The Recipe for Perfect Procurement Transformation with Transport for London’s CPO, Jonathan Patrick – Episode 67

 
 
 
 

Episode show notes

“We often create a list of 12 things, but if you focus on the one thing that makes the biggest difference, you’ll be more successful than having a big shopping list.”

ITV, Sky, Starbucks, Serco and Nestle may not share much in terms of sector, but all are huge brands that Jonathan Patrick has at one point called home.

His ability to instigate successful transformation at the highest level is beyond doubt, and as Transport for London’s CPO he’s continuing to create a staggering procurement legacy.

We hear from Jonathan on Talent Talks this week as he shares the measures of successful transformation, how to firm up against 2023’s impending pressures, and how his work on I’m a Celeb changed how he evaluates each business’ true challenges.

This episode of Talent Talks covers:

  • How to deliver transformation at the highest level
  • The barometers for success to keep top-of-mind
  • 2023’s big challenges, and how they’ll likely affect risk management
  • Jonathan’s biggest learns from his work with ITV, Sony, Serco, Sky, and more huge brands
  •  

This episode of Talent Talks is sponsored by 4C Associates – a leading European procurement and supply chain consultancy, who work collaboratively with forward-thinking clients to deliver real business value across a wide range of transformation and cost optimisation service offerings. Visit https://www.4cassociates.com/ for more information.

Episode Highlights

“I personally don’t believe there is ever a one size fits all to any transformation programme. Every organisation has its own requirements, different needs, products, internal & external customers, and also different revenue & EBITDA considerations.” – 2:20 – Jonathan Patrick

“Your customer realistically doesn’t really care what you know, but they probably do want to know that you care. That’s something that’s important in terms of empathy and listening.” – 5:00 – Jonathan Patrick

“A lot of people will refer to ‘People, Process and Systems’ as the three things that you should be focused on in transformation. I think there’s a key element missing there, which is the overall operating model and the business case.” – 7:15 – Jonathan Patrick

“Loads of times we create a list of 10 or 12 things, but if you are focused on what is the one thing that will make the biggest difference, then I think you’re going to be more successful than having a big shopping list.” – 11:45 – Jonathan Patrick

“Are you the first point of call when they need something when they think of a new idea, be it a new product development or a sourcing item? If they do, and they engage with you at that early point, that to me is probably a bigger measure of success than anything else.” – 14:50 – Jonathan Patrick

“My latter roles have been less connected through sectors but more connected through leading those big transformation programmes. For me, I think a lot of the challenges in all of the organisations have been very much the same. I think all of those skills are very, very transferable.” – 26:10 Jonathan Patrick

“I remember working on I’m a Celeb Series’ 5 and 6, and they had their own budget. Their interest was producing the best show possible, so for me to say, ‘I can reduce your budget’ was not the right answer. It comes back to the empathy about understanding what they need.” – 27:10 – Jonathan Patrick

“In the last few years, if Serco’s CEO wanted something he just phoned me directly. I didn’t need a seat at the board, and actually spending a couple of hours a week at board meetings was probably not going to be the greatest use of my time. But if the CEO needed something, he would just phone me directly.” – 34:50 – Jonathan Patrick

Links & References

• Jonathan Patrick, CPO at Transport for London
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathan-patrick-1a04882/

• Transport for London
https://www.linkedin.com/company/transport-for-london/

• Martin Smith, Founder & Director of Talent Drive
https://www.linkedin.com/in/martinsmith2009/

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