James Meads

Using technology, experience and the ability to think outside of the box. Identifying, implementing and driving savings through cost reduction, as well as improving efficiency of administrative processes. - Spend analysis - Remove / automate admin tasks & cut red tape - Commercial audits & management of existing contracts - Tendering of addressable spend - Procure-to-pay process improvement - Category expertise: MRO, Logistics, Capex, Facility Management, Forklift Truck Fleet, Tail Spend Management

Responsibility for all logistics procurement (air/ocean freight, road transportation, warehousing, brokerage & forwarding) across the Sub-Saharan Africa region. Focus on South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya. Working remotely from Germany, I delivered $1.3 million in hard savings (-18% PPV) on bulk road transport in South Africa, $0.3 million on ocean freight & customs brokerage and $0.5 million on overflow warehousing.

3 month secondment to troubleshoot, deep-dive and orchestrate transformation of procurement operations in recently opened Lagos production facility. Included audit readiness, coaching, training and mentoring of local buyer, being an ambassador for procurement function in a production site with no senior procurement staff. $0.75m savings identified during assignment on $5 million spend.

Management of MRO across 19 sites, driving the strategy for 8 Regional / Country Managers. Supplier rationalisation, automation, increasing use of e-procurement. Key project: Implementation of an MRO integrator across 3 sites in the UK for non-strategic tail spend, driving hard & soft savings of $1.2 million over contract lifetime. Managing strategic capital equipment purchase projects from RFQ through contract negotiation and execution to installation, commissioning and final acceptance.

Identifying and delivering savings across Indirect Commodities in 2 sites in Germany and Switzerland, as well as providing support on P2P initiatives and functionally managing 2 BPO Tactical Buyers in Romania. Supplier rationalisation, transactional efficiency improvements, contract management, local stakeholder alignment for roll-out of regional strategies. Key achievements: Savings of 15-20% on MRO spare parts, 10% on copiers, 10% on waste mgmt.

Responsible for Non-Production Materials & Services. Key responsibilities: Identification of best practices. Driving change, standardising sourcing strategies in a predominantly decentralised organisation. Strong focus on Total Cost of Operation. Key achievements: Spare Parts classification resulting in 10% savings through common material classification system enabling pan-European tenders. Roll-out of centralised forklift truck fleet strategy. 38 sites in 13 countries. Total spend of ca. EUR 125 m

Main responsibilities: Developing and executing a commodity strategy, negotiating long-term supply agreements and cost reduction activity. Increasing price transparency, stark consolidation of the supply base, implementing LCC suppliers on Aftermarket spend, developing consignment stock / kanban systems with main suppliers, cross-functional VAVE projects. Working together with Treasury on heaging strategy. 12 plants in 6 countries. Total spend of ca. EUR 70 million