Rich Sains

The Procurement Conversation Podcast Host | Elevating Procurement | Procurement Leader | 10x Procurement |

My focus is on transforming IT and procurement functions for top enterprises, leveraging over a decade of consulting experience to deliver real, impactful change. The Procurement Conversation podcast, which I host, furthers this mission by sharing insights with a global audience, fostering a community where expertise and trends in procurement are at the forefront.

Our team's approach priorities strategic activities and benchmarks success, ensuring our impact resonates across the businesses we serve. Through Acada's software and advisory services, including transformation and process re-engineering, we are elevating the procurement function to new heights, creating value for stakeholders and suppliers alike.

Founder

We help procurement leaders to solve many of the challenges they face in today's complex environment and manage their teams more effectively and objectively.

Your Digital Procurement Mentor | I help thousands of readers discover how top Procurement teams use technology to deliver results for their business. Join them for free below 👇

The key to a successful Procurement function is ensuring you have the appropriate people, processes and systems in place to enable you to reach your business objectives. As the “translator” between Procurement and IT, that’s where I come in.

Over the past decade, I’ve delivered 20+ large-scale Procurement system implementation projects across 9 industries and in most processes supported by the Procurement function (Spend Analysis, Sourcing, Contract Management, Purchasing, Accounts Payable & Supplier Relationship Management)

⚡ To help my clients be successful, I adapt my language, communication and presentation style to my audience. I can present business cases to the C-Suite. I can help managers identify and address root causes that hinder team performance. I can sit with a team of developers and figure out application integration issues.

This puts me in a unique position to generate value for you as I can optimize discreet processes but will also identify and mitigate the dependencies and potential impacts of changes on the rest of the procurement function.

👉 Here are the processes I can help you with:

▪ Procurement Department Org. Design & Policy Development
▪ Spend Analysis
▪ Sourcing
▪ Contract Management
▪ Operational Procurement
↳ Catalog Management
↳ Requisitioning
↳ Purchasing Approvals
↳ Purchase Order / Scheduling Agreement Processing
↳ Goods Receiving
↳ Inventory Management
↳ Accounts Payable
▪ Special Purchasing
↳ Consignment
↳ Subcontracting
↳ Third-Party Orders
▪ Business Networks / Portals, Supplier On-boarding and Supplier Enablement
▪ Supplier Relationship & Performance Management
▪ IT Management of Procurement Applications

If you have Procurement technology projects in the works and are looking for someone who will help you ‘deliver the goods’, get in touch.

⚠ Learn more about my philosophy:

GO HERE: pureprocurement.ca

⚠ Join my newsletter and learn about Digital Procurement trends, opportunities and best practices:

GO HERE: newsletter.pureprocurement.ca

►Specialties◄

» Industries «
Aerospace
Automotive
Banking
Pulp & Paper
Mining
Rail Vehicle Manufacturing
Real Estate Management
Telecommunications
Public Sector

» Software «
SAP Enterprise Central Component (ECC):
Materials Management (MM) Module,
Plant Maintenance (PM) Module
SAP S4/HANA Logistics
SAP Ariba Spend Analysis
SAP Ariba Sourcing
SAP Ariba Contracts
SAP Ariba Buying and Invoicing
SAP Ariba Commerce Automation
SAP Ariba Supply Chain Collaboration
SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance
Ivalua Suite
Coupa Suite
GEP Suite
Jaggaer Suite

Joël Collin-Demers

The letters after your name don't negotiate contracts. You do...

UK procurement pros and CIPS are like CrossFitters and talking about CrossFit.
 
"I'm studying for Level 4."
 
"Only two more modules until MCIPS."
 
"Just finished my 30 hours of CPD... Again."
 
For the uninitiated, it sounds like:

"WoD, wall ball and push press."

CIPS is the crown jewel of UK procurement certifications.
 
