Neil Deverill - Procurement Leaders Network
Neil is the current Chairman of the Procurement Leaders Network Advisory Board and former CPO of Royal Philips and Anglo American.
From 1968 to 1990 Neil worked at operational procurement from trainee buyer at GEC to Chief Purchasing Executive at Electrolux UK. In between Neil was a Purchasing manager at Rank Xerox and Cossor Electronics and F.E. Sourcing director for Inchcape based in Taiwan.
From 1990-2008 Neil was Corp Head Purchasing at Electrolux Sweden, Head of UK Govt Purchasing at CUP (HM Treasury), Corporate Head of worldwide Procurement for Philips Electronics based in Netherlands and finally Group Head of Procurement for Anglo American plc based in Johannesburg and then London.
Neil retired this year and is now Chairman of the Procurement Leaders Network, Advisory Board.
From this author:
Deverill's advocate: Continents apart
There is no doubting the huge business and sourcing opportunities Africa has to offer – if you can overcome the logistical challenges, that is
20:24, 18 Nov, 2011
Neil Deverill: Bribery law not so simple
So the UK Bribery Act has been in force for more than two months now - and quite right, too, I hear you cry
09:44, 07 Sep, 2011
Deverill's advocate: Don't write off China
The food versus fuel debate has been simmering for some time, but recent events have stoked tensions on both sides of the argument, writes Richard Edwards.
13:13, 01 Aug, 2011
Deverill's Advocate: The return of commodity angst
Overreacting to rising commodity prices could be a sign of inexperience - instead, a calm approach is required, writes Neil Deverill
10:33, 19 May, 2011
Talk of the Deverill: Uninvited guests
CPOs may not like it, but the truth is there's no real reason why procurement should have a seat at the top table - nor do they need one, writes Neil Deverill.
11:04, 30 Mar, 2011
Inside View: The need for a more flexible approach to procurement
The progress of developing markets means CPOs need to rethink how they deal with their suppliers, writes Neil Deverill, former CPO of Royal Philips
16:41, 15 Feb, 2011
Inside View: Breeding a competitive culture in procurement
Procurement needs strong leaders if it wants to compete with other functions for investment resources. But are CPOs up to the challenge, asks Neil Deverill
15:37, 23 Jan, 2011
Inside View: Selling procurement 2.0 internally
CPOs need to learn how to describe procurement 2.0 and get the basics right before they can hope to get the buy-in of less-informed business areas, writes Neil Deverill.
15:02, 19 Oct, 2010
Inside View: Aiming for Procurement 2.0
A new era of joined-up procurement, based on internal cooperation and strategic collaboration with key suppliers, is upon us as CPOs come to terms with the scale of the changes needed to improve performance and the personnel required to make it happen, writes Neil Deverill.
09:43, 18 Aug, 2010
Inside View: Is bribery wrong, or just part of doing business?
There are many who believe that using bribes to secure business is not only illegal, but is ethically wrong and to be avoided at all costs. Others argue it is an everyday fact of business life and simply another way of gaining competitive advantage and securing more business, writes Neil Deverill.
10:26, 29 Jun, 2010
Inside View: The search for young talent; training tomorrow’s procurement executives
Like most things in life, there are few, if any, original ideas in procurement. But, while you can’t teach old dogs new tricks, we can find
new ways of doing things. Indeed, the best way to shake things up is to invest in enthusiastic, motivated and business-savvy talent, writes Neil Deverill.
11:21, 10 Feb, 2010
Inside View: The psychology of procurement
With resistance to change the default setting for many businesses, implementing new processes – and making them stick – can be a long and frustrating task. It is only by breaking through that psychological barrier that you can hope to make any transformation permanent.
14:37, 18 Dec, 2009
Inside view: Should have used should-cost
In 1990, I didn't know there was a should-cost calculation for anything. In fact, I hadn't even heard the phrase. What I mean is that I wasn't consciously aware that the company I worked for was probably overpaying for everything.
17:32, 16 Apr, 2009
Inside view: The average CPO
Over the past few months, I have witnessed several examples of CPOs either in denial or very busy with displacement activities when asked to consider how good their operation is. Of course, they know better than I, but as I travel around I observe the same issues coming up over and over again; talent, internal cooperation, real supplier collaboration, how to oversee a greening of the supply chain and, of course, most recently, how to stay in business.
11:26, 12 Feb, 2009
Inside view: Don’t miss the train
There’s a new type of procurement professional – someone who not only has extensive experience of your business, but also knows your suppliers’ industry inside out and has all the right contacts to help get the best deals. But then you knew that already, didn’t you?
17:03, 16 Dec, 2008
Inside view: Let the cull begin
An economic recession provides a once-in-a-generation opportunity for procurement professionals to step up and demonstrate their worth to the wider business. But if they're not on top of their game, they could face a very uncomfortable time indeed.
09:30, 22 Oct, 2008
Inside view: A care in the world
With profit before sustainability still the prevailing business imperative, it will take a fundamental shift in consumer and shareholder attitudes to empower even the most socially responsible CPO to adopt sustainable procurement strategies.
12:39, 27 Aug, 2008
Inside view: Whose line is it anyway?
You look to the executive you report to to back you up and push your procurement business case submissions on the board. But the truth of the matter is that a CPO’s leadership and influencing skills are more important than the actual reporting line.
16:45, 16 Jun, 2008
Inside view: Morals – what morals?
It’s the strangest thing. No-one, it seems, has been subjected to bribery or corruption in their role as a procurement professional. But Neil Deverill doesn’t believe a word of it – and until CPOs come clean, we can’t have a proper debate.
16:33, 16 Apr, 2008
= Associate Members Only 
