SOW

Last week, Randstad Sourceright announced the appointment of Paul Vincent as its Global Head of Services Procurement. In this Future of Work Exchange feature, Paul joins us to talk about how he views the current SOW management landscape, how this exciting topic fits into the greater Future of Work movement, and his new responsibilities at Randstad.

Christopher J. Dwyer: Hi Paul, it is great to chat with you once again, and congratulations on your new role. Pandemic aside, we’ve definitely seen some changes in the services procurement landscape over the past couple of years. Curious to hear your thoughts on these changes and how you feel MSPs can effectively tackle these challenges.

Paul Vincent:  It’s good to catch up with you again, too, Chris, and let me start by commending you on the launch of the Future of Work Exchange. The site looks really smart, and I am sure it will become a valued resource for the talent industry.

The services procurement marketplace has unquestionably become more liberated during the past couple of years. Every MSP now seems to be selling some kind of SOW solution and buying organizations are clearly becoming more receptive to a proposal for help. VMS providers are building more tailored functionality into their platforms and there is a growing array of complementary digital tools which can further strengthen an MSP’s product offering if positioned correctly.

So, we are definitely entering a period where SOW-based spend is going to be increasingly supported by workforce solutions providers in some way. The $64M question is going to be: what way is the best way?

This is where I think the market gets most interesting. There is still quite a big difference between an MSP who really understands the nuances of the services procurement landscape versus one that fundamentally still treats this part of the workforce as a subset of an organization’s contingent staffing population.

For example, when you see an MSP only talking about classification, compliance, and control, then this is a tell-tale sign that they are not really thinking about how to best serve the people who have the need and budget for the services themselves. These people, who after all are the primary stakeholders for any SOW management solution, need an MSP who can give them speed, simplicity, ready access to the highest-performing and most innovative service providers, and ultimately the best bang for their budgetary buck.

CJD: One of the things I admire about your work in the market all these years is that you have a deep understanding of both the client and service provider sides of SOW and services procurement. What are two or three of the most valuable insights that this experience has given you?

PV:  This is a tough question, Chris, as there are so many insights I could share. However, if you pushed me for my top three then I would probably select these ones.

Firstly, it is important to remember that price and perceived value are very different things. It is a common misconception that users of SOW-based services will want to pay as little as possible and this is a mentality trap that procurement professionals and MSPs can get themselves into. In a staff augmentation world, hiring managers typically don’t want to pay more than the prevailing market rate. In a services procurement world, business users want to pay an appropriate price and as it is their budget, then ultimately, they will need to decide on the price that most aligns with the value they perceive they are going to get from the service provider in return. The role of a good procurement advisor is to help their business stakeholders to identify and then critically evaluate the various commercial options open to them. Then they need to ensure that their stakeholder’s preferred option is properly encapsulated within a well-documented statement of work.

Secondly, whilst the SOW management triangle has three interdependent relationships (i.e., between the business user, centralized procurement, and the service provider), the most crucial relationship is always the one between whoever wants the work done and whoever is going to be doing the work. An effective SOW management solution will facilitate this relationship so that it is as commercially agile as possible. Those procurement functions and MSPs who seek to control this relationship instead will never be sustainably successful.

Finally, I passionately believe that an MSP should be delivering value throughout the entire SOW life cycle. However, in my experience, many MSPs seem to limit their boundary lines to the supplier selection and contracting phases in the process only. I have never understood this – because there is a huge amount of value that can be offered across the project definition, delivery, and evaluation phases, and this value often just gets left on the table.

CJD: These are great insights, Paul, and what resonates with me in particular are your observations about the breadth of the MSP value proposition when it comes to services procurement. So, turning to your new role and an obvious question is: what has attracted you to Randstad Sourceright?

PV:  I am thrilled to be joining Randstad Sourceright and there were two main reasons why I could not let this opportunity pass me by. The first is the hugely ambitious and exciting vision that CEO Mike Smith has set for the organization, and in particular the impact and contribution that he expects services procurement to play. The more Mike talked me through his strategic intent for services procurement, the more I felt this was a journey that I wanted to be part of.

Secondly, I will have a chance to work with a very skilled team. Randstad Sourceright already has a number of sales, operations, and subject matter experts working on SOW-related activities across the organization and further recruitment activity is underway. All of this talent will now be unified globally under my leadership and a joint strategic vision focused on creating measurable business value for our clients. I am especially going to enjoy working with Scott Brewer, who will run our SOW center of excellence. Scott has laid some impressive foundations during the past 18 months and there is a strong platform to grow from.

CJD: This role sounds like the perfect fit for you. What do you see as your key priorities during the first few months?

PV: Well, like in any new role there are going to be many people that I will need to get to know across the organization. But I expect the bulk of my time will be spent getting a really good understanding of our current SOW proposition and what we are delivering across the active client programs. From what I have seen, I think the offering is already pretty compelling, particularly from an analytics point of view, but as I finalize our new team structure and future ways of working, I will get a feel for the areas which might have scope for further development.

CJD: Maybe it’s because I’ve known you for so long, but I have to imagine that you already have some ideas as to how you would like to see RSR’s SOW offering evolve…am I correct?

PV: You’re right, you know me well and I do have some ideas already germinating, but it’s important that I take the time to really understand the current offering first and to gather a range of input from across the organization. What I can tell you is that Mike has set me a very clear objective – which is for Randstad Sourceright to be regarded as the undisputed market leader driving services procurement value for our customers. I am very energized by this goal, and I have every intention of delivering it!

CJD: I am very sure you will, Paul, and we look forward to hearing more from you here on the Future of Work Exchange. Best wishes on your new role at Randstad Sourceright, and thanks again for taking the time so soon after your new appointment.

Connect with Paul on LinkedIn, or visit Randstad Sourceright for more information on their solutions and offerings.