Our 2025 Judges

Andrew is an experienced chief procurement officer with a track record of transformation and delivery across several blue-chip global organisations. Currently CPO at Marks & Spencer working within a business facing tough economic headwinds, he has led the transformation within the procurement team. He is also working alongside the business and executive team to execute a sustainable reduction to the cost base. Andrew is building a procurement team capable of influencing the business and key stakeholders by implementing business partnering and aligning themselves with the business strategy. He has also re-aligned key business processes to make them more transparent and deliver increased control, while making decision-making more effective. A key part of this transformation is a renewed focus on sustainability working with GNFR suppliers to align them to M&S beliefs and standards. He has changed the procurement strategy to focus on three things: business partnering, transparency and management of risk in the supply chain, and more effective processes to work with key partners. Driving innovation in delivery and ways of working.  Andrew has also previously delivered transformation throughout my time at as a procurement leader at Vodafone, UBS and ITV.

Andrew joined NHS Supply Chain as CEO in September 2021 and has led the organisation as it continues to develop a modern and agile supply chain. Under his leadership, the organisation developed a new operating model, aligning it to the evolving needs of the NHS. This transformation brought previously outsourced providers in-house, enhancing the organisations critical capabilities and standardising and integrating its ways of working. Andrew’s commitment to workforce development has been a priority, earning the organisation recognition as one of the top employers in the country for investment in colleague training and development. His unwavering dedication to the NHS has underscored the vital role of procurement in saving lives and improving health outcomes. Through its people, processes and technology, NHS Supply Chain is implementing its strategy to buy smart, supply right and partner expertly, making it easier for the NHS to put patients first. The organisation is on track to create £1 billion of recurrent value to return to the NHS from 2030, making a profound impact on the healthcare system. Before joining NHS Supply Chain, Andrew served as the Executive Director for Procurement and Supply Chain at JCB, overseeing the global supply chain. He has also held senior roles at Magnox Ltd (a subsidiary to the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority) and Babcock International Group PLC, bringing extensive experience across the retail, leisure, engineering and property sectors. He also holds a master’s in business administration and a BSc in chemical physics from the University of Bristol.

Ben leads the procurement and supply chain function for Whitbread PLC, the FTSE 100 owner of Premier Inn. Ben’s career has spanned a variety of commercial, procurement and supply chain roles, principally in the food service sector in Europe and the Middle East.

As global procurement director at Dentsu, Claire oversees worldwide spend management and facilitates market optimisation through global agreements. Her role includes managing supplier risk, implementing sustainable procurement practices and ensuring the efficiency of procurement operations. With a focus on strategic procurement initiatives, she drives value creation across Dentsu’s global network. Her commitment lies in creating an environment where individuals feel valued, empowered and motivated to excel.

Einav is currently the director general, chief operating officer and chief commercial officer for the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) with a 30-year exceptional track record of leadership across a range of sectors, including banking, retail, infrastructure, housing and government. She is a member of Defra’s Executive Committee, accountable for all internal operations including for finance, technology, people, property and commercial functions.  Einav is also an experienced NED at Fera Science, a world-leading science institute. She leads a host of teams that have won awards, including the Civil Service Data Challenge the Procurement Leaders and CIPS Excellence in Procurement & Supply Awards.  Einav is a vocal supporter of campaigns to promote more equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace, and frequently highlights the importance of creating a workplace where everyone can bring their authentic selves to work.    Einav holds a first-class degree in behavioural sciences and a master’s with distinction from Oxford University. 

George is the head of procurement for Europe at Laing O’Rourke, an international construction and engineering firm. Having joined the company in a procurement role early in his career, George has subsequently played a key role in delivering a variety of iconic construction projects in the healthcare, commercial, rail and science, and research sectors. He was project leader on Crossrail, Thames Tideway and Imperial College programmes before becoming Laing O’Rourke’s head of health, safety and environment in 2020. The company appointed George as head of procurement in January 2024. He’s responsible for development and execution of the Europe hub’s procurement strategy, covering operations, projects and strategic initiatives.

James is a senior executive who’s transformed the operations and supply chains of large, asset-intensive organisations. He’s worked in a variety of business sectors with deep experience in transportation, manufacturing, defence and commercial aerospace, serving both private and public sector customers.

