Insights
Thinking from the build floor
Practical lessons from procurement and supply chain programmes across APAC and the Middle East, written for teams responsible for delivery.
The spend baseline comes before the savings claim
Every procurement function claims savings. Few can show a baseline that finance signed. Until that exists, every number is negotiable.
Guided buying works when it is the easiest route, not the mandated one
Maverick buying is rarely defiance. It is a rational response to a compliant route that is slower than the workaround. Fix the route, not the policy memo.
S/4HANA migration: the master data decision you make too late
Every S/4HANA programme says data migration is a workstream. Few treat it as the critical path it is. The cutover date will not move because the data is not ready.
Integration is a product you maintain, not a project you finish
Ariba releases quarterly. S/4HANA patches. APIs version. An integration estate without monitoring and ownership decays on a schedule you did not choose.
Supplier portals: when to configure, when to build
Ariba already gives suppliers a network. A custom portal earns its cost only for journeys the platform does not serve well. Here is the honest decision frame.
Procurement, solved.
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