Why LinkedIn could yet destroy Procurement

Critiquing the platform that has arguably given me my ‘big break’ in life may seem counterintuitive.

But I’ve long believed what the world needs now is more ‘critical thinking’.

That means the ability to look introspectively as well as retrospectively at all the events that got us here as well as all the things that will shape our future.

There’s a reason in the third decade of the 21st century a convicted sex offender and riot inducing felon is sill able to garner such widespread support for the role as leader of the ‘free world’.

and why every single economic prediction that Brexit would leave the U.K. billions of pounds poorer and significantly more divided as a nation was largely ignored in 2016.

The birth of Populism and the decline of critical thinking, exacerbated by social media.

Fortunately the ‘dangers’ of LinkedIn are far less stark in terms of global politics, but there’s still a salutary tale that can still be applied.

Let’s look at my own growth on LinkedIn for example (and this could apply to any social media platform that relies on algorithms).

I didn’t get ‘popular’ because I have some ground breaking theory about how to advance the profession.

I didn’t get traction as a world leader in the field with an enviable Power List of CPO roles on my CV.

Everything I do that’s at all successful in LinkedIn is a combination of three things

1. I enjoy and think I’m quite good at writing. I’m guessing you wouldn’t be here reading this if you didn’t agree.

2. I lean into my superpower - consistency. I turn up every single day and am prepared to stick it out when others drop off.

3. I’ve become fairly good at curation, particularly when it comes to simplifying complex theories and converting them into easy to consume cheat sheets.

But, I’m not technically better at Procurement than anyone else on LinkedIn.

I’ve only actually got 12 years of experience in leadership roles.

I’m not Mr. Kraljic and I’m no David Rogers or Dr. Elouise Epstein either.

I’m just another guy passionate about Procurement, and keen to learn from those better than me, of whom there are many.

There’s things that I regret too.

The Procurement Dinosaurs analogy I played a part in, plays to populism and does nothing to advance the profession.

It’s a churlish way to create ‘otherness’ in a world where we should all be coming together.

Procurement traditionalists and the next-gen Procurement ‘rebels’ all have valuable experiences and advice and we gain so much more when we work together.

It’s been two years since I’ve referred to traditionalists in Procurement as Dinosaurs

And while it doesn’t haunt me in the same way as that Bullingdon Club photo did David Cameron’s political career, it still gnaws at my conscience.

Truth is…I’m better than that.

I’m an inclusive critical thinker (and I’m better at that too when I admit my mistakes).

When I wrote this particular LinkedIn post it made me realise how dangerously close we are to dismissing all that has come before in our desperate search for Procurement to be ‘cool’.

Every Procurement team should have a Procurement Policy

I created it in direct response to the growing number of LinkedIn posts I’ve seen dismissing the need for a Policy in favour of ‘guidelines’.

What?

So we’re really saying now that to appease stakeholders and deliver on a softer agenda, all Procurement policy should be disregarded in favour of a list of ‘nice to haves’ or ‘can do's’ when it comes to how businesses in the Private and Public sector millions of dollars of shareholder cash?

It feels like madness to me.

And is another example of Populism trumping reality.

Nobody will holler and woo-hoo at a post extolling the virtue of the Procurement Policy, the brilliance of the Kraljic matrix (which still works 40 years on) or a 7 Category Management approach.

Why?

Because they’re not shiny new tools and nor are they particularly cool things to talk about.

I’m not anti LinkedIn.

It’s generally a force for good.

For community, for advancing the profession with new ideas, for supporting each other and debating important topics.

I’m just very cautious of the divisive nature of social media these days

and I despair at the loss of critical thinking in 2024.

We have, in so many ways, become artificially unintelligent.

And that’s the biggest threat to our brilliant profession right now.