Laying down the procurement law

Procurement Manager at Eversheds, Joanna McCarthy evaluates her approach to developing a new procurement strategy and offers her top tips for successful technology implementation in this article for Supply Management.

Eversheds is one of the largest corporate law firms in the world with over 50 offices worldwide and prides itself on its innovative edge. In order to gain and maintain a competitive advantage the company developed a powerful procurement strategy allowing them to operate efficiently and react to market conditions more quickly.

Wanting to ensure that the procurement function delivered a strong value proposition to the business, with supporting partnerships across the business, Joanna adopted a Contract Management tool as one of the first steps in the new strategic procurement approach.

"Having reviewed a number of options, we chose a Source to Contract solution as it encompasses both Contract Management and eSourcing which enables us to not only run eAuction events for low-cost goods but automate and workflow all our tender processes".
Joanna McCarthy, Procurement Manager, Eversheds

When introducing Medius Sourcing and Medius Contract Management to Eversheds, Joanna adopted an incremental change approach with the use of TAPP principals (technology, assets, people and processes) gaining traction across the business.

In summary here are Joanna's top 5 tips to ensure a successful roll out:

1. The right software supplier
2. The right product
3. The right team of people
4. Listen to the experience of others
5. Using the correct leadership skills

These tips were at the heart of the Eversheds implementation of its Contract Management solution and are applicable for the selection and implementation of any new software and/or processes, helping procurement professionals overcome any challenges.

Read about Joanna's 5 tips for success in more detail.