Partner - Procurement & Supply Chain Practice at Partners in Performance (PIP)

About the job
What you can expect when they join Partners in Performance

• As a Partner in the procurement & supply chain practice, you are relentlessly driving change for the client’s business. You have overall responsibility for delivering measurable improvements across several client engagements in parallel, leading blended teams across improvement areas to achieve targeted results. You are also responsible for building relationships with the client senior leadership team. You develop and implement innovative commercial thinking, going beyond mechanistic application of procurement methodology. You role model the activities required to ensure the client achieves strong buy-in from operations and other internal stakeholders and you coach the consulting team, the client team and senior leadership to do the same.
• You provide a holistic ‘value lens’ and guide the problem-solving effort to ensure opportunities are rigorously prioritised, making certain the teams' efforts are always aligned with the highest-value activities. You help senior leaders across the internal value chain drive sustainable procurement & supply chain implementations, coaching them to embed continuous improvement in the way they do business. In addition, you coach the senior leadership team to implement the wiring to ensure the new procurement and supply chain processes and behaviours become the path of least resistance. In parallel, you take ownership for helping drive new business in your region with support from relevant Directors. This is done both in and around existing client engagements and relationships and by working to develop net-new profitable business in the region.

Typical Partner background

• To be a successful at Partners in Performance you need to be dynamic, passionate and prepared to roll up your sleeves and work inside our clients’ businesses. You will need to care about people and developing them, as coaching is a big part of our success 

Here is what we look for:

• At least 10 years at a top tier consulting firm experience plus ideally 5 years in a corporate or entrepreneurial role with a minimum of 5 years in procurement (procurement consulting or as a procurement professional within a blue-chip environment)
• Functional experience and knowledge of working with procurement and supply chain in influencing external spend (with a demonstrable track record of measurable savings) would be strongly considered 
• Strong evidence of out-of-the-box thinking, implementing truly innovative procurement & supply chain solutions across a broad number of categories
• MBA or Post-graduate qualifications are preferred with at least 10 years’ post-MBA/Masters/PhD experience

Outstanding academic results
University degree or equivalent experience with a strong emphasis on quantitative skills, especially: Engineering, Commerce/Economics & Mathematics / Science
 

Partner Key Competencies

CORE SKILLS:

Problem Structuring/ Solving

• Develops insightful ways to create impact (often leads to new IP)
• Provides additional problem-solving horsepower and leadership to high value areas
   

Results Focus

• Teams are focused on highest priority areas fast (value/ease)
• Strong commercial acumen
• Project consistently delivers against targets (both $ and qualitative)
• Ensures teams deliver real and sustainable monetary value, as well as high client satisfaction
• Teams focused on delivering tangible, practical results combining commercial and operational aspects
   

Project Management

• Ensures alignment with managers (onsite and off) to enable teams to ‘do the work’ rather than fighting the politics
•  Always ahead of the consultants and client. Anticipates changes, plans for next month/this quarter
• Liaises well with staffing on changes in team numbers, project duration, type of people required etc.
• Consistently allocates their time to the highest impact areas/issues and limits under-resourced/low impact project scope creep – maintains focus on the project goals
   

Leadership

• An inspiring leader – fosters enthusiastic followership among client/consultants, e.g. want to work at another site with them
• Leads by example – willing to roll up sleeves and pitch in to help when necessary
• Visible leadership – gets out from behind the desk, is frequently seen at the site and with teams
• Makes the project fun – brings a sense of humour to the effort that is contagious
• Has strong leadership presence – walks into a room and has Vice Presidents and Presidents listen and engage
   

Communication

• Strong presentation and facilitation skills. Commands the audience
• Effective questioner and listener
• Sees the "so what" from interviews and communicates these to the team
• Uses interviews to develop relationships and follows up appropriately
• Effective at building consensus and ownership
   

Knowledge of Partners in Performance toolkit

• Displays leadership understanding of all the internal tools/processes
• Effectively trains consultants/client/managers on toolkit items 
   

CLIENT IMPACT:

 Client Relations

• Client first focus – behaviour reflects goal of working with client in long-term relationship
• Makes insightful recommendations in high value areas
• Rapidly develops a good understanding of the client business and knowledge of the client industry
   

Sustainability and Ownership

• Ensures strong ownership for improvement by site and Corporate
• Creates high performing, continuously improving site
• Champions right pacing on wiring – delivers turnaround of site
   

INTERNAL IMPACT:

Associate Principal (AP) Development

• Provides regular Engagement Performance Review (“EPR”)-based informal and formal feedback to APs
• Ensures EPR development opportunities are addressed
• Provides explicit coaching to APs to build their skills/capabilities – both in delivery and in all other elements of the business

Managing Upwards

• Manages upward well; engages Director time appropriately
• Coachable – seeks alternative perspectives, takes advice on board, receptive to feedback
• Directors perspective – effectively balances project and overall company concerns
• Advancement – demonstrates ability to ‘run’ multiple sites on their own
   

Builds Business

•  Projects deliver Partners in Performance's reputation for excellence in delivery with innovative results
• Track record of identifying and landing additional paid work (existing clients, others)
• Strong contributor and driver of Partners in Performance IP (themselves and through their teams) – identifies new areas/themes for IP that create significant client and company value
• Identifies where process and systems can be used to devolve tasks
• Driver of successful growth of the business
   

Managing Commercials

• Comfortable talking financials with the client
• Negotiates contracts well, covering all key issues and having client feel satisfied with the process
• Handles variations to contract well

Lives our values

• Safety – fosters culture of safety first among consultants and client alike. Leads by example
• Client commitment – shows sincere, deep commitment to client, its people and its goals
• Transparency – up-front and direct; you know where you stand; not political, doesn’t play people off with each other
• Respected for being a straight-shooter – says what needs to be said even when unpopular
• Respect and compassion
• Role model for our values across the firm – brings them to life for teams – ensures the values are a glue that binds the firm across sites

Collaboration

• Proactively supports the efforts of others in Partners in Performance
• Finds constructive solutions when resources are scarce
• Avoids selfishness and doesn’t hoard resources
• Acts to bring out the best in others
   

Other requirements

Ability to work in South Africa is required and candidates need to have a preparedness to travel extensively, including internationally

Have a look at our video to see how we do this – www.pipint.com/en/careers