The journey looks something like this:
 
→ Level 2 Certificate (intro)
→ Level 3 Advanced Certificate (getting serious)
→ Level 4 Diploma (commitment issues? Not anymore)
→ Level 5 Advanced Diploma (halfway to nirvana)
→ Level 6 Professional Diploma (almost there!)
→ 3 years of responsible experience
→ Ethics test
→ 30 hours of annual CPD
→ MCIPS status achieved 🎉
 
Average completion time? 2-5 years. While working.
 
Meanwhile, the North American procurement professional (who can also be very competent I'm told):
 
"What's CIPS?"

😅

Don't get me wrong...
 
Getting MCIPS is a real achievement folks should be proud of.
 
But it doesn't tell me you're a great procurement pro.
 
It tells me:

→ You've got a tie to the UK somehow
→ You're good at studying CIPS material
→ You're committed to a career in procurement
→ There's an increased likelihood you're good at procurement
 
Big difference.

Formal training and certifications have their place.
 
But they are only ONE way to learn a profession.
 
And at the end of the day, nobody will ask how many letters you have after your name.
 
They'll measure you on impact and outcomes.
 
In a world changing at lightspeed, especially one supported by evolving technology, formal courses face a fundamental problem:
 
Do you know how long it takes to build a proper curriculum?
 
By the time it's approved, written, reviewed, and published...
 
The technology it covers is already obsolete.
 
That's why I chose to share my digital transformation knowledge via a weekly newsletter.
 
Current trends. Emerging tech. Iterative practical frameworks.

An opportunity to learn something new every week for readers.
 
An opportunity to update and iterate on lessons every week for me.
 
No 5-year journey required.

Learning on autopilot.

Please consider augmenting your CIPS foundations with The Pure Procurement Newsletter: https://lnkd.in/guhSF7yp

I promise I won't repeat ANY of the material you've learned 😉 
 
What's your preferred way to stay sharp in procurement (other than CIPS certifications of course)? 👇

Your Digital Procurement Mentor | I help 12,000+ readers discover how top Procurement teams use technology to deliver results for the business. Join them for free below 👇

Stop outsourcing your career development to people who won't live with the consequences:

I used to think career development was my manager's job.

I used to blame my company for my stalled career.

Then I realized something...
 
If I'm not steering my own development, I'm going to end up with a random collection of experiences...

Projects my bosses and company need done.

But these experiences won't make much sense when looked at holistically...

(Oops)
 
Here's the truth:
 
→ Your manager's priorities might not match your career goals.
→ Most organizations focus on the year ahead, not your long-term growth.
→ You know your strengths (and blind spots) better than anyone.
→ You might just have a bad manager 😂
 
It's January... 

That means it's goal-setting season.

My advice?

Don't wait on someone else for career development. 

Take charge.
 
Just like any good procurement function, you should have a strategic roadmap for your career.
 
I'm so convinced of this that I built a framework to help you do it.
 
Check out my "T-Shaped Procurement Professional" framework in the carousel to build your plan.

Now over to you...

Let's help those who will take the time to do this.
 
What's the one skill you wish you'd developed earlier in your career?

Let me know in the comments 👇
_________________________

𝗣.𝗦. If digital and AI literacy are on your list, here's how you can put that skill development on autopilot this year...

Every Sunday, I break down ProcureTech trends, frameworks, and best practices in a free email newsletter read by 12,000+ procurement professionals.

Subscribe here for free: https://lnkd.in/e6jseZpi

2026-01-08 - The T-Shaped Professional

Your CFO will never approve a "data quality initiative."

But they'll approve this:
 
The secret: Stop talking about data. Start talking about dollars.
 
Every supplier data issue ties back to the bottom line.
 
You just need to connect the dots.
 
Here are 2-3 examples you can put a $ sign to:
 
→ 𝗗𝘂𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀:

How many are slipping through in a given period? Multiply by 12 months and find the $.
 
→ 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀:

How many hours per week are you spending in these because of bad vendor data? Multiply by hourly rate.
 
→ 𝗟𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀:

How many supplier PO address errors caused delays? What's the cost per delayed shipment? Multiply by 12 months.
 
→ 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀:

What's your exposure from inaccurate regulatory reporting? Have you been hit with fines? If not, what's the likelihood and potential cost? Multiple likelihood x cost.
 
