Welcome back to The Procuretech Podcast!
This is sadly the last episode in our mini series, where we ask industry experts and influencers about everything happening in the digital procurement world.
Talent, Skills and Tech in Emerging Markets – Nolan Menachemson from Nolan School
For this episode, we’re going all the way to Australia, where my guest today actually has his own procurement school.
His school has a really noble mission: To make procurement education affordable to students.
So a very warm welcome to Nolan Menachemson from Nolan School.
We open up by talking about Nolan’s mission to bring procurement education to as broad of a base as possible.
In particular, we highlight the need for such accessibility when it comes to developing countries.
How technology has impacted and enabled Nolan to reach more students.
We consider that 10 years ago, it was barely possible to have a stable Skype call, let alone host a group webinar online.
Automation of entry level positions, and the impact this is going to have in the future.
We also discuss the digital divide, and just how different life is for people who don’t live in developed countries.
Focusing on the MIddle East, for example, the challenges faced there are very different to our own, and we have to get our heads around that.
Some of Nolan’s students don’t even have electricity in their houses. So there’s a huge gulf of things that we might take for granted that these people just don’t have.
That gap needs closing before we can even begin to talk about cutting edge tech.
The absolute importance of mobile phones in the developing world.
There are so many users out there who will never own a PC, but many of them have a mobile phone.
As such, mobile represents a crucial frontier when it comes to unlocking the talent currently siloed away in developing countries.
We talk about communications infrastructure challenges, using Papua New Guinea as an example.
Some countries seem to have entirely skipped the step of installing efficient broadband, and insteadleapt right from copper cables to wireless internet.
The increasing prevalence of remote or hybrid work, and the critical role tech plays here.
Everything as a service, the Internet of Things, and the implications of moving aware from the PC as standard.
The critical role of technology in compliance, and how this helps reduce exploitative practices like slavery and child labour.
We talk about Prewave, and their AI tool that scrapes news sources and social media accounts to back up compliance.
There are three elements in combating scourges like corruption and modern slavery in the modern era.
The first thing is a mobile device. The second thing is a search functionality application. And the third is social.
When you combine these three things together, you put a lot of power into the hands of ordinary people.
To what extent does Nolan think that technology is going to be the driver in elevating our profession?
We can use echnology to employ people who otherwise would be living a very poor life in a remote village. It’s a way of educating people out in the sticks.
It’s also a great opportunity to get companies to think about their policies.
That’s all we’ve got time for, this episode. And sadly this is also the end of our current series!
Big thanks to Nolan for coming on to the podcast today and sharing his insights. If you’d like to learn more about his work, you’ll find all the links you need below.
We’ll be sure to keep you posted about the next series of the Procuretech Podcast.
But until then, thanks for listening and we’ll catch you next time!
Stay in touch
- Connect with Nolan on LinkedIn
- Check out Nolan School of Procurement
- Sign up for the Procurement Software Newsletter
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