
Justin Lawrence
Group Procurement Manager, Silver Fern Farms
One always wonders how they pulled all their strengths together and develop a meaningful career in an area they truly love and are passionate about. I have been privileged enough in my previous experience of 20+ years to have been involved in consultancy, FMCG, pharmaceutical, primary industry and manufacturing, combining that with my extensive roles that have over the years exposed me to the vertical integration management and cross functionality immersion into supply chain, procurement, operations, commercial, and finance.
Just like the battle to fulfil a lifelong dream, I have been incredibly fortunate to have had the chance to seize opportunities and challenges within my career to truly progress to a point where I can honestly sit back and say I have significantly contributed towards steering and managing large global companies down the path of achieving truly sustainable supply chains that are future proofed and balanced, with the necessary flexibility and agility that is imperative in the ever-changing business environment that we all operate in.
My wish for procurement is to realise that no one can operate in isolation, and there is no place for selfish idealism. We are all part of a global world, and one which takes all of us to play our role in ensuring a sustainable future for our grandchildren. My greatest wish for those who take over is that they have a drive to truly partner and enhance cross functional relationships, take on continuous improvement, and realise that to take out cost in one aspect may simply push cost up/down the supply chain, which ultimately fails to deliver value to any business.