OECM hosted its 2nd Procurement Summit from May 13 to 15 at the Sheraton Hotel in Downtown Toronto, bringing together over 125 senior procurement professionals from across Ontario’s Education Sector, Municipal and Health Care sectors. This year’s summit theme, “Building Procurement Excellence Together,” set the stage for a dynamic and insightful event that facilitated networking opportunities, knowledge-sharing, collaborative dialogue, and exploring prospects for future procurement initiatives amongst industry members.
Emceed by OECM’s Senior Manager of Customer Relations, Shelly Ann Henry, the Summit began with Daniel Fabiano’s session titled “New Rules/Old Rules Re-Visited: A Lawyer’s Perspective on Emerging Topics in Broader Public Sector Procurement.” Daniel is a Partner at the Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, and his presentation provided valuable legal insights and set a thought-provoking tone for the following sessions.
Leaders from Supply Ontario, including Chief of Strategy, Programs and Partnerships, Sunita Chander, and Chief Supply Chain Operations Officer Jackie Korecki, provided crucial updates and recent developments on Supply Ontario’s initiatives.
A key highlight of the Summit was the panel discussion on “Strategic Procurement within the Public Sector,” moderated by OECM’s Vice President of Supply Management and Business Development, and soon-to-be CEO, Jim Hadjiyianni. The panel featured Hugh Amiel, Senior Director of Procurement and Supply Chain at University Health Network, Dan Munshaw, Business Development Advisor at OECM, and Khusen Shukurov, Director of Supplier Relationship Management at OECM. This session delved into the intersection of strategic procurement frameworks, supplier relationship management, and Indigenous procurement, offering a comprehensive look at current challenges and opportunities in the field.
Sonia Gallo, Vice President of Communications and Customer Relations at OECM, provided an overview of the latest initiatives at OECM. Her presentation showcased the organization’s ongoing projects and strategic directions, reinforcing OECM’s commitment to driving procurement excellence.
One of the attendees, Audrey Mitchell, Senior Manager of Procurement Services at Loyalist College, thoroughly enjoyed her experience at the Summit, noting: “The topics and discussions at the OECM Procurement Summit have been very insightful and informative. The speakers have been very engaging, and the discussions have covered topics that are very timely and relevant to issues and challenges faced by public procurement professionals.”
The success of this year’s Procurement Summit underscores OECM’s dedication to fostering a collaborative environment for procurement professionals. As we advance our outreach strategy and amplify our reach to different sectors, we look forward to hosting more events that drive innovation and excellence in procurement.
