Simon Whatson

Career background

Simon joined Efficio in 2015 as an experienced hire, having previously spent time in both industry and consulting roles at Oliver Wyman, BrainNet Supply Management Consultants and Wolseley. He is a senior project leader who manages international teams of client and consulting resources to deliver large-scale procurement transformation projects, many of which are global, spanning a range of sectors.

Active in the industry, Simon was a winner of Supply & Demand Executive’s Pros to Know award in 2021. He is a co-author of the book PROFIT FROM PROCUREMENT published in 2021 by Wiley, and he has hosted and spoken at events such as the inaugural World Digital Procurement Summit in 2019 for senior procurement professionals. In 2018 and 2019, he led the development and creation of Efficio’s annual flagship thought leadership publications on digital transformation and talent in procurement, in cooperation with Cranfield University.

Simon holds a BSc in Mathematics from the University of Durham and speaks fluent French and German alongside his native English.
 

Experience and recent career highlights:

• Procurement Transformation – Financial Technology Company (UK/US): Conducted a rapid two-week opportunity assessment on all third-party spend and built a six-month procurement transformation plan. Led a team of consultants and client stakeholders across two continents to deliver above-target savings through price reductions, demand challenge and specification challenge. Efficio was awarded an additional two years managed service assignment to complete the transformation of the existing function to world class, including a significant shift to digitally enabled procurement
• Procurement Managed Service – Utility (UK): Managed team of 15 consultants to deliver a managed procurement service to a large client alongside 25+ client resources delivering over 5% savings in a mature procurement landscape on a large annual spend. Managed the smooth transition and handover of a world-class function back to the client at the end of the agreement, including upskilling new hires and the team, and the implementation of procurement technology
• Digital Procurement Study – Global: Led Efficio’s global study on digital transformation of procurement in collaboration with Cranfield University and publication of a thought leadership piece entitled: “Procurement 2025 – Is the digital transformation driving more effective procurement?”. Study included results from an industry-wide survey and expert interviews. Presented findings at a launch event for industry professionals, which also included a panel of experts debating the topic
• Digital Procurement Roadmap development – Pharmaceutical (SWI): Conducted a series of trainings and workshops with this blue-chip client’s procurement leadership team and developed a five-year digital roadmap encompassing all elements of transformation across the procurement value chain

What I like about Efficio

Since joining in 2015 Efficio has offered a culture that suits me perfectly. It blends the friendliness and warmth of a small company with the scale and leading thinking of a large one. As it has grown, Efficio has managed to retain an environment in which anyone with an idea is encouraged to come forward and develop it with others. That, together with the opportunity to work with exceptionally smart people on a daily basis, is why Efficio is a great company to be part of.