Do You Need a Fractional CPO?

It has been stated many times on Ardent Partners’ The Future of Work Exchange and CPO Rising websites how procurement plays a significant role in the Future of Work paradigm. The collaboration between procurement and human resources in sourcing talent and aligning workforce skills with enterprise objectives cannot be understated.

A talent trend gaining more prominence is that of the fractional talent executive — particularly the fractional chief procurement officer (CPO). Small- to medium-sized enterprises that lack a mature or formal procurement department can now source the services of a fractional CPO who provides similar expertise as a full-time executive but at a lower cost. Whether it’s a part-time or project-based position, the critical CPO role and associated insights are attainable for any sized organization. A fractional CPO can deliver a variety of benefits, including:

• Strategic procurement leadership
• Supplier relationship management
• Procurement process improvement
• Sourcing and risk mitigation strategies
• Supply chain cost optimization

Fractional CPOs are often experienced executives who can step into the role and quickly ascertain business needs. Despite the advantages of a fractional CPO, it doesn’t replace an embedded and full-time chief procurement officer who oversees and manages daily procurement and supply chain decision-making.

So, when can an organization benefit from a fractional CPO? We’ve put together a decision tree to help answer that question. The starting point for Ardent Partners is whether an enterprise has less or more than $50 million in revenue. From there, a series of questions will help guide you on the path to whether a fractional CPO is advised.

The fractional executive serves as a flexible and on-demand approach to talent acquisition. In today’s volatile marketplace with frequent supply chain disruptions, the option to hire the services of a fractional CPO might be worthwhile to weather the storm as a more permanent procurement role develops.

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