Block out your calendars: BHP Billiton Breakfast Event

The CIPSA WA Region is pleased to announce that Betsy Harrington, Vice President Global Supply at BHP Billiton, has accepted an invitation to present to a CIPSA event in Perth.

Final details are still being determined, but we expect it will be held during the week of 31 July (tentatively Wednesday 2 August) at a downtown Perth venue. Following on from our recent event successes, and incorporating the valued feedback of our members and guests, we will be offering a competitively priced breakfast event, with a hot meal option and plenty of parking!

Betsy is an extremely engaging speaker and the opportunity to hear, first-hand, latest developments and perspectives from this iconic, global organisation is not to be missed. Stay tuned for your direct invitations in the very near future.

Member Profile - Said Al-Salmi

The procurement profession is fortunate to have skilled professionals from all over the world, from countries with immense diversity from Australia. CIPS Australia is always interested in promoting these people and encouraging them to contribute their skills and flourish within the profession. Therefore the WA region would like to acknowledge Said Al-Salmi…Said Al-Salmi is an Omani national, currently living in Perth and working on secondment to Woodside Energy Ltd. Said is being sponsored by his overseas employer, Shell Oil Company in Oman, to undertake post-graduate studies at Curtin University of Technology, and is studying the CIPSA accredited course, Master of Strategic Procurement. Said is fluent in English, Arabic and Swahili.

After working with Shell Oil Company for 9 years in various supply chain areas, Said has developed strong supply chain skills as a buyer, price agreement and contract analyst and contract engineer. Said is currently working as a procurement specialist within Woodside, where he has supported operations/production, drilling and corporate services.

Said believes in self-development and that the right procurement strategy with the right application will lead to win-win outcomes that will not jeopardise either quality or integrity of the projects, and will also establish strong supplier relationships and minimise the uncertainties.

On living in Australia, Said stated, “I am a long way from home and family, but have managed to fill the social gap by getting to know people and establish strong friendship bonds with many Australians, especially at work where they are regarded as my second family. They have given me a lot of support and embraced me with one heart. I have not felt the so called ‘culture shock’ while in Australia, and have found the strong Australian family values and bond quite different from other western countries.”

Said is currently preparing for his business dissertation and looking forward to completing his studies by the end of 2006

Committee Member Profile - Roger Reading

Roger is the Director of Strategic Procurement at Curtin University of Technology in Perth. He began his career in the British and Australian Air Forces where he traveled widely and completed a range of Procurement and Logistics appointments in a number of countries including the Europe, Middle East and Asia. He came to Australia on a military appointment in 1986 and stayed in Australia, working in a number of senior procurement and consulting roles with companies such as Rio Tinto, the Argyle Diamond Mine and Westfarmers Energy. Roger has a Masters degree from the University of New South Wales.

Roger is married with 2 adult children. He lists his interests as Rugby Union, Rowing, Golf and Oil Painting.

Curtin University in WA is home to one of only two schools in Australia that teaches strategic procurement at a higher education level. Roger believes that close links between CIPSA and Curtin University serve to enhance the opportunities for both in the future.

Eliminating waste in business processes - APICS Seminar

6 Sigma Black Belt is a SIPOC6 Business Improvement System. Steve Ibbotson is the director of SIPOC6 Business Improvement Systems and he believes that applying the 6 Sigma approach to the elimination of all waste in business processes is “common sense, but not common practice” in many companies. Steve will present three case studies at an upcoming APICS event to demonstrate how easily 6 Sigma can be applied to business processes and to understand the methodology that makes 6Sigma work. The seminar will be held on 6 July 2006 at the State Tennis Centre in Burswood, from 5.30pm to 6.30pm, with a networking session from 6.30pm to 7.30pm.

To register, please visit the APICS website (WA chapter) and download an application form: www.apics.org.au. Tickets for APICS members are $20, $40 for non-members.

