Compliance – Embrace It, Don’t Fear
Some hear the word ‘compliance’ and embrace it, others hear the word and fear it. ‘Compliance’ is a concept that haunts nearly many professional across the greater enterprise, no matter…
Why CPOs Could Drive the Next Round of M&A Activity – Part 1
"If a foreign country can supply us with a commodity cheaper than we ourselves can make it, better buy it of them with some part of the produce of…
The Art and Science of Big Data Management
Perhaps more than ever, CPOs will need catalysts to drive their teams to the next level of performance. Ardent Partners’ 2020 procurement research asked 340 CPOs to identify the “game-changers” that will…
Throwback Thursday: CPO Rising 2011: Innovative Ideas for the Decade Ahead
Over the past few Thursdays, I have been highlighting the 15 annual CPO/State of Procurement reports that I have written. In June 2011, the report series was given the formal…
Procurement’s Impact on Cash Management
The global uncertainty that pervades today’s market indicates a very real threat of a deep economic downturn. In response, the CFO’s new “hierarchy of needs” has placed a laser focus…
Throwback Thursday – The CFO and the CPO: One World, Two Worldviews
Over the past few Thursdays, I have been highlighting the 15 annual CPO/State of Procurement reports that I have written. Near the end of Ardent Partners' first year (2010), I…
20 for 2020: The Key Themes for the Modern CPO’s Agenda (#20 – Leadership)
We began this series in January as a way to aggregate important ideas for procurement leaders as they set their organizations’ course as they head into the new decade. It…
Throwback Thursday – The CPO’s Agenda 2009: Smart Strategies for Tough Times
In April 2009, I wrote our fourth annual CPO-themed State of Procurement report in the throes of the great recession. Things looked pretty bleak and there was a high degree…
Solving AP’s Reliance on Paper – Phase 3 – B2B Payments
[Editor's Note: Click to read Part 1 and Part 2 of this series] In Ardent Partners’ AP Metrics that Matter in 2020, our research indicated 55% of B2B payments were made…
Throwback Thursday – CPO Rising: The CPO’s Agenda for 2008
In February 2008, I wrote our third annual CPO-themed State of Procurement report and created a subtitle that has since become a Ardent Partners' brand - "CPO Rising" - that…