Blog

The world is experiencing a severe economic and social shock.  To achieve a more equitable society where growth is shared, Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) issues need to be at the top of the agenda for both government and business.  Businesses, both large and small, are typically more agile and can make a real and faster difference if they choose now to change the way they impact the world.  Whilst containment is the main objective for many small and mid-sized businesses right now, taking the eye off the ESG ball would be a mistake and will impact growth and profitability long term.

Many, many articles have been published in past weeks, all attempting to assess the current crisis and foresee future impact. 

From politicians, economists, supply chain experts, Big 4 consultants and Futurists like Gerd Leonhard (very interesting), it is easy to feel overwhelmed and confused. 

In these days of isolation and social distancing, we all need some positive thoughts and actions.  In a series of blogs over the next few weeks Insider Pro will suggest ideas for new ways of working and planning for the future. 

The majority of us are at home with our families, trying to work whilst keeping safe and entertaining the children.  There is rightfully much in the news about the NHS and essential key workers who are doing such important jobs. 

Casual Dining Chains in the UK have seen a rapid explosion in demand, a number of failures and an influx of competition emerging from new and inventive sources.

Consumers are becoming increasingly demanding, expecting fast service, great food, entertaining environments - in short, an experience that is "Instagramable".

Everyone is working on tight margins, feeling the threat of rising prices due to Brexit, and as a result many are struggling to work out how to increase profits and/or simply survive.

Disruptive procurement is the process of creating real business value and competitive advantage by:

• deconstructing what the business really needs,
• challenging established business processes,
• leveraging knowledge from outside the normal points of reference, and
• designing, assembling and managing the supply chain in new and innovative ways.

“Disruptive procurement” uses knowledge of the entire supply chain to challenge requirements and drive out business benefits far in excess of any improvements in margin.

Property directors, estate directors, head of acquisitions, facilities director….whatever your title and whatever your industry, reducing total cost of ownership (TCO) and mitigating risk are two of the major aspects of your responsibility.

Everyone knows that for a business or function to be successful they need to hire great people. Unfortunately, the vast majority of managers and executives will also know the pain and angst created from a bad hire. From having someone in the business who didn’t fit the culture, couldn’t deliver and/or negatively impacted on those around them.