Smarter Sourcing

Utz Brands’ Senior VP/CPO Ron Schnur's M&A integration framework strategy challenges the standard playbook: across six acquisitions, his team at his previous company, White Wave, diagnosed each deal separately. Some received immediate full integration, others got a soft touch for a few months to protect supplier innovation pipelines that created category advantages. The critical question wasn't spend consolidation potential, but whether forcing integration would damage the supplier relationships driving growth. This "leave the nickel on the table" philosophy prioritizes speed-to-market and supplier innovation over immediate cost savings. 
At Utz, where the company faces competitors several times its size, Ron applies lessons from his roles at companies that had to "punch above their weight class" through risk-taking rather than scale. For hiring, he screens for curiosity and perseverance over technical capabilities, asking probing questions about how candidates work through challenging situations rather than testing Excel proficiency. Universities should handle hard skills; what matters is the ability to challenge first answers and grind through complex supply market problems.  
Topics discussed:
Building curiosity and perseverance over technical skills when hiring supply chain professionals for complex problem-solving roles

Applying differentiated M&A integration playbooks at White Wave Foods across six acquisitions to protect supplier innovation pipelines

Implementing "leave the nickel on the table" philosophy that prioritizes supplier innovation and speed-to-market over immediate cost savings

Competing as smaller companies against industry giants by taking calculated risks and building strategic supplier partnerships

Leveraging AI for rapid supply market intelligence gathering compared to traditional three-month global supplier assessment cycles

Developing enterprise-wide mindset that values total business impact over purchase price variance and acquisition cost optimization

Evaluating ROI on emerging technologies through targeted investments in customer-facing versus supply-facing AI applications

St. Luke’s Health System built a 330,000 square foot consolidated service center with an ASRS featuring 28 automated pickers and nearly 20,000 bins. Adrian Wengert, CSCO & VP of Supply Chain, spent 3 years visiting a dozen health systems before construction, extracting one unanimous lesson: every organization regretted not building bigger. He secured board approval for initially unused space by extending their 10-year pro forma, arguing future expansion would cost significantly more than justifying empty square footage upfront.The automation investment directly addressed Boise's labor market, where three Amazon distribution centers compete for the same warehouse talent. 
Facing inflation that has grown fourfold with vendors embedding anticipatory tariffs, St. Luke's is pursuing direct manufacturer relationships, bulk pre-buys, channel fee negotiations, market share consolidation with fewer suppliers, and e-auctions to counter double-digit quarterly supply cost increases. Their clinical integration includes a medical director in supply chain who uncovers opportunities traditional teams miss. Sustainability investments include reusable sharps containers, solar-ready infrastructure for 2 megawatts to power the building and electric vehicle fleet, and blue wrap reduction.  
Topics discussed:
Building 330,000 square foot consolidated service centers larger than needed by extending 10-year pro formas to justify unused space

Implementing automatic storage and retrieval systems with automated pickers to combat Amazon's labor market saturation

Integrating tech vendors for goods-to-person automation while managing interface complexity and validation during warehouse implementations

Unifying supply chain and pharmacy operations infrastructures to reduce transportation costs and create operational efficiencies

Combating fourfold inflation growth through direct manufacturer relationships, bulk pre-buys, channel fee negotiations, and e-auctions

Embedding medical directors within supply chain teams to uncover clinical cost reduction opportunities traditional buyers miss

Deploying contract lifecycle management tools with AI to monitor market share commitments and proactively signal deviations

Implementing reusable sharps containers, solar-ready infrastructure, and electric vehicle fleet transitions for sustainability ROI

EBIT Intelligent Procurement ditched their 50% gain-share model for fixed-fee managed services after recognizing how gain-share creates operational friction: departments paying fees from their budgets start resenting consultants as cost-cutting mercenaries, regardless of actual performance. The fixed-fee pivot quieted the "who really drove this saving?" disputes that derail stakeholder relationships and freed category experts to focus on supplier relationship management and outcomes beyond P&L line items. 
When a client needs marketing expertise for a quarter, then shifts to facilities work the next, CEO Joanne McCourt and her team pull from EBIT's specialist pool without carrying fixed overhead or managing staff augmentation contracts. Their C-suite pitch challenges why companies attempt building procurement capability across fragmented indirect spend instead of investing that talent in core business operations. The MRO reality: manufacturing sites that have operated independently with local contractors for years will emotionally resist centralization, even when compliance requirements and supply chain transparency demand it. The business case exists, but the operational resistance is real. 
Topics discussed:
Transitioning from 50% gain-share to fixed-fee managed services to eliminate departmental friction and stakeholder resistance

