The Sourcing Hero

Ep 81: How to Persuade Anyone, Anytime feat. Simon Horton

The power of persuasion is at play all the time and in all settings. Sometimes it is as simple as swaying a group of friends to agree with your restaurant preference, but other times there is far more at stake. Hostage negotiators and diplomats regularly find themselves in situations where their skills are needed to save lives and preserve stability. Most examples of persuasion fall somewhere between the two extremes, making it a critical skill for all business people to invest in.
In this episode of The Sourcing Hero podcast, Host Kelly Barner welcomes Simon Horton. Simon is the founder of Negotiation Mastery, where he provides negotiating training and coaching for banks, law firms, global blue chip companies, and even hostage negotiators. He has also written several books including his latest title, just released this past spring and titled Change Their Mind: Six Steps to Persuade Anyone, Anytime.
In this conversation, Simon shares what he has learned in his experience as a negotiation coach and what he heard from the broad range of professionals he interviewed for his new book:
Whether persuasion is a skill that most of us possess, and why we might want to improve
The importance of listening to successful persuasion
How we can prepare ourselves in advance of a situation where we know persuasion will be required for a successful outcome
Managing the ‘long tail’ of persuasion to make sure a person’s agreement actually leads to the desired behavior

Ep 80: What is - and is NOT - in the Inflation Reduction Act feat. Kris Lance

Business leaders and decision makers and constantly in a race to keep up with the pace of change. That includes the competitive landscape, economic trends, and new legislation. Case in point: The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. Despite its name, legislators on both sides of the aisle agree that this law is not about reducing inflation. So what is it about?
In this episode of The Sourcing Hero podcast, Host Kelly Barner welcomes back Kris Lance, Senior Director at Una, for a recurring monthly conversation about current news stories. Kris has experience in multiple industries and has his finger on the pulse of the trends and topics that procurement, sourcing, and supply chain professionals need to be aware of.
 In this interview, Kris and Kelly talk about the implications of the Inflation Reduction Act:
What connections are there between deficit spending and inflation, and how will this bill potentially affect the economy?
How do the climate-related provisions of the act play out in reality given our current manufacturing capabilities?
How are busy people leading ‘ordinary’ lives supposed to keep up with today’s rapid pace of change?

Ep 79: User-Centric MRO Spend Management feat. Mike Franz

B2C consumer experience expectations have been bleeding into the commercial sphere for a long time, but with the disruption of the last two years, that trend seems to be accelerating. Not only are manufacturing companies looking to improve the experience they offer distributed buyers of MRO supplies, procurement is more aware of the experience expectations as well.
In this episode of The Sourcing Hero podcast, Host Kelly Barner welcomes Mike Franz, Founder and CEO of ManufacturingPower.com. As a manufacturing ‘triple threat,’ Mike is now using his broad experience to transform the way small to medium sized manufacturers address their MRO spend by acknowledging changes in consumer expectations.
 In this conversation, Mike talks about how buyer experiences are changing and how procurement can keep up without compromising on their ‘must achieve’ objectives:
How the B2C eCommerce experience is changing expectations of corporate procurement 
How companies can accommodate talent and bandwidth shortages by better leveraging procurement processes and systems
The steps procurement can take to avoid having to choose between data quality and organization and an improved user experience

Ep 78: Empowering Procurement to Create Broader Value feat. Brian Chaplin

Modernizing procurement organizations from tactical to strategic takes more than new technology and upgraded processes. The individuals on the team will need to embrace change as well. Whether it is through improved relationships with internal stakeholders and key suppliers, or distributed authority to generate ideas and make decisions, everyone has a role to play.
In this episode of The Sourcing Hero podcast, Host Kelly Barner welcomes Brian Chaplin, Director of Global Sourcing for Medline Industries. Brian has experience managing indirect procurement in manufacturing-centric industries like CPG, aerospace, and energy. He changed jobs during the pandemic, moving into healthcare distribution at a very interesting time in the industry, and has been working to formalize his team and modernize procurement operations since.
In this conversation, Brian talks about his international team’s journey towards strategic, value-oriented procurement:
What it was like taking a role in healthcare during the pandemic, one that requires him to manage a remote team
His vision for how Medline procurement can expand the value they deliver to all North American operations
Positioning the value proposition of procurement in a sales and marketing driven organization
The need for relationships building with suppliers, and how the team is pulling them closer while still emphasizing quality and performance

Ep 77: Manufacturing Macrotrends and the Metaverse feat. Minesh Pore

Although each procurement professional and team does the best they can under the circumstances they are handed, all industries and companies are subject to global megatrends… and they never stop evolving. From where low cost labor is located to how the “fast fashion” industry is managed, the rate of change is accelerating - and having implications worldwide.
 
