800: Procurement’s Communication Superpower W/ David Yarkin
Release Date: 05/05/2025
816: Managing Procurement Risk Amid Tariff Volatility W/ Alan Arcand
Art of Procurement
“During COVID, we went from just in time to just in case. Unfortunately, now supply chains have to factor in risk mitigation. Finding alternative sources of supply might be a little more pricey, but it reduces the risk.” - Alan Arcand, Chief Economist at Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters Economic uncertainty and tariff volatility continue to shape procurement strategies and supply chain decisions across North America. As businesses grapple with unpredictable policy shifts, the need to interpret nuanced economic signals accurately has become critical to maintaining stable operations...
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815: Procurement 6 | June 27th, 2025
Art of Procurement
Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time. Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement. Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.
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BTW EP 12: The Phil-ins: A Pivotal Pivot
Art of Procurement
Halfway through their 24-episode journey, the co-hosts of “Buy: The Way...To Purposeful Procurement” pause to assess what they've learned so far about how procurement has and is evolving, and, more importantly, what’s ahead for the future. In this reflective episode, Philip Ideson, Rich Ham, and Kelly Barner bring together insights from their recent conversations that confirm a troubling trend in procurement: not only are the P&L-related harms of procurement's flawed incentive structures real, they're also worsening over time. It is time for procurement to course correct. ...
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814: How Agentic AI Can Transform Procurement Outcomes W/ Nick Heinzmann
Art of Procurement
"The way we start looking at every unit of work in a workflow flips from being something that's truly human-led to something that can be increasingly human-reviewed and driven, but not necessarily initiated as a human." Nick Heinzmann, Head of Research at Zip The pressure for procurement to do more with less means innovation is no longer optional… It's necessary for survival and growth. The game changer? Agentic AI: artificial intelligence capable of perceiving, analyzing, and taking action, all with minimal supervision. In this Art of Procurement podcast episode, Philip Ideson...
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813: Procurement 6 | June 20th, 2025
Art of Procurement
Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time. Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement. Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.
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812: Procurement's Path Through an Era of Polycrisis W/ Baber Farooq
Art of Procurement
“The greatest challenge facing the world today isn't tariffs or monetary uncertainty – it's stagnating productivity.” - Baber Farooq, Senior Vice President, Product Marketing SAP Ariba & SAP Fieldglass Navigating today's interconnected global business landscape has thrust procurement directly into the heart of strategic risk management. Supply chain disruptions, new AI-driven realities, looming ESG regulations, and shifting diversity initiatives pressure leaders to redefine procurement’s strategic impact. In this episode, Baber Farooq, Senior Vice President, Product Marketing SAP...
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811: Procurement 6 | June 13th, 2025
Art of Procurement
Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time. Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement. Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.
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BTW EP 11: "Poachers Turned Game Wardens:" The "Tuners" on Indirect Supplier Tactics (Part 2)
Art of Procurement
Sometimes the most damning evidence about an industry or an organization comes from the inside. In this second installment of “Buy: The Way…To Purposeful Procurement’s” deep dive into supplier tactics, two former supply executives continue exposing the ins and outs of the supplier playbook they used on procurement when they were on the other side of the fence. Bob Schreiner, former CIA section chief and G4s operations executive, explains how security guard service providers can obscure margin increases within seemingly reasonable wage adjustments for officers. He also exposes the...
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810: Making Startup Partnerships Work for Enterprise Procurement W/ Matt Ziskie
Art of Procurement
“Procurement officers are going to have to go hunt for the solutions they need and the workflows that can help their business. I do feel like to do this job properly moving forward, it's an offensive job, and you don't have the luxury of sitting back.” - Matt Ziskie, Co-Founder, Bungalow Capital How procurement approaches working with smaller, innovative startups can look quite different than other supplier relationships. From lengthy sales cycles, complex negotiations, and mismatched expectations… these and other roadblocks can crop up in different ways depending on the size, scale,...
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809: Procurement 6 | June 6th, 2025
Art of Procurement
Procurement 6 is a short podcast from Art of Procurement that publishes in the Art of Procurement feed every Friday morning at 6am US Eastern Time. Presented by a member of the Art of Procurement team, each episode has 6 short segments that summarize the week in procurement. Segments range from procurement tips to podcast summaries, from details of events to news or overviews of blog posts that capture our attention.
info_outline"If you can't understand how procurement affects the ultimate end users in your organization, whether it's a state prison, or whether it's a manufacturing facility in Germany, then you're abdicating your role, you're just a robot. And that's why procurement has a superpower." - David Yarkin, CEO, Procurated
Long before "DOGE" became a buzzword in government efficiency, the state of Pennsylvania led a pioneering strategic procurement transformation that saved taxpayers millions… $140 million to be exact (and on a recurring basis, at that). The key to their success wasn't just smart buying strategies, but highly effective communication that helped secure executive support and turn resisters into supporters.
In this episode of Art of Procurement, Philip Ideson speaks with David Yarkin, CEO of Procurated and former Chief Procurement Officer for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. David brings a unique perspective influenced by his background as a former press secretary and in procurement leadership.
In this episode, David shares how he led Pennsylvania to unprecedented savings through strategic sourcing initiatives and a powerful approach to communication:
- How to build support for procurement transformation, even against significant resistance, while also staying aligned with company leadership
- Why supplier performance management should be a high priority for procurement and how a lack of visibility into early warning signs can lead to major failures
- How procurement leaders can break through organizational barriers by getting out from behind their desks and experiencing operations firsthand
Links:
- David Yarkin on LinkedIn
- Pennsylvania Did DOGE Before Elon Musk Made It Cool
- Subscribe to This Week in Procurement
- Subscribe to Art of Procurement on YouTube