Corporate Virtualization Has Business Leaders Out of Their Depth

News provided by

Jul 28, 2014, 04:44 ET

LONDON, July 28, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --

Proxima Launches Procurement Ebook

Proxima, the global procurement services provider, has launched a new Ebook for business leaders. Entitled Drowning, not waving: How corporate virtualization has got business leaders out of their depth, this new and original publication seeks to highlight the opportunities available to senior leadership through keeping control of, and truly understanding, suppliers and the optimal means of engaging them.

The trend of corporate virtualization, driven by globalization, free trade and the internet, has resulted in suppliers playing a far bigger role in how today's businesses operate. This creates some complex problems, but in many cases, the means of solving them have not evolved at the same rate. Developing solutions based on current resources, skills and capabilities is like fighting against a strong current - it's tiring, energy intensive and typically yields little results.

The Ebook aims to draw a distinction between a traditional "one size fits all" procurement department and a more proactive model through which suppliers' full range of specialist skills can be harnessed to improve performance on an ongoing basis. Among the benefits that this approach delivers to management are improved profits, increased innovation, and improved competitive advantage, which collectively contribute to longer term growth in shareholder value. Download the Ebook here.

Guy Strafford, Chief Client Officer of Proxima, said:

"Despite an improving economic situation, recovery is still fragile and senior leaders remain under pressure to find means of sustaining the underlying financial strength of their businesses. The fact that suppliers are yet to be engaged at a level that unleashes the full potential of a relationship is something that we at Proxima feel passionately about rectifying. This Ebook provides a number of fast facts that set in context the challenges that leaders must overcome. There is much to be done."

This Ebook follows Proxima's last major research, which analyzed the trends towards corporate virtualization and the implications for cost management among large organizations. The research found that large businesses spend 70% of their revenues on suppliers, but many continue to struggle to gain maximum value from those relationships - particularly in non-core, high spend areas (such as marketing, IT, professional services and facilities management).

For further information, please visit http://www.proximagroup.com

ABOUT PROXIMA

Proxima, a leading global procurement services provider, is the alternative approach to the conventional in-house procurement function. We focus on aligning an organization's third party costs with their corporate aims and helping companies spend well and maximize value from their operations. We address one of the most complex problems facing modern businesses - the extent to which most operations are now carried out by suppliers, and the lack of control associated with that - and turn it into a massive opportunity.

Proxima manages over $10 billion in operational spend from clients across a broad range of industries including consumer products, financial services, healthcare and media and entertainment. Proxima is headquartered in the U.K. with U.S. offices in Chicago and Los Angeles along with a significant European footprint. For more information, please visit http://www.proximagroup.com.

Enquiries:

Proxima
Chris Gayner
+44-(0)20-3465-4546

FTI Consulting, for Proxima
Jamie Robertson/Francesca Boothby
+44-(0)20-3727-1444

SOURCE Proxima