In this episode of The Sourcing Hero podcast, Host Kelly Barner welcomes Minesh Pore. Minesh has over two decades worth of experience leading multinational organizations in Intraprenuership, corporate transformation, business development, and strategic planning. Today, he is getting the opportunity to put all of that to work as the Founder and CEO of BuyHive.
  
In this conversation, Minesh talks about the macrotrends he is watching and how he thinks they will affect how all of us work in the future:
How the rise of third party platforms and service providers may change procurement’s opportunity to create value
The impact that continued remote working and freelancing may have on procurement talent and staffing
The advantages associated with all corporate functions breaking out of their comfortable silos and having the opportunity to learn from colleagues

Ep 76: Tapping Into the Thoughts of Today’s CPOs feat. Tarek Alaruri and Greg Tennyson

The most interesting conversations at in-person events are rarely started from the stage. Instead, they take place quietly, one-on-one, in the coffee line or during lunch. Procurement has been on a two-year hiatus from these networking opportunities, so now that events are back on the calendar, what are CPOs talking about? 
In this episode of The Sourcing Hero podcast, Host Kelly Barner welcomes Tarek Alaruri and Greg Tennyson, both from Fairmarkit. Tarek is their Co-founder and COO, and Greg - a return guest to The Sourcing Hero podcast - is their SVP of Strategy and Procurement.  
In this conversation, Tarek and Greg provide up-to-the moment thoughts and advice about the complexities procurement and supply chain professionals face today:
What they are hearing between sessions at the in-person events they have recently attended
How economic pressures, such as record-high levels of inflation, change the playing field for companies
Approaches procurement professionals can use to stay educated and inspired enough to have informed, action oriented discussions

Ep 75: Turmoil Around the Globe: Sri Lanka and the Netherlands feat. Kris Lance

A picture is worth a thousand words, as the saying goes, and the images coming out of Sri Lanka and the Netherlands may be worth more than that. From economic instability leading to the overturn of a government, to individual families and farm operations fighting to preserve their livelihood, these two stories offer all of us lessons about human motivation and the challenges presented by disruptive chance.
In this episode of The Sourcing Hero podcast, Host Kelly Barner welcomes back Kris Lance, Senior Director at Una, for a recurring monthly conversation about current news stories. Kris has experience in multiple industries and has his finger on the pulse of the trends and topics that procurement, sourcing, and supply chain professionals need to be aware of.
In this interview, Kris and Kelly talk about the government upheaval in Sri Lanka and the farmers’ strike in the Netherlands:
What is happening in each story and what role are pictures and social media playing in the shaping of public perceptions?
How can supply chain professionals reconcile sustainability regulations that start as government policy but have to be translated into executable processes?
The many things that we all have in common, despite differences in location, career, and philosophy

Ep 74: Creating Opportunities for Networking & Education feat. Kathy Perna

Networking has changed a lot in procurement - and the transition from in-person to digital was underway even before the pandemic hit. Digital networking requires a different kind of energy, and when the whole world stopped and went home to work, the most creative educators in the field of procurement found new ways to bind the community together and add value. 
In this episode of The Sourcing Hero podcast, Host Kelly Barner welcomes Kathy Perna. Kathy may not be a procurement professional in practice, but she is a critical member of the community that has been hard at work promoting networking and education for thirty years, first as part of the National Association of Purchasing Managers (NAPM) and now as the Executive Director of ISM-New Jersey.  
In this conversation, Kathy shares her perspective on how networking has changed and the variety of educational needs that have to be met for procurement professionals to shine:
How the professional association model has been affected by the very unusual last two years
Why it is important for procurement training and education to go beyond “traditional” topics 
Some of the trends she has watched during her (almost!) three decades working to support the procurement community