"I have been doing procurement for some time, but with the emergence of procurement AI technologies, I have a renewed energy for the industry. It’s the most exciting time to be in procurement because I see that AI technology is changing everything. Scoutbee is at the forefront of this revolution. Scoutbee is tackling a critical area that we, in procurement, are never good enough at: Finding and engagement with the best, most strategic suppliers and creating value beyond just price / cost. I think Scoutbee will revolutionize this space and I am excited to be a part of it."
Michael DeWitt Vice President of Indirect Spend Management and Center of Excellence • Walmart International
In January 2024, Scoutbee announced the appointment of Michael DeWitt, Vice President of Indirect Spend Management and Center of Excellence at Walmart International, to its Strategic Advisory Board.
DeWitt has nearly 25 years of experience in the procurement space and is a proven digital transformation leader and pioneer in adopting AI technology to optimize his team’s workflow and value delivered. He has led four ground-up procurement transformations and created world-class strategic sourcing groups.
Michael leads indirect spend management and digital transformation for Walmart International across 18 countries. Before joining Walmart, DeWitt held senior procurement roles at HP, Bayer, and Highmark Health. He has also served on the board of the Eastern Minority Supplier Development Council where he supported minority-owned business and supplier diversity initiatives.
Our comms team recently sat down with him to talk about his passion for AI-powered procurement innovation, supplier management, the impact he’s hoping to make at Scoutbee, and much more.
1. Scoutbee: Michael, thank you for taking the time to talk to us. We really appreciate it. First things first: what is your typical day like?
Michael: A typical day is an atypical day, which is the way I like it. It does start somewhat typical: I’m up at 5:15 AM to go to the gym, then home, work (where the atypical day starts) and home again (where the atypical day continues) with a wife, four kids, and three dogs.
2. Scoutbee: Wow. Well, it goes without saying that your job seems very fulfilling, yet complex and demanding. With all of this on your plate, what made you decide to become a member of Scoutbee’s Strategic Advisory Board?
Michael: I have been doing procurement for some time, but with the emergence of procurement AI technologies, I have a renewed energy for the industry. It’s the most exciting time to be in procurement because I see that AI technology is changing everything.
Scoutbee is at the forefront of this revolution. Scoutbee is tackling a critical area that we, in procurement, are never good enough at: Finding and engagement with the best, most strategic suppliers and creating value beyond just price / cost. I think Scoutbee will revolutionize this space and I am excited to be a part of it.
3. Scoutbee: That sounds awesome. In a nutshell, what impact are you hoping to make at Scoutbee?
Michael: I am passionate about this space and I have been in procurement for a while now - at many different companies, in many different industries. I have seen supplier management done well - and not so well. I hope to bring this knowledge to Scoutbee to help revolutionize this space. I also hope to learn a few things myself and, hopefully, have a little fun along the way.
4. Scoutbee: Supplier management is clearly a topic close to your heart. How can more organizations embrace collaborative supplier relationships and what are some of the benefits - and challenges - to achieving this?
Michael: It has to be an important part of the strategy. Collaborative supplier relationships build incremental value beyond price / cost. You cannot just keep going back to your same suppliers and asking them to reduce costs. It’s about thinking differently about how to build value through process efficiency, innovation and technology.
Procurement professionals need to see the value and understand that it can help them achieve their goals. The main challenge is not having enough time to focus on it. If you can get them to see the value and make it easy for them to integrate into their daily activities by using Scoutbee, it can be achieved.
5. Scoutbee: The Hackett Group recently published its highly insightful procurement priorities for 2024. According to the CPOs questioned, spend cost reduction, supply continuity and price concerns feature as top priorities. Do you share this sentiment or will you be laser-focused on something else?
Michael: These are always the most important priorities. If you don’t do those things well, then, you should not be thinking about more strategic priorities. However, if those are the only things you do, you will be stuck in the same tactical cycle every year, keeping up with the status quo that everyone else is doing. You have to find ways to get beyond these priorities to create value beyond cost, like building strategic supplier partnerships, that can truly create a competitive advantage.
6. Scoutbee: Last but not least: How do you regularly keep up with industry trends? Do you read trade and / or tier-1 publications (which ones?), listen to podcasts, attend training sessions and industry events, engage with industry analysts? Other?
Michael: Yes, all the above. Here at Walmart International, we use industry intelligence like Beroe, Procurement Leaders, The Hackett Group, etc, to stay on top of where the industry is going.
I read Harvard Business Review, MIT Sloan and other procurement-focused publications. I do a lot of peer-to-peer connection, participate in procurement innovation roundtables, attend conferences like ISM, Procurement Leaders, DPW, engage with analysts and other really smart people!
7. Scoutbee: Wow. That’s quite a lot. Thanks for sharing those. Now, let’s move on to a more personal set of questions if you don’t mind. What ability do you wish you had?
Michael: Teleportation or cloning myself.
8. Scoutbee: If you were stuck on an island, what three things would you bring?
Michael: 1. Ability to create fire; Ability to filter water; 3. A beer kegerator with unlimited flow.
9. Scoutbee: What’s your favorite thing(s) to do when you’re not working?
Michael: Skiing, golfing, hiking, biking… being outdoors mainly.
