New strategic roles and GBS transition
The Procurement Operating Model the multinational wanted to implement consisted of two elements: The development of a new strategic commercial purchasing organization and the building of effective teams that would become responsible for end-to-end transactional activities (e.g., creating and processing purchase orders). Thus, the commercial purchasing organization was redesigned, while at the same time the chemicals company worked on setting up the necessary transactional activities in regional Global Business Service (GBS) centers. These activities used to be executed at a local level (i.e., in various countries), in different systems and by using distinct local processes. To increase efficiency and improve user experience, it was necessary to centralize the work. Implementing the new Procurement Operating Model would result in the loss of existing jobs/roles, while on the other hand new roles in the GBS organization would be created.
Contributions by a Quintop High Potential
Linda Elfrink, High Potential (i.e., trainee) at Quintop, fulfilled the role of Global HR Transformation Coordinator and worked closely with the Global HR Business Partner Procurement. As a member of the project team, Linda monitored progression and risks related to the activities at hand. Due to the diversity in local laws and regulations that affected negotiations with both unions and works councils, accurate coordination was of utmost importance.
Linda was also involved in the coordination of the recruitment activities for the GBS location in Poland. At this location a new procurement team was installed to serve the EMEA region. An important hiring condition for GBS candidates was excellent understanding of the different local languages. This was a challenging requirement as the demand for GBS / Shared Services staff was high. Since procurement activity transition plans and knowledge transfer needed to be aligned and depended on staffing success, recruitment activities were to be carefully managed. Linda could do so by working closely with the Polish recruitment team and the transition manager. As she was connected to both the local procurement and the new GBS organization as well, she was able to quickly identify issues or risks related to the transition. In so doing, business continuity was ensured as much as possible.
The result? A successful transformation!
The transition to the new Procurement Operating Model for the EMEA region has been executed successfully and within the set timelines. The close collaboration between the project and recruitment team and continuous alignment between the local and regional organization were recognized as important success factors. By providing insight into both the local staffing requirements and do-ability of the local recruitment team, the project team could draft tailor-made plans and mitigate transition risks. With Linda’s contribution Quintop was able to contribute to the aim of creating a sustainable procurement culture within the multinational.