Ripped from the Headlines… Law & Order, Procurement & Coronavirus

Posted by Andrew Bartolini on April 13th, 2020
Stored in Articles, Chief Procurement Officers, Events, General, People, Strategy

Have you ever started watching a Law & Order marathon and then looked up only to notice that your entire family is asleep and that you haven’t eaten dinner? Been there, done that? There’s no shame in that, well, unless your kids went to bed hungry…

If you have no idea what I am talking about or are simply not a fan, you’re alone (well, we’re all alone now – #alonetogether 🙂 but I digress). My point is: read this article… which says “Reruns of “Law & Order” have long been a staple of cable television, and fans are known for watching them hours at a time.”

Law & Order: Ripped from the Headlines

The tagline for the original Law and Order series was “Ripped from the Headlines” and  it was great hook. Grab a current headline, tweak it to avoid any lawsuits, and retell it through the lens of your favorite detective/prosecutor team. Here are a few of my favorites:

Bah-bum (Law & Order transition sound)

Procurement, Supply Chain, and the Coronavirus in the Headlines

While noone’s pleased about the circumstances behind it, “the supply chain” generally and as a topic for specific companies, industries, and regions, has received more coverage in the national and international news in the last month than in the entire last decade. We’ve been covering supply management and procurement on a daily basis for 11 years and we welcome the company. The coverage honestly has been great (as evidenced by our expanded global news section in our Saturday am weekly mailer “This Week in Procurement” – sign up here).

For most companies, Chief Procurement Officers and their teams are (or soon will be) on the front line. And, while this isn’t the first time most senior procurement leaders have been placed into the cauldron, the terms and context of today are entirely new, and it is daunting. Those that have been focused on developing more agile teams and operations will see their early investments pay huge rewards. And those that weren’t quite there, are now working furiously and, in many cases, gloriously to catch up.

The Resiliency Imperative: Ripped from the Headlines

Anyone visiting these pages the last two weeks may have noticed that we’re producing our own series… The CPO Rising 2K20 Virtual Series, covering the topics that we think can bolster team, supply chain, and enterprise resilience in the short-term and position teams for success when the recovery eventually begins (it will!). The series is designed for procurement and other professionals (including financial operations  and HR/contingent workforce) and covers a very wide range of topics – with 17 sessions planned and a few more on the way.

This week as I was reviewing the overall schedule, I noticed that many of our topics are now front page global news. It is almost like CPO Rising 2K20 was Ripped from the Headlines! Here’s what I mean:  

HEADLINE – Japan to Fund Firms to Shift Production Out of China

Bloomberg: Japan has earmarked $2.2 billion of its record economic stimulus package to help its manufacturers shift production out of China as the coronavirus disrupts supply chains between the major trading partners.

We covered it!  A New World (of) Orders: Rethinking the Global Supply Chain ON-DEMAND NOW

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HEADLINE – Ransomware scumbags leak Boeing, Lockheed Martin, SpaceX documents after contractor refuses to pay

The Register: Internal confidential documents belonging to some of the largest aerospace companies in the world have been stolen from an industrial contractor and leaked online.

We covered it! Guarding Against Increased Cyber-Risk in the Age of COVID-19 ON-DEMAND NOW

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HEADLINE – Lockheed Martin adds jobs, increases supplier payments to counter coronavirus impact

Defense contractor Lockheed Martin Corp said on Friday it hired about 1,000 employees in the last two weeks and increased payments to suppliers to counter the impact from the coronavirus pandemic.

We’re Covering it!

 What the Pandemic Means for Your Workforce ON-DEMAND NOW

Maximizing Spend Management with AP Tools & Data ON-DEMAND NOW

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HEADLINE – MGM Resorts To Increase Support In Coronavirus Fight

MGM Resorts International Thursday announced a broad range of donations and initiatives intended to help alleviate supply shortages and support local communities through the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.  By leveraging its supply chain, procurement capabilities, distribution systems, supplier network and other resources, MGM is delivering on a daily basis, urgent logistical support to help manage supply shortages of critical items.

We’re Covering it! CPO Playbook: Leveraging Your Network To Ensure Supply in the Age of Corona April 29 2:00 pm – 2:30 pm ET

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HEADLINE – Global condom shortage looms as coronavirus shuts down production

A global shortage of condoms is looming, the world’s biggest producer has said, after a coronavirus lockdown forced it to shut down production.

We ARE NOT Covering it! LOL

But we think you’ll enjoy CPO Leadership in Times of Crisis – View On-Demand

Bah-bum (Law & Order transition sound)

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