5 Key Takeaways from SIG Summit 2020 to Increase Stakeholder Buy-in
SIG (Sourcing Industry Group) is the global sourcing association that provides thought leadership, training and networking opportunities to executives in sourcing, procurement, outsourcing, shared services and risk from Fortune 500 and Global 1000 companies. Seal, a DocuSign company, has been a member and participant for many years, and we’ve found the opportunity to network with procurement professionals around contract analytics extremely beneficial.
At this year’s virtual SIG Procurement Technology Summit, we conducted a breakout session titled “5 Ways to Increase Stakeholder Buy-in for the Contract Review Process.” It was a moderated Q&A with two of our leading subject matter experts on how to successfully drive contract analytics projects from inception to achieving the desired outcomes.
The discussion featured David Silbert, a practice lead, former attorney and expert in legal technology with a wealth of experience in procurement, and Dan Schneider, senior director of analytics and modelling, another former attorney and highly skilled in AI as it applies to contract extraction. People, process and technology are the trifecta that commonly make up projects, successful or otherwise, and it’s universally agreed that the most important element is people. You can have the most efficient processes and leading-edge technology solutions at your disposal, but without a committed human element it will be for naught. So, this session focused on people, or more specifically in project terms, the stakeholders and their criticality to project success.
David and Dan focused on five key ways to increase stakeholder buy-in that they have seen from their combined experiences over many projects in their careers. They netted these down to identifying the right stakeholders, the right objectives, the right resources, the right preparation and the right expansion. I italicize the word right as that’s the nub of it—ensuring the correct amount of constituent is present. But what does right mean in these contexts?
To find out, please listen to the on-demand SIG Summit recording. It was a lively and entertaining session and worth checking out if you’re embarking on a contract analytics project.
The bottom line is that like any project, contract analytics implementations can range from relatively straightforward to complex. Applying the right level of focus and resources remains the difference between success or not.
As for the event itself, having dipped in and out over the four days, I’d say I was suitably impressed. Nothing can replace a face-to-face offline conversation over a coffee, but SIG did its very best to replicate the feel of a community and networking in this virtual paradigm.
Learn more about how contract analytics can help procurement teams by downloading Contract Analytics: The Key to Unlocking Business Value for All Stakeholders.