VODAFONE PROCUREMENT COMPANY

NINIAN WILSON CEO , VODAFONE PROCUREMENT COMPANY AND GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAIN DIRECTOR OF SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

the pandemic for us has been a defining moment for teamwork , collaboration , and getting things done together . Although , during that time we had never been physically further apart from one another , we had never felt closer . I felt it pooled the entire company together .”

It also changed the way VPC works , with hybrid working now the norm – something Ninian Wilson feels is “ good for our people and good for our company ”.

The pandemic also saw Vodafone offer staff the ability to work abroad for periods of time “ which a number of our employees and colleagues have taken advantage of this year ” according to Ninian Wilson , who then states how it has “ changed the dynamic of working ”. He does admit that , as part of this changing dynamic , hybrid working asks different questions of his managerial style .

“ Managing people remotely is different to bumping into them at the coffee machine and having an informal chit chat ,” he says . “ I do miss that , but we ' re working hard to make sure we make hybrid working as productive for both the person and the company as possible . We ' ve just about got the balance right but we ' re still learning .”

The Vodafone Procurement Company ’ s team has done ‘ amazing work ’ around chips shortage As well as his team ’ s sterling efforts during lockdown , Ninian Wilson says that his team has done “ amazing work ” battling microchip shortages across Vodafone ’ s operations , in the face of demand for microprocessors massively outstripping supply .

And supply problems continue apace , with geopolitical turbulence and inflation compounding pandemic woes .

“ We ' ve now got the impact of the Ukraine War , and yet more uncertainty in supply chains ,” Ninian Wilson says . “ I would say the biggest challenge we face today is creating more agile supply chains , which can flex as they meet ongoing challenges .”

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