Taking the reins of a procurement department is a bit like landing in uncharted territory with a clear mission: deliver value quickly while building a solid foundation for the future. Whether you’re building a procurement function from scratch or taking over an existing team, the first 100 days are critical for establishing credibility and laying the groundwork for lasting transformation.

Swile’s experience—structuring its procurement function from the ground up—offers valuable lessons on how to tackle this challenge with method and pragmatism. From spend mapping to identifying quick wins and building a sustainable framework, here’s how to maximize the impact of your first months.

Step One: Map the Landscape to Understand Spending Reality

Using the General Ledger as Your Initial Compass

A procurement leader’s first mission is to understand exactly where the company’s money goes. As Éric points out: “You need the data to understand where you are—so first, let’s say, quantitative—then you need to look at that data through the accounting lens.”

This mapping starts with a methodical analysis of the general ledger. The goal? To identify:

• Who is spending within the organization

• How much is being spent by category

• Which suppliers capture the majority of spend

• Trends and changes over recent months

Applying the Pareto Principle for Prioritization

Faced with a flood of information, the 80/20 approach becomes your best ally. By focusing on the 20% of suppliers that represent 80% of total spend, you maximize your potential impact while optimizing time and resources.

This prioritization helps you:

• Quickly pinpoint the most significant savings levers

• Focus efforts where impact will be most visible

• Avoid wasting time on low-stakes issues

The Kraljic Matrix: Your Strategic Segmentation Tool

Understanding the Four Types of Purchases

The Kraljic Matrix remains an essential tool for segmenting spend along two axes: financial impact and supply risk. This segmentation reveals four distinct categories:

• Strategic purchases (high impact, high risk): Require a partnership approach and careful supplier relationship management.

• Leverage purchases (high impact, low risk): Your main source of potential quick wins for rapid savings.

• Bottleneck purchases (low impact, high risk): If mismanaged, these can cause significant operational frustration.

• Non-critical purchases (low impact, low risk): Automate or simplify as much as possible.

Using Each Quadrant Wisely

Éric offers a pragmatic take on this tool: “In the bottom right, you’ll make savings, which will be great for your finance team and for your mandate internally with your CFO and CEO. In the top left, you’ll win the trust of your colleagues by solving problems.”

This balanced approach lets you:

• Generate rapid savings with leverage purchases

• Resolve operational pain points linked to bottlenecks

• Gradually build credibility with all stakeholders

Achieving Quick Wins While Building Long-Term Vision

The Critical Importance of Early Wins

The first 100 days are a race against time to prove your added value. As Éric explains: “Our two top priorities were to get quick results for our colleagues and for the company, while also putting the right framework in place.”

Quick wins serve multiple purposes:

• Earn the trust of the CFO and executive team

• Create positive momentum around procurement

• Fund the investments needed for transformation

How to Spot and Prioritize Opportunities

To maximize your chances of early success, focus on:

• Simple renegotiations: Contracts nearing renewal, long-standing suppliers without recent competitive bidding, quickly consolidatable volumes.

• Process improvements: Simplifying approval workflows, automating recurring orders, reducing processing times.

• Obvious rationalizations: Duplicate suppliers, overlapping services, obsolete active contracts.

Essential Soft Skills: Humility and Commercial Acumen

Humility as a Collaboration Lever

Kevin highlights an often-overlooked but essential trait: “Having commercial sense and the humility to admit you don’t know everything—but being able to dig, investigate, and explore topics with others—that was hugely important.”

This humble approach helps you:

• Build trust with business units

• Quickly learn each department’s specific needs

• Avoid resistance triggered by an overly top-down stance

Commercial Acumen for Internal Negotiation

Before negotiating with suppliers, the CPO must “sell” their vision internally. This means:

• Tailoring your message to each stakeholder

• Highlighting the specific benefits for each party

• Building strategic alliances with key influencers

Building a Lasting Framework: Beyond the First 100 Days

The Foundations of a Sustainable Organization

While chasing early wins, it’s vital to lay the groundwork for long-term success:

• Processes and governance: Define roles and responsibilities, set up clear approval flows, create contract templates.

• Tools and systems: Select solutions suited to your maturity, integrate with existing systems, train end users.

• Skills and culture: Recruit the right profiles, develop internal capabilities, embed a procurement mindset across the organization.

Measuring and Communicating Progress

Setting KPIs from the outset lets you:

• Objectively track results

• Adjust your strategy when needed

• Keep stakeholders engaged

Conclusion: The Balancing Act

The first 100 days in a procurement leadership role are a constant balancing act—between urgency and sustainability, technical expertise and relationship skills, process rigor and necessary agility.

Swile’s experience shows that with a methodical approach, a healthy dose of humility, and sharp prioritization, you can quickly transform a procurement function while winning the trust of the entire organization.

The key lies in juggling quick wins that legitimize your work with the patient construction of a framework that sustains and amplifies results over time.

Ready to transform your procurement function? Discover how Freqens can help you quickly identify savings opportunities and implement a high-performance procurement strategy. Our automated analytics tools let you map your spend in just a few clicks and spot your quick wins within the first weeks.