaley.com/wp/2010/03/19/procurement-market-update-–-march-2010/

Links to research reports

The growing importance of SRM: http://www.edburydaley.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/EdburyDaley-SRM-jan-2010.pdf

The impact of the recession on procurement: http://edburydaley.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/edbury-daley-the-impact-of-the-current-economic-climate.pdf

We welcome your comments on how useful you find our research here: http://www.edburydaley.com/wp/2010/02/24/the-growing-importance-of-supplier-relationship-management/

What is clear is that specialists in Supplier Relationship Management and/or Vendor Management arena are aware of the key issues we have raised.

Some of the positive comments include:

From an interim SRM specialist: I have just finished reading the report and wanted to congratulate you on a very interesting piece of work. Clearly there is a great opportunity in the SRM arena…

From the SRM leader of a major finance business: I really enjoyed reading this report, particularly as I am personally responsible for leading a project within my organisation to address the specific issues you raised. You certainly have given me a useful reference point that I will use to ensure that I continue to progress in the right direction.

 If you are aware of any organizations with what you consider to be a “best in class” to SRM, can you please let me know as I would welcome the opportunity to speak to them? 

What do you think?  Please contribute to the debate here.

Comments from the SRM lead of a major technology organisation: I’m in full agreement with the findings.  Whilst establishing a new SRM function at my current employer over the past 18 months I sought to find best practice at other organisations and have been surprised that very little exists beyond the basics.  

Having now set up and executed SRM basic performance measurement through to relationship management / governance and the pursuit of value through managing relationships we are very pleased with the impact its having within the business and our key suppliers.

Demand remains strong although the market has been characterised by delays caused by issues such as seeking approval to go outside of a company recruitment freeze, corporate politics, budget restrictions and the understandable desire to ensure that the right decision is being made before committing to an appointment.

Whilst there are many procurement professionals who are currently looking for new roles, both as interim and permanent members of staff, the strongest candidates remain in short supply, particularly in key areas of indirect spend.  

Due to the work we have recently undertaken with blue chip clients in consulting, banking, FMCG and retail sectors, we have engaged with a number of procurement professionals who belong firmly in the upper quartile of the profession. 

In particular we have several outstanding candidates with the following expertise:

• Procurement Consulting with emphasis on transferable skills, change & programme management etc

• Vendor Management specialists

• Category specialists in Professional Services, Telecom’s & IT, Facilities/Property, HR, Marketing, Travel

If you would like to discuss any of the skills mentioned or candidate availability, please contact Andrew Daley (0161 776 4603) Charlie Bolam (0161 776 4605) or Hannah Jackson (0161 776 4608) or e mail us info@edburydaley.com

“Real SRM is the one of the most important factors for success in a procurement role. However most SRM being discussed today is in relation to IT systems and not the real soft skills that will bring innovation and improved business performance to bear.”

Do you agree? 

Our experience tells us that there is certainly a lot of investment in Vendor Management in the technology sectors at the moment, and we have been encouraged by the number of SRM specialists who have got in touch with us about their careers since the survey was published.  Again the evidence is that a technology focus accounts for a lot of the biggest SRM roles.

Are you in an SRM or Vendor Management role with a different category focus?  We are keen to hear from you about your experience and your career aspirations. 

SRM is the best available tool to ‘unlocking hidden profits’ that derive mutual benefit. However it is a two way relationship and both parties have to be committed to the process in order to optimise and gain the real benefits.”

What do you think?  Do you agree or can you offer a different perspective? Please complete the survey and we welcome any additional comments here.

Andrew 

Vendor Management & Supplier Relationship Management – A Recruiter’s perspective

There’s no doubt we’ve seen a noticeable increase in the number of specialist roles in this area that we have been asked to recruit for.  This has been a trend for the last three years particularly, and we have experienced this most in services sectors like banking, consultancy and particularly IT services. 

Recruiting managers usually want a specialist in supplier management to fill their jobs rather than someone who has done some work in this area as part of a broader procurement or sourcing remit, whilst job seekers who enjoy the vendor management element of purchasing will seek specialist roles in this area.   

There is of course only a finite pool of vendor management specialists, so if demand grows further, we will have some very interesting market conditions.   This could possibly be reminiscent of the strong demand for high calibre indirect spend specialists in the City which drove up salaries, particularly between 2003 and 2007.