Jon Hansen, Author at Sourcing Solved

An Inside Out Look at Hiring Procurement Talent: A Parable of the book Acres of Diamonds by Russell H. Conwell

Jon Hansen2020-12-01T12:29:27+00:00December 1st, 2020|

(A guest post by Octavian Cuntan, Head of IGS Category Management & Business Transformation Projects at Bombardier Transportation - Stockholm, Sweden) There is so much talent in the world, and for the most part, we are blind, or we cannot seem to be able to identify it. Why is that? Do we lack the tools, the time, or do we lack the proper training? I must admit I did not spend that much time thinking about this until I became a "people manager." Before then, my preoccupation was from the perspective of the employee who seeks internal or external development opportunities, but not from the perspective of someone who could actually influence this process. When talent is abundant, as is now the case due to covid-19 resulting in companies closing operations, reducing or sending their employees on furlough, we might find it easier to look for talent externally. Not to be misunderstood, looking externally or outward to evaluate the talent market is OK and should happen, regardless of the times. After all, and even before the pandemic, we were already moving toward a brave new world of remote working and the "gig" economy. The current crisis accelerated our transition

Are You A Good Manager?

Jon Hansen2020-10-21T11:39:48+00:00October 20th, 2020|

“A good manager will understand the requirements of the business and be able to assess the personal attributes and candidate skill set to see if there is a match. This takes a lot of time and experience in the organisation and in supply chain in general." – Mark K., Supply Chain Canada 2020 In the world of professional sports – no matter what the sport is, there is no such thing as bad teams only bad managers. At least one would think this is the case when a manager or coach is "fired" because a team is not performing to expectations. But is this a fair assessment? Is team performance the sole responsibility of the manager? During my recent presentation at the Supply Chain Canada 2020 Conference in which I talked about the importance of "rehiring from within" the question of manager, responsibility was an underlying theme as demonstrated by the above comment. In short, and please delay giving a reflex response, to what degree are managers responsible for the success or failure of their procurement teams? The Lay of the Land We have all heard of the numerous surveys and reports of how most CPOs believe that their

Horses, Carts, and Resume Robots: Why more than 50% of all new hires fail within the first 18-months

Jon Hansen2020-09-16T12:02:22+00:00September 16th, 2020|

There was an interesting article in LinkedIn this weekend by Andrew Seaman titled How to make resume robots happy. It was a short and engaging read in which Seaman provided a couple of useful tips on how to "wordsmith" your resume, including formatting. The reason that resume wording and format are so important is because the applicant tracking systems that process a "flood of resumes" have a unique way of reading information. Regardless of your qualifications, if your resume content is not within the system search parameters - including keyword matching, rejection of your submission is likely. At this point, you may think that today’s article will focus on getting your resume “system ready” or "friendly" to increase your odds for selection. While writing an effective resume is a good topic, in truth, worrying about how a system will read your resume as a priority is like putting the proverbial cart before the horse. The real question that needs asking (and answering) is not how to get your resume accepted and through a system, but whether there is an actual cultural and personality match with a prospective employer in the first place. Be Careful About What You Wish Getting

CPO Strategy – Sourcing Solved Survey: How Effective Are Virtual Job Interviews?

Jon Hansen2020-08-04T11:01:00+00:00August 4th, 2020|

In an exclusive Sourcing Solved series of one-on-one interviews with job candidates, we asked about their experiences during a virtual versus in-person interview, and which they prefer. With this survey, we want to hear your thoughts. SURVEY TIME: 1-Minutes Create your own user feedback survey The results of this survey will be analysed and shared by way of a Special Report-Knowledge Note in the next quarter.

Virtual Interview Success: The Sourcing Solved Research Results

Jon Hansen2020-08-04T12:01:18+00:00August 4th, 2020|

Sourcing Solved conducted a series of interviews with job candidates who had recently gone through a virtual interview process to get their take on the experience. The objective of the research is to gain much-needed insight into what is now - and for the foreseeable future, the new normal for candidate assessment. In the following article, we will share with you the results from three of these interviews. Person One (public sector role) – Remote interview conducted via Teams. Their first-ever meeting carried out virtually. Candidate was concerned with what to wear. After the interview candidate said, they felt uncomfortable 'entering' the room, in the absence of the usual handshake and intros. Candidate found the overall process more "robotic" than a typical interview, and quite stilted. Said they didn't know how to wrap up the meeting without the usual etiquette. Their general feeling was that it was not their best performance, due to unusually high nerves. The candidate didn't get the job. On a side note, this person is extremely competent, can always talk the talk and rarely walks away without winning the job. The whole process massively fazed him. The following comment illustrates this last point; "I feel you

Put your money where your equality is: Why is equal pay still a thing?

