Group CPO (Chief Procurement Officer)

Our Client is a private industrial group, backed by a leading international Private Equity.

Headquartered in Italy, they are the market leader in the production of high-mix low-volume PCB (Printed Circuit Boards), with a manufacturing footprint across Europe, North America and Asia; they deliver tailor-made products for multiple sectors on a global scale.

The product portfolio stands out for its advanced technology and high reliability, offering a comprehensive service that covers the entire product life cycle and customer needs.

Position – The context:

Following a recent acquisition by a leading PE Fund, they are now experiencing a substantial transformation in the light of further growth and complexity, which requires a reinforced organisation. Procurement is central to the new strategy and we’re looking to hire a Group Chief Procurement Officer (GCPO) .

The Role:

The Group Chief Procurement Director (GCPO) will report to the CEO

Critical priorities will be

• Build and deliver the Strategic Procurement Road Map to drive strong governance and exploit its full potential, in line with Group Strategy The spend is articulated, and suppliers are spread globally
• Build and deliver a breakthrough commodity strategy , processes and optimisations across sourcing footprint, and supply base design
• Build and shape a best-in-class organisation , process and analytics to professionalize procurement standards (KPIs, benchmarks, tools etc).
• Attract and develop a unique team of A-players bringing energy while implementing new state-of-the-art procurement and negotiation techniques (from commodity strategy to specific expertise, to value engineering etc)
• Build procurement alliances, deliver savings with a mix of i) suppliers base review ii) suppliers negotiations (incl. end-to-end win-win approach) and iii) fit for purpose of the supplier base, and iv) design to cost material buying.

Responsibilities:

Establish collaborative relationships with C-level executives, as well as the organisation at all levels.

Build trust and establish a common view on company goals and values.

Determine the "as is" and design the "to be", across:

Procurement Strategy and impact

• Design the function from scratch and provide leadership, direction and focus to the new organisation
• Create a Global Supply Intelligence, to understand trends and technology needs by Region/BUs, in order to design the optimum sourcing footprint; the spend is articulated across different categories and production processes and is subject to stringent technical requirements.
• Ensure effective communication to key stakeholders

Breakthrough Commodity strategy

• Define the Procurement Processes to be adopted by the Group, challenging the status-quo
• Define the Category Management structure; main categories include chemicals, resins, and metals.
• Review and rationalize current suppliers base across all Group companies, and redefine the matrix for spend, across category products / technologies for the Group, in line with manufacturing needs
• Map and identify supplier base capabilities, by category
• Create breakthrough Commodity Strategy and Programs to ensure 1) strong alliances with key suppliers, 2) best results and 3) synergies across the group.

People & Organisation

• Build a strong organization in terms of structure, processes and people. Challenge current status, and be accountable for shaping the change; with the support of a renewed, upskilled team. Engage others, across diverse cultures and backgrounds, through meaningful commodity expertise, compelling arguments, openness and team spirit
• Improve procurement performance, operating costs, working capital, quality and service, by deploying state-of-the-art methodologies and techniques
• Build the right tools to ensure transparency and track key performance indicators (KPIs) such as: financial, quality, supplier performance, procurement performance metrics and sustainability.

Results

• Build strong relationships with all main stakeholders in the organisations
• Own EBITDA impact as common goal, through clear information, goals, and KPI’s

Qualifications & Experience:

• Degree in Economics / Business Administration /Management Engineering or equivalent experience
• At least 15-20 years’ experience in a similar role within an international Industrial environment / complex multinational organizations
• Grounding experience in an organisation known for its best-in-class procurement function Preferred procurement experience in purchasing commodities (chemicals, resins, metals) within industrial goods, electronics, industrial equipment sectors; semiconductors would represent a plus
• Strong Procurement management skills, with relevant track-record of results and P/L impact. Sets KPIs across: savings, savings funnel, sustainability, quality, risk management, innovation, and supply base structure Criticalities include: FX, value engineering, commodity trends and hedging policies
• Solid procurement state-of the art techniques From deployment of new suppliers base, to negotiations, specifications etc.: ability to master all purchasing techniques / deep knowledge and previous experience in applying the different procurement and sourcing levers to deliver value
• As a plus: know-how in supply chain / logistics

Capabilities:

Thought Leadership

• Deliver Group Procurement Strategy and a consistent best in class organisation
• Fast thinking and forward looking to create power on the drivers of success; ability to leverage on them
• Contribute to set new business mindset, as well as new standards
• Financial acumen to drive fast improvement in financial performance
• Build strong strategic and long-term partnerships with suppliers
• Respond to business leaders and actuate responses that add value for the business
• Passion for execution and making things happen. Drives own team and influences the organisation to deliver results at the right pace whilst understanding constraints and limitations. Over-achieves on targets, and challenges the status-quo
• Sets clear goals in line with (progressively) new standards, acting as a change-agent
• Able to think high level, yet pivots to details and analytics with a hands on style, analytical and pragmatic mindset; understands how to identify and size opportunities of improvement and priorities of delivery
• Strong business sense and commercial acumen

People Leadership

• Effective people leadership: self confident, able to manage self and others, creates a high performing culture
• Natural ability to communicate and to build trust-based relationships: inspires people to make meaningful contributions, engages their team while setting a high bar; openly debates with the team , to solve problems, discuss challenging issues, or learn more about critical topics within the group.
• Establishes clear, challenging goals and metrics for the year
• Designs a performance management process to monitor projects, and deliver results that exceed expectations

Languages:

Full proficiency in spoken and written Italian and English is a must.

Location:

Centre of Italy

Please note that only those profiles that meet all client’s requirements will be responded to and contacted. Thank you.

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