A German medical technology company had an urgent need for action due to the sudden departure of a purchasing manager. In addition, the twelve-strong purchasing team was heavily involved in a change process. The interim manager acted as an interim purchasing manager in the role of senior site manager in the US matrix organization.
Overloading the purchasing organization after sale to US group
The company had been purchased by a US-listed group a year earlier. Since then, the buyer had exerted a strong influence on the purchasing organization. The monthly savings reporting for a purchasing volume of 120 million US dollars turned the purchasing capacities upside down. The supplier portfolio was highly regional and the global US sourcing organization had to be integrated. There was also a high rate of supplier errors in the production process, which is why a new quality assurance process was introduced for all production material.
Tensions in the team - moderation in the conflict with the parent company
In the complex change process, many buyers were not up to the new challenges. The ever-increasing purchasing reporting to the parent company placed great demands on the purchasing capacities and caused a great deal of tension in the team. This was reflected, among other things, in a significantly increased sickness rate.
The interim manager was therefore initially faced with the challenge of making the extent of the extreme change process for the German unit clear to the new parent company. To do this, she presented the current purchasing organization with the actual tasks. She found an understanding for the situation, which in turn brought some relief to the German workforce.
Savings potential realized in the short term through renegotiations
Despite the adverse circumstances, it was important to identify savings potential and realize it in the short term. In intensive renegotiations with the top 20 suppliers, the interim manager managed to achieve purchasing savings of two million US dollars by the end of the financial year. This success made it possible to bring in additional external purchasing resources who were able to implement sustainable savings projects.
In the further course of the mandate, the interim manager focused on motivating and strengthening the purchasing team. She also systematically set up a commodity purchasing department that was harmonized with the US purchasing organization. In addition, she communicated the importance of a new quality assurance process to suppliers during price exploration meetings.
Performance and productivity of the purchasing department sustainably increased
The changes initiated by the interim manager sustainably increased the performance and productivity of the purchasing department. Her training measures enabled the buyers to react confidently and calmly to the change process. The US purchasing organization praised the developments in monthly Savings Councils. The shift from operational purchasing activities to materials management (production) was implemented as a reorganization.
The project ended after the interim manager had trained the subsequent purchasing manager. However, even after the conclusion of the seven-month mandate, the interim manager continues to support the company in the form of seminars, thus ensuring that the objectives are met.