Jon Hansen2020-07-03T20:12:20+00:00June 30th, 2020|

There are some amazing women in the procurement profession. People such as Kelly Barner, Sylvie NOËL, Virginie VAST and Elvire Regnier Lussier, only to name a few who immediately come to mind. Thinking about all the things these women have accomplished, I am both confused and sadly disappointed regarding the results of a relatively recent CIPS survey regarding pay equity. Perhaps in writing this, you can help me to understand the statistics to gain some missing insight because no matter which way you look at it, like the Rubik's Cube on my desk the coloured squares do not line up. Just the Facts While the October 2019 results reported by CIPS indicates that the "average pay gap in the profession overall narrowed slightly, from 23% in 2015 to 21% in 2019,” when women are "promoted" to a higher position, this gap increases significantly – and not merely by a few percentage points. According to CIPS, the gender pay gap for a senior position has risen from 15% in 2015 to 35% in 2019. It is as if women are being " penalised " for excelling at their jobs. Regardless of gender, who in their right minds would take

Article On Unconscious Bias in Talent Development Conversations Is Our Wake-up Call

Jon Hansen2020-07-03T20:13:19+00:00June 19th, 2020|

INTRODUCTION: Reading the article on "unconscious bias" by Michael A Massetti who is the Vice President, Gartner for General Managers - High-tech, is one of those moments where harsh reality collides with passive illusion. What he has done is remind us that overt or intentional bias is not the biggest challenge in achieving equality. The following are my thoughts on the power of Michael Massetti's words and why we all need to pay more attention. There is a saying that ignorance of the law is not an excuse for breaking it. In the same way, a lack of "conscious" awareness is not an excuse for bias. However, not knowing you are exhibiting bias because of the ingrained views you have ingested over the years through a stereotyping osmosis is a more difficult problem with which to deal. There is, of course, the obvious visceral reactions that can occur within a blink of an eye. For example, if you take the same route home from work every day, eventually you do not think about the turns you make or the intersections at which you stop for a light. Your mind has gone on autopilot. The only time you are "awakened"

Inclusion starts with “I”, part of a personal journey – (In his own words by John Everett with Iain Campbell McKenna)

Jon Hansen2020-07-03T20:13:50+00:00June 16th, 2020|

As EMEAI regional purchasing director at Dow Chemical John Everett provided leadership for 100 source-to-pay experts managing a spend of 5 Bn$. His career has included many highlights, including significant M&A synergies, working capital enhancements and digitalization, risk mitigation, category excellence and supplier innovation initiatives. My interest in Diversity and Inclusion intensified over five years ago. Three examples: 1. In 2016 I researched and published on the topic of Women in Procurement (1). Across the ensuing years, I’ve talked about the subject at several purchasing conferences. 2. At the beginning of 2020, when face-to-face was still allowed, I hosted Europe’s largest supplier diversity event together with four diversity amazing associations and >100 attendees (2). 3. More recently, I’ve helped get the first full certification of an Ethnic Minority Business owned chemicals distributor – an industry sector with a weak diversity ownership track record (3). But what of now and the future? Individual experiences over the last 2-3 months of employees working from home vary considerably. For some, it was business as usual – for many, it was novel – and novel can be both positive and extremely challenging. I’m hesitating to be universally optimistic about the near-term benefits of

At the crossroads of accomplishment: How HR, Procurement and IT can work together to realise their collective greatness

Jon Hansen2020-07-03T20:14:23+00:00June 4th, 2020|

In my article last week (HR’s role in transforming the global procurement practice), I talked about the role that HR will play in transforming the procurement practice through the introduction of the market-oriented ecosystem or “MOE.” For those who have not yet had the opportunity to read the article, you can access it through the above link. However, and for the sake of convenience, the following excerpt provides a quick overview of the MOE model. Under the MOE model, organisations are no longer “structured” as divisions within a “chain of command.” Instead, they become independent teams aligned with specific market opportunities in which said units are similar to holding companies. The big difference is that through this new structure, MOE connects the “independent teams in an “information, resource, and expertise” ecosystem. The belief from an HR standpoint is that with the introduction of the MOE “ecosystem” there will be a better focus on innovation and an improved agility to respond to changing market conditions. I then closed the article asking if HR’s perception of procurement and its needs on a go-forward basis was a surprise to procurement professionals and if it was in alignment with their view of transformation.

HR’s role in transforming the global procurement practice

Jon Hansen2020-07-03T20:14:54+00:00May 29th, 2020|

To help HR professionals deliver value through organisation, we have focused our work on helping them build the “right” culture, which is the identity of the firm in the mind of the key customers made real to employees. As such, the “right” culture turns an external brand into internal agendas for all HR practices. - Dave Ulrich and Arthur Yeung, HRD Connect (September 2019) If you are following many of the discussion streams in social media as of late, you will note that there is an increasing focus on the importance of how HR and procurement must work together to hire the best and the brightest talent in a very competitive job market. However, to be able to form a working relationship between procurement and HR, there has to be a greater understanding of the roles that each will play in this symbiotic exercise. The focus of this article is to provide procurement with a better understanding of what transformation means from an HR perspective and how it will impact recruiting and hiring practices. Beyond Cultural Transformation In the Ulrich and Yeung article, they talked about transformation involving more than a cultural shift in thinking. Specifically, the need for

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