Joanne is an accomplished commercial director at the Department of Health and Social Care, where she works with a fabulous team to deliver the commercial outcomes for both patients and colleagues to enable them to deliver to the patient. She has extensive executive-level experience across both the private and public sectors, working with budgets up to £5bn and leading teams of more than 200. With a flexible leadership style and deep commercial expertise, she has successfully navigated complex procurement, supply chain, and commercial transformation initiatives across a diverse range of industries, including fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), automotive, retail, financial services and government. Starting in the fast-paced FMCG sector, she developed a keen understanding of supply chain efficiency, where every moment of delay impacted return on investment. Transitioning into the automotive industry, she refined IT and supply chain strategies, leveraging technology to drive operational excellence. Over the years, using this commercial acumen, she has been instrumental in delivering value for FTSE 100 companies, PE-backed businesses and family enterprises on a global scale. Bringing this wealth of private-sector experience into government, she played a pivotal role in the Cabinet Office’s Complex Transactions Team (CTT), supporting departments with high-value, high-risk commercial challenges. As part of the senior leadership team, she brought commercial acumen to critical programmes, including commercial EU Exit preparations, COVID-19 crisis response, large-scale IT and infrastructure procurement, and defence and security initiatives. Notable achievements include leading strategic negotiations, stabilising and growing commercial teams in key government departments, and driving contract efficiencies that have delivered significant savings. Beyond delivering for the Department of Health and Social Care, she is a trusted adviser to senior government stakeholders, shaping commercial policy, supporting high-risk programme reviews, and mentoring future leaders across the Government Commercial Function. Committed to continuous improvement, she also contributes to industry networks, professional development initiatives, and diversity and inclusion efforts, particularly around gender equality and workplace wellbeing.

John joined Just Eat in 2019 to design, build, lead and develop the procurement function. Shortly after its launch, John led the integration programme for procurement as the newly merged businesses of Just Eat and Takeaway.com in 2020. Prior to Just Eat, John was Merlin Entertainments’ group procurement director and previously spent five years procurement consulting, working in the US and UK across many industries such as music, video game publishing, retail, banking and food.  He developed his collaborative co-piloting approach through many spend categories early on in his career at companies such as Nestlé and Thales, where he held numerous national and international positions within procurement and supply chain in the UK and Switzerland.  

John is the current Chief Commercial Officer at HMRC, a position he’s held since 2023. Prior to this role, he served as the Chief Procurement Officer at NatWest, working on sourcing, contract and vendor management, third-party risk management, external outsourcing policy, supplier assurance and CSR goals. Before joining NatWest, John was with the Royal Bank of Scotland. In addition to being HMRC’s Chief Commercial Officer, John is also a magistrate (or Justice of the Peace) a couple of days a month.

Juliet is currently a global trustee at the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply and a non-executive director for Nuclear Waste Services. She’s also an executive coach. Her corporate career included working as chief procurement and supply chain officer and chief sustainability officer at various companies in the UK and USA.

An established procurement leader, Laura has a proven track record of designing and implementing strategy and transformation across the procurement spectrum at FTSE 100 companies. She’s focused on driving commercial cost efficiencies, process design, systems implementation and all things responsible procurement: net zero, supplier diversity and supply risk, governance and assurance.

Lauren is an inventive leader with a successful record of accelerating international complex business turnarounds, bringing productivity and cost discipline to the procurement and supply chain. She has a distinctive, award-winning breadth of experience of transformation across procurement and shared services. Lauren’s industry experience spans manufacturing (DS Smith); energy, oil and gas (BP); FMCG (Diageo), banking and finance, and IT & telco. She currently leads the procurement function at a global leader in sustainable packaging, DS Smith (now part of International Paper). Lauren’s remit spans 30 countries and, in partnership with the business, she is responsible for shaping and aligning the procurement strategy to support the achievement of business goals, including growth, circularity and manufacturing excellence.

Matt is responsible for the procurement and supplier management function across the Sainsbury’s Group, which encompasses supermarkets, Argos, Habitat, Tu Clothing, Nectar and Smart Charge. In this role, Matt leads the commercial strategy and external supplier relationships for around £4 billion of annual expenditure across the retail sector, as well as being responsible for all third-party imports and distribution. Matt’s earlier career started as a graduate in licensed retailing and restaurants at Carlsberg Marston’s, evolving into the infrastructure and heavy industrial sectors with commercial roles at Tarmac, Atkins and Network Rail, where he helped to deliver the West Coast Route Modernisation programme, Manchester Airport Runway 2 and the Royal Opera House in Oman, among other major projects. Prior to Sainsbury’s, Matt was at Carillion, where he joined to integrate Mowlem and McAlpine, post-acquisition, later moving on to lead their global in-direct procurement function and Procurement Transformation programme. He also spent time in the Middle East and North America, then latterly for the Ministry of Defence’s static assets and estate, where he held Board positions on several joint ventures alongside KBR and Amey. Other key outsourced clients during his time there included: HSBC, Virgin, the Royal Bank of Scotland, BT, BAA, Reuters and Siemens. Matt is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (FCIPS) and his team was recently declared ‘overall winner’ at the profession’s internationally recognised awards ceremony.

