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Five Effective Ways To Leverage Independent Professional Talent

Jan Malasek • January 29, 2015

The fast pace and complex nature of today’s global marketplace presents numerous challenges for executives tasked with driving sustainable results. Corporations are often forced to move at a rapid pace despite a shortage of in-house staff, funds, time, and/or expertise. Fortunately, a cost-effective, reliable resource solution has emerged that enables corporations to effectively address critical business opportunities and challenges for an immediate impact and quality results.

Through specialized firms such as OnDemand Resources, executives can easily identify and deploy high quality interim independent project talent matched to their particular requirements at a moment’s notice without having strings attached. Companies retain seasoned, high-caliber professionals with the exact functional experience they require on a short, long, or part-time basis so that they can increase efficiencies, manage organizational risk, and accomplish the goals on their strategic agenda.

So how are companies leveraging independent professionals to deal with today’s business complexities? We’ve outlined five proven approaches to accomplish a variety of business objectives. These strategies enable executives to make significant progress in spite of a lack of in-house resources or time constraints and are significantly budget friendlier compared to traditional consulting alternatives.

1) Targeted Project Expertise:

Scenario: You have a defined project that goes beyond your current organizational knowledge and/or staffing levels, An independent consultant with deep background in the specific subject matter has the ability to move very quickly to help your organization “move the needle” and deliver better results a lot faster than you would be able to do it on your own. They are also a lot more cost effective than traditional consulting alternatives. An experienced independent consultant is very well suited to work effective with your team since he/she typically does not require an elaborate project management structure typical of traditional consulting projects, comes with a significant amount of experience from a similar environment and typically does not require any substantial time commitment .

Benefits: You are able to get more substantial results faster than with in-house resources. Variable cost nature of this approach gives you the flexibility to manage your organization’s budget and allocate resources against the highest return on investment areas.

2) Managing Change

Scenario: You have a defined project that goes beyond your current organizational knowledge and/or staffing levels, An independent consultant with deep background in the specific subject matter has the ability to move very quickly to help your organization “move the needle” and deliver better results a lot faster than you would be able to do it on your own. They are also a lot more cost effective than traditional consulting alternatives. An experienced independent consultant is very well suited to work effective with your team since he/she typically does not require an elaborate project management structure typical of traditional consulting projects, comes with a significant amount of experience from a similar environment and typically does not require any substantial time commitment.

Benefits: You are able to get more substantial results faster than with in-house resources. Variable cost nature of this approach gives you the flexibility to manage your organization’s budget and allocate resources against the highest return on investment areas.

3) Interim Professional Staff

Scenario: A key member of your team just resigned from your organization and it will likely take a substantial time to find a replacement. You may not be even sure that you will be backfilling the same exact position and may consider re-designing your organization chart. But the work still needs to get done. Rather than leave the position open and put additional strain on your already overtaxed team, you retain an interim replacement professional with specific background and experience.

Benefits: You are able to temporarily fill the position and get the results you’re looking for so that you can keep operations running on schedule while you search for the perfect replacement. Also, the open position becomes more attractive to prospective candidates because they aren’t walking into an organization that’s been neglected. You may even get a candidate that’s more qualified to come in and clean things up, if needed.

4) Independent Expert Assessment

Scenario: You need an external resource who can come in and work “outside in” to provide an expert perspective with credibility on a particular aspect of your business. This individual will work independently to achieve a reality-based set of recommendations. You secure an independent subject-matter expert to conduct a comprehensive assessment, present you with his/her finding and recommend the best way to go forward.

Benefits: You get expert advice that’s unbiased and reality-based without significantly distracting any of your in-house staff. You don’t have to hire full-time help for an isolated, one-time project and you are able to leverage broader best practices expertise

5) Strategic Concept Development and Testing

Scenario: Executive leadership of your company is considering a major strategic initiative such as launching a new channel to market or exploring new global sources. But before putting a significant amount of resources behind these new initiatives and building full time teams, you decide to test the concept to ensure that this is the right strategic direction. Leveraging independent subject matter experts with deep domain experience and background from companies that have successfully implemented these initiatives will be a great help in shaping the initial strategy and testing it. It’s a lot easier and cost effective to bring in a team of independent professionals than to build a brand new organization in order to decide that this is the right think to do.

Benefits: You are able to make an important decision based on real world experience/results before you put a lot of internal resources at risk. Additionally, you are likely able to bring in more senior and experienced talent to help you get the strategic initiative off the ground faster than you would be able to do with in-house talent. The variable nature of the arrangement enables you to change direction quickly in case your strategy changes.