Difficult to get hard numbers? Use realistic assumptions.
 
Refine as you get stakeholder feedback.
 
The reframe that changes everything:
 
"Fixing supplier data" = Expense
 
"Recovering $X in duplicate payments" = Investment
 
One gets ignored.
 
The other gets funded.
 
Did I miss any value levers to make a compelling case for high quality supplier data?

Let me know in the comments 👇
_________________________

𝗣.𝗦. I help companies choose and implement Procurement technology for a living.

Every Sunday, I break down the concepts you need to succeed with digital transformation...

Like how to build supplier data quality business cases that actually get approved!
 
Join 11,800+ Procurement professionals getting frameworks they can use on Monday morning.

Subscribe here for free: https://lnkd.in/evnjmYaj

Why you should consider writing on LinkedIn (or anywhere else really) in 2026:

First, you must accept that you're going to feel like...

...you suddenly don't know how to write,
...that you're a fraud,
...that you actually maybe don't know anything,
...that you can't possibly be this bad at writing,
...that your English teacher was right about you,
...that a caffeinated squirrel could produce better prose,
...that you don't know how sentences work,
...that autocorrect is silently judging you,
...that the blinking cursor is mocking your very existence,
...that you should have pursued interpretive dance after all,
...that cave paintings had better narrative structure,
...that you're one backspace away from goat farming,
...that your keyboard is conspiring against you,
...that your draft is sentient and embarrassed by you,
...that the void is staring back at you while laughing,
...that maybe you were completely mad all this time,
...that you should communicate with hand gestures now,
...that maybe society peaked with smoke signals,

...because all these feelings are all pretty much a given.

Writing is masochism but with better branding.

Do it anyway.

Next:

1) Click "Post."

2) Immediately regret it.

3) Check for engagement 47 times in the next hour.

4) Get one like. From your mom. Via email.

(How? I don't know... She figured it out.)

5) Question everything.

6) Notice a typo. In the first sentence. Die inside.

7) Someone comments. It's actually thoughtful and makes you reconsider one of your points. Huh.

8) Write another post. Repeat steps 1-8.

Realize 3 months later that the writing got a bit easier and the ideas got sharper.

Realize that the "likes and comments" are not the prize...

Realize that conversing with yourself to figure out what you actually think and believe (and why) is what keeps you coming back...

Because while writing does get a little easier over time... It certainly doesn't get a lot easier.

Goat farming sounds real nice... But it can wait.

You're not done figuring out what you think yet...

Your team is ready to change. They're just not able to:
 
That's the trap.
 
Readiness is easy to spot. You can see it in a room.
 
→ Leadership is bought in
→ Teams are motivated
→ Everyone wants to change
 
But capacity for change?

That's where you don't know what you don't know.
 
And that kills transformation initiatives.
 
Readiness = Wanting to change.
Capacity = Being ABLE to change.
 
The problem?
 
You can't assess gaps in skills you don't know exist.

You can't leverage technology when you don't understand it.
 
You can't build processes you've never seen work.
 
You can't anticipate what "good" looks like if you've never experienced it.

I've seen teams struggle to setup 1 interface for over 6 months...

They wanted that interface.
They didn't have the capacity to make it happen.
 
Here are 7 ways to close the capacity blind spot:
 
→ Bring in outside eyes. New colleagues, consultants, vendors who've done it before. They see what you can't.
 
→ Go to conferences. Expose your team to what's possible beyond your four walls.
 
→ Visit peer operations. See how others actually run their processes, not just how they talk about them.
 
→ Run pilots before you scale. Small experiments reveal hidden skill gaps fast.
 
→ Document your current state ruthlessly. You'd be shocked how many teams skip this step and pay for it later.

→ Watch vendor demos. Expose your team to "the art of the possible" to get an understanding of the toolbox.

→ Yes, get targeted training WHEN you have a specific problem you're trying to solve. Getting training without a goal in mind makes it much more difficult to justify.
 
Readiness fades without capacity.
 
Capacity won't stick without readiness.
 
But if you had to pick which one to stress about?
 
