Evolving procurement during lockdown and in a post-COVID-19 environment

The 14th Annual Smart Procurement World Indaba and Absa ESD Expo 2020 is changing the game and moving online for the first time 24 and 25 November 2020, and the Absa Enterprise & Supplier Development (ESD) Expo on 26 November. Smart Procurement is also excited to welcome onboard the Association of Proposal Management Professionals (APMP SA) and Association of B-BBEE Professionals (ABP) as their guest conference convenor.

Day 1 of the conference includes an executive forum. Topics covered are:

• The next big trend – The stay-home economy – which industries will be winners?
• The CPO challenge – Transforming procurement travel management for the real world post-COVID-19
• Procurement C-Suite dream.

The conference is geared around equipping procurement and supply chain professionals – within the public and private sectors – with the tools and knowledge to not only survive the global lockdown, but furthermore to flourish in a post-Covid-19 business environment.

"We have to consider what impact procurement investment decisions have and are we sure that they make sense? In the private sector, procurement can influence business strategy and profitability with a huge impact on the organisation as a whole. You should never underestimate the power of procurement and the individuals who make it work. The public sector supply chain can contribute massively towards effective service delivery for all citizens – an area in dire straits at the moment, and needing procurement’s attention,” says Mediacy Mudekwa, Head of Content for Smart Procurement.

“One has only to consider conference topics like ‘Surviving the great recession – a story of business reinvention’; ‘What I learnt about preventing corruption – the world’s first anti-bribery management system’; ‘Breaking down monopolies and building sustainable local industries’; ‘Six vital ingredients for economic development and how procurement can be a lever’; and ‘Rebuilding confidence in SOEs’, to gain a sense of the underlying theme of the conference,” adds Mudekwa.

Absa’s Chief Procurement Officer, Vusi Fele, says: “One of the hard lessons we have learnt during COVID-19 is that it is vital for companies to make certain that supply chains are agile and adaptable to mitigate huge shocks such as this pandemic. This global health and economic shock has shown all of us just how vital supply chains are; we need to think and act differently in building sustainable programmes going forward. At Absa we are truly proud to be a partner of the 14th Annual Smart Procurement World Indaba 2020.”Breakaway sessions for the public and private sector are scheduled on the afternoons of both 24 and 25 of November and drill down into subject matter most relevant to the sector attendees.

On 26 November, the Enterprise & Supplier Development Expo, sponsored by Absa, will showcase the offerings of over 350 of the country’s top black-owned businesses, from across all sectors, to a buyer-hungry market. “There is also free content and market linkage for non-exhibiting SMMEs who are invited to attend the open day on 26 November. In addition, dedicated MatchUp sessions are geared towards assisting procurement professionals to engage with suppliers based on their specific sourcing needs,” says Keshni Reddy, Head of Commercial for Smart Procurement.

For more information on the upcoming series of Smart Procurement World events for 2020 and 2021 please visit the website at www.smartprocurementworld.com