Winning Back Trust in Hospital Sourcing

By Jan Malasek • June 12, 2024
Strategic Sourcing is often associated with driving down cost, efficiency improvement and increased service levels. There are some situations where Strategic Sourcing is needed to help rebuild supplier relationships while enhancing trust all the while securing additional resources for core capabilities. Such is an example of work that OnDemand Professional Network member Chris Vu did for post-bankruptcy period at a hospital serving a major metropolitan area. SITUATION OVERVIEW A hospital in New York had emerged from bankruptcy and needed to stay afloat since it was the largest hospital and biggest employer in its Brooklyn neighborhood. The Materials Management/Purchasing Department was able to manage day-to-day activities to support patient care. However, indirect and ancillary areas were secondary in priority and the suppliers were extremely unhappy losing money as a part of the bankruptcy protection process . Chris was brought in to negotiate new contracts with suppliers to obtain improved terms and ensure uninterrupted service. APPROACH An incumbent approach was taken to help prevent disruptions in service and allow stakeholders to focus on their day-to-day responsibilities. In addition, it was difficult finding new suppliers willing to work with a financially distressed organization. As a part of the approach, Chris not only had to negotiate improved terms, but rebuild trust and rapport with suppliers . Expectations were reset with suppliers encouraging them to view the hospital as a new organization and to look forward and not backwards. The hospital’s group purchasing organization was leveraged as a baseline for pricing and terms . In addition, Chris met with current and potential new suppliers, where available, to support operational improvements for the future. CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS Leveraging the current supplier base Rebuilding trust with incumbent suppliers Developing custom pricing outside of the hospital’s GPO Identifying innovative opportunities for the longer term RESULTS Pricing and terms were negotiated to provide annual recurring savings of 11% across 36+ suppliers . 2 to 3-year terms were secured with suppliers to ensure continuous service, and in most instances, pricing better than the hospital’s GPO. Stakeholders were also pleased since they were able to maintain their current supplier relationships and didn’t have to trial or switch to new products/services . Furthermore, a pipeline of potential opportunities was left for the hospital to explore in the future. For example, the hospital could invest in new disposal containers for used needles that optimized storage capacity. Or the hospital could review several rent vs. buy scenarios from wheelchairs to floor mats to mops. Meet CHRIS VU - OnDemand Professional Network Member Since 2020

Biotech Procurement Transformation - Case Study

By Jan Malasek • February 27, 2024
Structured approach, cross-functional leadership and rigorous analytics are key to procurement success. I asked a member of our OnDemand Professional Network Priya Kumar to share her approach. Here is her example. SITUATION OVERVIEW Biotechnology company wanted to establish a procurement function for their $120 MM global external operations. Priya was brought in as a Procurement leader to work with the organization to develop a strategic procurement function to drive savings and improve efficiency. APPROACH She worked closely with engineering teams, product development, manufacturing operations and global planning to understand current processes and business priorities. Additionally, she conducted a supplier activity and spend assessment to analyze the current landscape. A thorough analysis of current challenges and gaps in processes revealed the following: Supplier relationships with significant spend were highly transactional Risk and relationship oversight was complex and arduous Frequent planning and forecasting changes led to additional costs, cancellation fees and high risk exposure Supplier contracts were often one-sided, with limited benefits for the client EXECUTION & BENEFITS Priya successfully crafted a robust category strategy to effectively manage and optimize the $120 million expenditure with suppliers . This strategy encompassed thorough market analysis, supplier evaluations, and strategic sourcing initiatives aimed at maximizing value and minimizing risks. Her next step was to streamline processes across the organization, while building a truly strategic procurement function. She built the foundation for strategic sourcing, supplier relationship management and contract lifecycle management. This fostered harmonization in supplier engagement, elevating the value extracted from deepened supplier relationships. By aligning procurement activities with organizational goals and industry best practices, she also fortified the supply chain operations to withstand dynamic market conditions and unforeseen challenges. In partnership with other stakeholder groups, she implemented robust visibility mechanisms within procurement , leveraging advanced analytics and reporting tools to enhance spend transparency and facilitate informed decision-making. This heightened visibility empowered stakeholders to proactively address potential bottlenecks, mitigate risks, and optimize resource allocation. Priya’s greatest achievement was the immediate identification of several contract re-negotiation opportunities that served as quick wins to show procurement value early. Priya developed the negotiation strategy and conducted negotiations with many key suppliers, ensuring alignment with the category strategy and business objectives. In an ever-changing landscape, Priya showed excellent insight and maturity in making agile decisions that would mitigate loss and risk throughout the lifecycle of the contract. She achieved >$15MM of cost savings for Year 1 & 2 through execution of the newly developed category strategy. By leveraging strengthened supplier relationships and employing rigorous negotiation tactics, she secured favorable contract terms and pricing arrangements, driving tangible bottom-line results while maintaining quality standards and service levels. Meet PRIYA KUMAR - OnDemand Professional Network Member Since 2018