Implementing virtual procurement models that provide flexible category expertise through monthly fees

Targeting C-suite executives instead of procurement teams when selling outsourced services to address strategic business priorities 

Managing emotional resistance when centralizing MRO and facilities procurement across manufacturing sites that operate independently 

Measuring procurement success through operational outcomes like supplier relationship management, governance improvements, and board-level reputation rather than savings alone

Protecting revenue through procurement interventions in courier performance issues, payment processing optimization, and customer experience improvements across indirect categories

Partnering with LogicSource to move away from spreadsheet-based client management systems

Daniel Hurry, President at Advantus Health Partners & CSCO at Bon Secours Mercy Health, helped  justify building Advantus Health Partners to their board by calculating the admin fee equation, then proving they could negotiate better pricing at their scale. Their commercialization strategy was to skip the crowded commodity categories where another contract for gloves or gowns adds no value, and focus on complex operational purchase services and hyper-complex implants where national GPOs have gaps. 
Healthcare still lacks universal product codes, which means supply chain leaders can't access the real-time demand planning or behavior modification strategies that retail and energy industries built decades ago on UPC data. Instead, healthcare spawned entire cottage industries for data cleanup and item master enrichment, workarounds that other sectors never needed. Dan's leadership development program, built with Miami University's supply chain school through MBA residencies and internships, has now placed five former team members as chief supply chain officers at other health systems, treating talent development as an industry investment rather than internal retention problem.  
Topics discussed:
Building Advantus by calculating admin fee equations versus internal operating costs to justify better pricing at scale

Commercializing GPOs by targeting complex operational purchase categories and hyper-complex implants where market gaps exist

Implementing single-partner category strategies with open-book economics and daily KPI-driven continuous improvement cycles 

Addressing healthcare's universal product code gap that prevents real-time demand planning available in retail and energy industries

Managing dual chief supply chain officer and GPO president roles through execution excellence despite political and communication challenges

Developing supply chain talent through MBA residency programs with Miami University producing five chief supply chain officers

Navigating post-merger integration and pandemic disruptions while launching new commercial GPO operations and maintaining ministry focus

Shifting supply chain strategy from foundational pricing benchmarks toward utilization management and consumption analytics at point of use

Procurement at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center requires abandoning traditional sourcing language when working with physicians whose primary concern is patient outcomes, not optimization metrics, but Matthew Laud, Director of Strategic Sourcing & Supplier Management, has figured out the translation. Framing procurement's value into clinical terms creates the trust necessary for physicians to delegate critical supply decisions. His approach centers on connecting procurement capabilities to Memorial Sloan Kettering's mission of eradicating cancer, using the universal impact of cancer as common ground for building stakeholder relationships.
In turn, his distinction between good vendors and great partners hinges on suppliers who proactively deliver value beyond contractual obligations, whether through emerging technologies that provide competitive advantages or flexible pricing that redirects savings toward patient care. Matthew implements this through rigorous category management including quarterly business reviews, stakeholder scorecards, and regular rebidding of existing suppliers to drive continuous improvement. He also shares why visiting hospital rooms to see sourced medical devices in use with cancer patients provides fulfillment that recognition and praise never could, reinforcing the tangible connection between vendor negotiations and life-saving treatments.
Topics discussed:
Translating procurement terminology into clinical language that resonates with physicians focused on patient outcomes

Building trust with stakeholders in cancer treatment by connecting sourcing capabilities to the mission of eradicating cancer

Distinguishing good vendors who meet basic requirements from great partners who proactively deliver value through emerging technology, flexible pricing, or enhanced capabilities

Category management frameworks, including quarterly business reviews, stakeholder scorecards, and regular supplier rebidding to maintain quality while managing costs

Overcoming gatekeeper resistance from internal procurement teams through strategic networking at industry summits and tech events

Managing sourcing complexity across hundreds of acquired entities with independent sourcing teams and category structures

Thriving in procurement's inherent ambiguity by developing complete execution plans from vague, high-level business requests

Operating as an unsung hero who finds fulfillment in impact rather than recognition

Evaluating emerging AI tools and new vendors through rigorous RFP processes that test capabilities against established competitors

Advancing diversity in both internal team composition and supplier selection to reflect the patient populations being served