Capacity. Every time.
 
What other ways would you recommend to help folks evaluate organizational capacity for change?

Let me know in the comments 👇
_________________________

P.S. Want a framework to start building your ProcureTech knowledge?
 
I built a market map that organizes the entire ProcureTech landscape into digestible categories.
 
It's hard to close the capacity gap when you don't know the "art of the possible".

My map gives you a tool to become the artist you want to be 😅
 
Start here: https://lnkd.in/eUNv6zj8

Most ProcureTech events leave you with a huge gap.

Do you know what it is...?
 
You leave inspired by what's possible...
 
But nobody answers the real question:
 
"How do I make this work in MY company?"
 
That's why I'm launching 'ProcureTech Unpacked'.

I'm creating the event I've always wanted to see.
 
April 22–24, 2026 | 100% Virtual | 3 Half-Days
 
Yes, you'll see what the market offers.
 
But you'll also learn:
 
→ How to build the business case
→ How to structure the roadmap
→ How to plan the deployment
→ How to design the governance
→ How to lead the change management
 
Nine vendors. Nine 45-minute sessions.
 
Each one teaching their entire solution category

(not just pitching their product)
 
They're competing to be named "ProcureTech Educator of the Year."
 
Their goal is to teach, not sell.
 
What you get:
 
→ Solution deep-dives
(Spend Analytics, Sourcing, CLM, P2P, SRM, I&O...)
→ Practical frameworks you can apply immediately
→ Small breakouts with peers facing similar challenges
→ Direct vendor access on YOUR terms
 
The format:
 
→ ~60 attendees (intimate by design)
→ Breakout groups of 10 people MAX
→ 9am–12:30pm ET daily
→ No travel. No logistics. Just value.
 
No sales professionals. Just peers helping peers navigate the ProcureTech landscape.
 
Interested? Questions? Drop a comment or DM me for details.

A little bird told me there will be quite a few unique surprises for participants...

So don't take too long to tell me if your interested!

The first batch of 5 tickets will be available for purchase Friday at 12pm ET.

What's the most important question you want answered when you go to a ProcureTech conference?

There's still time for me to adjust the content based on your feedback.

Let me know in the comments 👇

One-time training is a waste of money.
 
Here's why...
 
The thoughts you're having right now are mostly driven by inputs from the last few hours.
 
Maybe the last few days.

That's why you keep a "To Do List."
 
But inputs from months ago? Years ago?
 
Essentially irrelevant.
 
This is the Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve at work.
 
Learning isn't repeated exposure. Learning is repeated recall.

(credit to Peter C. Brown on that gem!)

What this means for Requesters/Stakeholders?
 
Stop trying to train them on procurement with one-off sessions.
 
Unless it's very limited and contextual:
 
→ "Here's why we do things this way."
→ "Here's where to find info when you need it."
 
Then, give them on-demand access to processes and information.
 
That's how you get better quality inputs and engagement.
 
That's also why I remain bullish on high-quality Intake Management.

What does this mean for procurement pros?
 
Training must be designed to force you to RECALL repeatedly over time.
 
A quick primer right before a work session also helps you reach "flow state."
 
That's why they say: if you want to learn something, teach it.
 
Teaching is the ultimate recall exercise.
 
What's the most effective way you've learned a new procurement skill?
 
Let me know in the comments 👇
_________________________

𝗣.𝗦. If you want to learn how to deploy and use technology correctly for procurement, I've got you covered.

Every Sunday, I send out a free newsletter which documents the best practices, trends and frameworks in ProcureTech. It's read by 12,000+ Procurement professionals (and counting...)

It's weekly repeated exposure to the concepts YOU need to get exponential results with technology (instead of being in the 80%+ of transformation initiatives that fail...)

Subscribe here for free: https://lnkd.in/ejZBQt2r

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The Battle

Rich Sains

Joël Collin-Demers

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The Battle

Rich Sains

Joël Collin-Demers

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Joël Collin-Demers's LinkedIn Performance

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Performance ScoreJoël Collin-Demers's LinkedIn Performance