Today marks an important milestone in the Art of Procurement journey. I am delighted today to announce the formation of the Art of Procurement Executive Advisory Board and welcome the inaugural members John P. (Jack) Miles and Bill Michels.
In this post, I wanted to provide a little more insight into how excited I am to have the benefit of Bill and Jack’s council as my team and I continue to build the Art of Procurement platform. In fact, I have already benefited greatly from their wisdom and guidance.
First, allow me to introduce them:
Over the course of his career, John P. (Jack) Miles has served as Chief Procurement Officer for a number of leading organizations across North America including AIG, Prentice Hall, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) and Cigna. In addition to procurement, Jack has also led a number of shared services and corporate services organizations, and in 2011 was appointed by Florida Governor Rick Scott to become the Secretary of the Department of Managed Services – effectively Florida’s Chief Administrative Officer. In this role, he led an agency turnaround to restore both legislative confidence and funding. Jack is currently Managing Partner of MainSpring Advisors.
Bill Michels is a much sought after consultant, speaker and educator across the procurement and supply chain world. Bill began his career as a procurement practitioner and Head of Procurement before enjoying a 23-year career with consulting firm ADR. Under his leadership, ADR North America (N.A.) and ADR International became a prominent, and regularly awarded procurement consulting firm. In late 2011, ADR N.A. & ADR International was acquired by the Institute for Supply Management, at which point Bill became President of ISM Services, and SVP of the Institute for Supply Management. Today, Bill is the CEO of Aripart Consulting.
I have admired the work of both Bill and Jack from afar for some time. Both have recently featured in Art of Procurement episodes, and they have also graciously spent time with me off-mic and in-person providing much needed advice and counsel! I recently made the decision to build an EAB and had Bill and Jack in mind from the start. I was thrilled when both accepted my invitation without hesitation.
Importantly, both Bill and Jack share my passion for procurement, and my foundational belief that our profession is at a crossroads. They agree that there are many risks that must be navigated for us to remain relevant, but also opportunities abound to forge a new path as a trusted commercial partner so long as we play our cards right and have the courage to drive change from within.
Finally, I’d like to take a moment to explain why I believe the Art of Procurement needs an Executive Advisory Board. There are two core reasons. Firstly, to help shape the Art of Procurement content calendar – ensuring its relevancy, while helping to bring the best of procurement thinking directly to Art of Procurement listeners. Secondly, the Executive Advisory Board will be a sounding board to help me explore product and revenue opportunities. This will enable me to continue investing in and growing the show, while staying true to my mission of helping us all, collectively, elevate the role of procurement.
I am excited to have Bill and Jack on board, and I am looking forward to seeing the impact that their involvement will have on the evolution of the Art of Procurement!