Cash for comment! The CIPSA National Essay Competition 2006

We’re always looking to build upon the global body of knowledge on procurement, and we want our

members to get involved and share their insights with us via the CIPSA National Essay Competition. All CIPSA members are invited to enter their essay (of up to 3,000 words) for an opportunity to win up to $2000 and an all expenses paid trip to the CIPSA annual conference. The winning essays will be published in a variety of industry publications, so you can raise your professional profile as well. Essay topics for each region as well as terms and conditions can be downloaded here.

Entries close 31 August 2006.

Please contact the CIPSA office on 1300 765 142, with any queries.

Getting it right at the Queensland Logistics & Supply Chain Conference

The largest logistics and supply chain conference in Queensland is approaching. The Queensland Logistics & Supply Chain Conference is being held on 13 and 14 July at the Sofitel in Brisbane.

A joint initiative between LAA, CIPSA and APICS, this year’s conference focuses on “Availability” - The right product, in the right place, for the right price, at the right time. Guest speakers include Chris Munro (CEO Linfox Logistics) and Dr Pieter Nagel (Victoria University)

The conference hopes to improve on last year’s impressive attendance of 300 delegates. Delegates span the procurement and supply chain professions, allowing you to gain a broader industry prospective. Participants include CEOs, general and line managers, as well as staff from contracts, distribution, transport, warehousing and (of course) procurement professionals.

To download a registration form, please visit the conference website, at: www.qldscc.com

Renew Now

CIPSA membership is the best procurement decision you can make in 2006. For both career progression and to achieve better business results for your organisation, fill out your membership renewal form ASAP.

If you have any queries or have not yet received your renewal form, please contact the CIPSA office on 1300 765 142.

Council Election result

CIPSA is pleased to announce that David Freeman has been elected to the RoW seat on the international CIPS Council-the growing body of CIPS worldwide. David is the Strategic Sourcing Manager at Telstra Clear Ltd in New Zealand. A full profile on David and the CIPS council will feature in the next issue of PP magazine.

Performance Measurement Review

The Performance Measurement one day conference was held at Crown Hotel in Melbourne on the 29th June. Over 65 delegates from all over Australia attended to hear a different approach to the 2nd biggest issue facing our profession, performance measurement. There was 3 case studies presented from BHP Billiton, Coles Myer and Fosters. The feedback from delegates was above average, with delegates responding 80% excellent and highly relevant. Portland group was the gold sponsor for the event, with canapés and evening drinks sponsored by HRG Australia.

Innovation on show at the CIPSA Annual Conference

The term “innovation” is thrown around quite a bit these days, but we think it’s truly time for the procurement profession to join in and embrace some fresh thinking. That’s why our 2006 annual CIPSA conference will focus on “Innovation in Procurement”- showcasing a wide variety of new thinking, new ideas, new practices and useful innovations for all practitioners to consider.

Held on 17 and 18 October in Melbourne, and based on a similar format to last years successful event, the conference will include a mixture of plenary and streamed sessions, while also providing the delegates with great networking opportunities. The event will also include an invitation-only CPO stream on day one of the conference.

A world class line-up of top speakers is being finalised now. The full programme will be available soon. Visit our website to learn more, at: www.cipsaconferences.com.au

Planning to travel to the UK in 2007?

Members planning a northern hemisphere visit should keep in mind the CIPS UK workshops, seminars, conferences and professional development programme (see the CIPS website: www.cips.org). The annual dinner in London is one of the “must attend” functions on the CIPS calendar, attracting up to 1300 participants. Next year’s event will be held on 14 March 2007 at the Dorchester Hotel in central London.

Any Australian members considering attending are invited to form an Australian contingent, as group discounts on travel may be possible. Anyone interested should contact Laurie Le Fevre at: ldlefevre@optusnet.com.au

Previous issues

Issue #1 - December 2005

Issue #2 - February 2006

Issue #3 - March 2006

Issue #4 - April 2006

Issue #5 - May 2006

Issue #6 - June 2006

CIPS Australia Level 10, 520 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia
Tel: 1300 765 142, Fax: 1300 765 143, Email: info@cipsa.com.au, www.cipsa.com.au

To unsubscribe from this list please click here