30 September 2010 | Isabel Palmer

From boosting professionalism to revamping capital procurement, Ian Bolger has transformed Thames Water’s supply chain function

CATEGORY: CIPS Procurement and supply chain management professional of the year

Ian Bolger’s strong leadership and success in transforming the supply chain function 
at Thames Water clinched 
him this award.

Just before Ian joined the business in 2007, Thames Water had been sold to a consortium led by Macquarie Bank. Ian’s brief was to transform the supply chain function and achieve step change in the level of cost savings and performance.

With his background in delivering start-ups and turnarounds, he quickly assessed the situation, making recommendations on structure, systems and processes, staff and savings opportunities. Ian’s business plan was approved and he set about rebuilding the function. One area that needed attention was recruitment. He brought in skilled professionals who changed the reputation of the department from “handle-turners” to a team of category managers, and demonstrated leadership by motivating his team and improving morale.

The function had an operational expenditure of around £414 million a year but under Ian’s management his team have made savings of £70 million by re-sourcing almost 99 per cent of the company’s spend.

Ian’s idea to implement SAP business management software resulted in a 25 per cent improvement in average on-time payments to 85 per cent, with minimal disruption to the department.

In the past 18 months Ian has put in place a new capital procurement strategy, achieving around 20 per cent savings and producing a step-change in the efficiency of Thames Water’s £4 billion capital programme. He has increased the business’s control over its supply chain and introduced collaborative procurement and supply chain planning processes to help deliver further savings and efficiencies.  

He also engages in the business at multiple levels to identify opportunities, and plays a valuable role in the operations management team, contributing opinions and ideas by drawing on experience from previous non-procurement roles.

Steve Shine, chief operating officer, said of Ian’s achievement: “The work was outstanding and required significant personal leadership and teamwork to align the market and internal stakeholders with the strategy.”

Procurement’s reputation is now intact and the function has become a well-respected part of the business.

Also on the short list

Philip Orumwense, 
Department for Work and Pensions; Martin Sykes, Value Wales – Welsh Assembly Government