Contract Lifecycle Management System Implementation - Case Study

By Jan Malasek • December 26, 2023
Many organizations benefit from implementing Contract Lifecycle Management System (CLMS). The key issues that implementation of a CLMS addresses include (i) lack of a central repository for contracts, documents, and reports, (ii) lack of direct access to documents outside of the contracts organization (email is used to share documents with employees who are not in the contracts organization) and (iii) potential document version control issues . OnDemand recently helped a client with their initial phase of Contract Lifecycle Management System implementation. I want to share the approach and lessons learned as I believe that you will find them helpful as your organization considers enhancements to the way contracts are managed.

Out-of-Control IT Cloud Spend Mitigation

By Jan Malasek • September 13, 2023
As companies move to IT Cloud-based computing infrastructure, many are finding that costs far exceed budgeted forecasts. Such was the case with an organization that recently moved to Cloud-based systems and needed to find ways to reduce and mitigate the unexpected costs.

Tom Donatelli Joins OnDemand To Enhance Our Client Service Capabilities And Broaden Our Market Reach

By Jan Malasek • August 3, 2023
OnDemand Resources, the leading provider of independent project and interim talent in Strategic Procurement, Supply Chain and Operations is delighted to announce the addition of Tom Donatelli, a seasoned senior executive with significant experience driving cost reduction, process efficiency and business effectiveness across Fortune 500 companies as our new Vice President Client Services. In this role, Tom will work with clients on identifying new opportunities for enhancing their business results and engaging the right talent to achieve exceptional outcomes.

Spend Assessment – Critical Step To Success Of Strategic Sourcing Initiative

By Jan Malasek • July 13, 2023
Let’s say you’re committed to reducing costs whether it be direct materials or indirect materials and services. Where do you start? This article covers the essential steps for conducting a spend assessment which has a number of key challenges from “dirty data” to stakeholder alignment.

CPO Corner – Is Procurement Getting Better, Or Just Older???

By Jan Malasek • May 10, 2023
By Steve Miller – https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevemiller-coo/ Mike Nolan of SourceSuite.com noted that “the first traces of procurement can be seen throughout ancient history, including the Egyptians in 3,000 BC.”1 Jose Ignacio Lopez de Arriortua made a company’s lead procurement role both famous and infamous over 30 years ago by first helping GM to “save billions of […] The post CPO Corner – Is Procurement Getting Better, Or Just Older??? appeared first on OnDemand Resources.

Experienced Procurement and Supply Chain Consultant Joins OnDemand Resources To Enhance Client Service Capabilities

By Jan Malasek • March 29, 2023
March 29, 2023 OnDemand Resources, the leading provider of independent project and interim talent in Strategic Procurement, Supply Chain and Operations is delighted to announce the addition of Gary Long, a seasoned consultant with significant experience supporting clients in their efforts to achieve exceptional results as they pursue cost reduction and efficiency improvement initiatives to the […] The post Experienced Procurement and Supply Chain Consultant Joins OnDemand Resources To Enhance Client Service Capabilities appeared first on OnDemand Resources.

Brand and Marketing Sourcing – Ensure Success by Having Deep Subject Matter Expertise, Starting Small and Building Strong Relationships

By Jan Malasek • March 21, 2023
A global confectionary company with HQ in the US has embarked on a mission to reduce cost and improve strategic supplier relationships.  While making strong progress in most areas, Brand and Marketing has been a challenge to engage due to their perception that Procurement lacks subject matter expertise.  In order to address this perceived shortcoming, […] The post BRAND & MARKETING SOURCING – ENSURE SUCCESS BY HAVING DEEP SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTISE, STARTING SMALL AND BUILDING STRONG RELATIONSHIPS appeared first on OnDemand Resources.
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