Trends in Recruitment : Key Success Strategies for a Career in Procurement

Article by Brice Malm, Director of the Procurement and Supply Chain Practice of Grant Alexander, French member of InterSerch Worldwide, Expert in Human Capital and Procurement Transformation

How to Approach Your Toughest Career Decisions

Imagine you’re choosing between two positions—one within your current company and one outside of it. Which would you pick? Only you can define the path that best aligns with your ambitions, and taking time for self-reflection can better prepare you for future career choices.

In this article, I’ll share three essential keys to building a successful career in procurement by addressing common questions that arise during decision-making.

1. Professional Fulfillment: A Question of Personal Choice

Career satisfaction hinges on your ability to create alignment between different career dimensions, defining what matters most to you, and pursuing that path with conviction.

A career in procurement goes beyond a list of tasks or projects; it’s about crafting a coherent narrative that highlights how you’ve succeeded in various situations. Have you thrived in a crisis? Contributed to team development or tackled challenges in an evolving organization? Showcasing these experiences will add depth to your profile and emphasize your achievements.

To underscore the breadth of your expertise, demonstrate how you’ve contributed to three essential areas typically found in a procurement roadmap:

- Synergy and Smart Cost Savings: This goes beyond cost-cutting alone. It involves creating value while aligning with the company’s strategic objectives.

- Maturity Development: Some procurement functions are well-established with clear processes, while others are in a formative stage. One of the key roles of a Chief Procurement Officer (CPO) is to advance the function by enhancing team professionalism, introducing best practices, and strengthening procurement’s strategic impact.

- Team Development and Sustainable Excellence: Show how you’ve helped implement tools and processes that ensure sustainable results. Success involves setting standards of excellence that endure beyond your tenure. The resilience of the processes and methods you put in place will speak to your long-term impact.

2. Understanding Your Career "Ceiling"

The first question to consider is often, “Have I reached the limits of my current role?” Here’s how to assess this:

- Content Ceiling: Are you still learning in your role? Do you still enjoy your work? Can you expand your scope into other tactical or strategic areas, like sustainable procurement?

- Structural Ceiling: Are the growth opportunities in your company clear? Are there paths for vertical or horizontal mobility?

- Salary Ceiling: Does your compensation meet your expectations and market value? If you feel out of sync with what you could earn elsewhere, it may be time to explore new opportunities.

Consider the broader context of your company’s situation—is it undergoing sale, acquisition, reorganization, or crisis? A new leadership team might come with its own structure and team. If you answer “yes” to these questions, it may be time to think about your career’s direction.

3. Choosing Between Expertise and Management

Management is not a mandatory step for career success in procurement, though you’ll likely face this question at some point. For a long time, career growth was synonymous with management roles. However, this path isn’t the only one, nor does it suit everyone. Increasingly, companies are elevating the value of technical expertise in procurement by creating dedicated career paths for technical specialists with advancement levels comparable to those of managers.

These specialized roles are supported by tailored recognition systems, including bonuses or prestigious titles with participation in procurement leadership committees, further affirming the importance of these roles.

Making thoughtful decisions and aligning your professional path with your core values will not only help you thrive but will also open doors to meaningful growth in the field of procurement.

About the French member of InterSearch Worldwide, Grant Alexander

For over 30 years, Grant Alexander has been a partner in the performance of organisations and their leaders, providing them with comprehensive support for all their skills management and development needs, always with a tailor-made response.

A multi-specialist HR consulting and services group, with 4 activities (Executive Search, Executive Interim, Leadership Development, HR & Organisation Transformation), it operates in all sectors, on all functions (managers/experts /rare profiles), throughout the world. It has several offices in France (Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes, Toulouse), and is an active member of InterSearch, of which it is the exclusive partner in France.

A socially committed player, Grant Alexander is Lucie 26000 certified.

Our mission: “We are committed, every day, to enable organisations and their leaders to build an enthusiastic future by opening up new perspectives and helping them to develop their full potential.”