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The Big Interview with Gary Charlton and Joshua Edwards

Written by: Procurement Heads
Published on: 30 Jan 2018

The Big Interview with Gary Charlton and Joshua Edwards

The Procurement Heads Big Interview Series launched in 2017, and features Procurement Professionals throughout London and the Home Counties. It’s an opportunity to shed some light on the specialist world of Procurement and those who work within it. To be featured in the next Big Interview, contact info@procurementheads.com

1

How did you get into Procurement?


I managed Haymarket Media Group’s production operations, and a large part of the role included tendering and negotiating contracts, and supplier and project management. As our business strategy changed we began to focus on Procurement processes across all the different areas of the business – including digital, live events and support services. I supported internal departments with this change, which included implementing a supplier management system and wider use of competitive processes. I then developed a group wide Procurement strategy and policy and moved away from operations to a full-time group Procurement role. It was alongside this role that I studied for MCIPS.

What success are you most proud of in your career to date? 

Integrity is one of Haymarket’s core values, so I was really proud that we were the first large UK media company to produce a Modern Slavery statement. To produce the statement, we worked hard to develop a strategy that was easy for user departments to understand and follow, and that wasn’t unnecessarily onerous on our supply chain. Haymarket has won a number of industry awards for sustainability, so I was very proud to have contributed to the sustainability approach and strategy! 

 2

What does a typical day at work look like for you? 

I’m typically in the office very early and start by reviewing where procurement are on different points on projects, RFPs, tenders, and contract negotiations and seeing what tasks need attending to. We work closely with user departments to ensure we keep on top of upcoming changes and make sure there is plenty of time to collate requirements. The pace of new technology that is coming in to the market is ferocious, so as a business and a department we need to be able to react to this quickly while still being able to manage the process and outcomes. It’s important that we’re able to differentiate between what can be trialled, what can be used quickly and what needs a more diligent process. A small piece of software can have a big impact on how we operate as a business. Of course, like everyone, I also juggle hundreds of emails and attend numerous internal and supplier meetings. I try to get home at a fairly decent time at the end of the day to spend some time with my family.

To read the full Big Interview with Gary Charlton, visit the Procurement Heads website.