November 16 – R3 had the pleasure of hosting procurement specialists from Nike, Heineken, Philips, Philips Domestic Appliances, Microsoft, Booking.com and Liberty Global, at a roundtable breakfast in Soho House, Amsterdam where future procurement trends and challenges within RFP, ESG and Talent were discussed. As the world continues to face transformative change, business leaders have called on procurement teams to guide them through budget cuts, digital transformation, and supply chain interruptions. Marketers have sought the analytical skills of procurement teams to drive return and performance in times of uncertainty. With a seat secured at the table, the challenge for marketing procurement teams going forward will be to ensure that procurement processes are built-for-purpose and reflect the changing marketing ecosystem. This is likely to require the use of AI and SaaS systems for increased accuracy, speed, and insights, but it will also call for knowledge around evolutions in partner operations, measurement, and accountability.
RFP’s, ESG & Talent
The agency RFP process is broken but when executed correctly, RFPs provide marketers and procurement teams with the information they need to conduct a competitive pitch and obtain different viewpoints on how a brand’s goals can be achieved. When poorly built, RFPs can prevent best-in-class vendors from winning accounts. Determine if the RFP process accommodates the cross-disciplinary functions you require of your partner agency. If you require partners to solve problems in innovative and unconventional ways, using a traditional RFP process might not provide agencies the opportunity to demonstrate strengths and capability in key areas.
When it comes to Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG), there’s a consensus that reporting on it is critical to business. Encourage your agency partners to play by ESG rules and inform them that it is their duty to educate next-tier suppliers of ESG compliance requirements if they are working on the brand’s campaigns. How marketers ensure that agency partners are practicing what they preach, however, requires a systematic and objective approach. Maintaining oversight on agency compliance is important because requirements change as time passes, organizations morph, and regulations evolve.
In addition to the above, it’s crucial to manage return on talent and getting resource matrix right. This applies to both internal teams and external partners. Marketing and procurement teams should review marketing needs and goals and assess if costs are optimized around talent retention and recruitment. Companies with high-maturity talent acquisition functions exhibit 18% higher revenue and 30% greater profitability compared to firms with low-maturity talent acquisition performance [S].
Working Together
Our consultants and strategists help marketing and procurement teams matrix their internal resource so they can build marketing capability aligned to core business priorities and forecast talent needs. This includes delivering insights into the internal organizational structure of competitors, similar and best-in-class brands needed for driving marketing excellence. If you’re looking for a comprehensive report and would like to get in touch with our team, please fill out the contact form.