Ninian Wilson Global Supply Chain Management Director & CEO Vodafone Procurement Co Ninian Wilson joined Vodafone in 2009 as IT procurement director and became a board member of the Vodafone Procurement Company in November 2009. From 2014 to 2016, Ninian served as technology director of Supply Chain Management, overseeing all technology sourcing, including networks and IT. In March 2016, he was appointed director of supply chain management for Vodafone Group and CEO of the Vodafone Procurement Company, leading a centralised supply chain management function with a focus on digital transformation. Recently, Ninian was named Vodafone’s Executive Sponsor for LGBT+, supporting the company's purpose-led strategy. Before Vodafone, Ninian was operations director for the UK’s Royal Mail, managing one of the country’s largest private workforces and overseeing the company's customer promise and transformation programme.

Pamela is Senior Civil Service Commercial Specialist in the Government Commercial Function. Her career in spans public sector procurement and commercial management, with extensive experience in commercial transformation, strategic sourcing, improving commercial performance, contract management and commissioning services. She had the opportunity to work on a portfolio of complex public sector programmes, with her current role procuring the next generation of fighter jets for the Royal Air Force.

Paul is the procurement director at Heathrow Airport, responsible for operational, infrastructure and technology, and cyber procurement. Paul’s accountabilities centre around meeting the airport’s current and future business needs. His teams are focused on delivering value for money, data-driven insights and trusted advice to both internal and external stakeholders. Paul is passionate about empowering his teams to target continuous improvement and delivering results to advance the talent of the procurement team. A constant focus for Paul is working with our supply chain partners and local community to ensure Heathrow’s strategic sustainability goals and targets are achieved to maintain the airport’s licence to operate.

Currently director of sustainable procurement at Deutsche Bank, Paul holds a master’s in sustainability from Cranfield University, is a CIPS and IEMA Fellow, and a Chartered Environmentalist. Paul started his career in procurement before transitioning into sustainability in 2016. He established what became a multi-award winning sustainability programme at Princes Group (part of Mitsubishi Corporation) and has served as a Board Director of the Ethical Trading Initiative and the Food Network for Ethical Trade. He currently sits as a Board Adviser at the University of Liverpool’s Centre for Sustainable Business.

Sam is the Chief Executive of Crown Commercial Service (CCS), the UK’s largest public procurement organisation, where she’s tasked with executing CCS’s vision as the preferred framework provider for public sector organisations. Sam has extensive public and private sector experience, including her previous role as Chief Commercial Officer at the Home Office, where she oversaw £8 billion in annual expenditures, and formerly a Commercial Director at CCS. Sam has a strong background in managing complex procurements and leading significant transformations and also worked across various industries. Based in the north-west of England, she enjoys outdoor activities, cooking and travelling with her family.

Sarah is honoured to have been asked to be a member of the judging panel this year. She is director of strategy, assurance and standards for the Government Commercial Function, an organisation of more than 6,000 procurement and contract management professionals across the public sector who maximise value for money from over £168bn of contracted spend. Since 2022, she has been a member of the Audit Committee for the Non-Ministerial Departments of Jersey, which assures economic, effective and efficient operation of services. She has 25 years of commercial experience in both the public and private sectors, leading high-performing teams directly and in matrix management environments. The results have led to internal and external recognition, including an award for significant cross government corporate contribution and multiple Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply awards.

Sébastien is the executive vice-president and chief procurement officer at Merck KGaA, a leading global science and technology company headquartered in Darmstadt, Germany. Together with a team of passionate procurement professionals, he’s purposefully advancing procurement, for a better tomorrow and a thriving Merck. Throughout his career across tourism, fast-moving consumer goods, healthcare and life science, he has been focusing on transforming procurement to be a strategic business partner delivering sustainable value beyond savings, and leveraging innovative operating models and digitally enabled ways of working.

Simon is the Chief Procurement Officer at National Grid, a role in which he is responsible for ~£10bn of procurement spend across National Grid’s UK & US Business Units. Simon leads a team of 400+ procurement professionals who, in partnership with the business and the supply chain, source and deliver the projects that will transform the grid infrastructure and help underpin the net zero transition. Simon holds a BSc (Honours) First Class in Environmental Biology from the University of Liverpool, UK and he is also a member of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (MCIPS)

Simon Hannak has worked in procurement for over 20 years in various sectors and is currently at Costa Coffee (part of The Coca-Cola Company) as Global Head of Procurement. Simon is passionate about advancing and promoting the profession and sits on the Derbyshire & East Midlands CIPS committee as Vice Chair. Shortlisted numerous times, Simon was delighted to finally lead a winning entry in the 2024 CIPS Award for Best Transformation Project of the year.

Yasmine is a procurement leader specialising in strategic sourcing, supplier management and cost optimisation. as global head of indirect procurement at Charlotte Tilbury Beauty, she oversees procurement for marketing, store design and visual merchandising, technology and corporate services, driving efficiency and innovation. She has a proven track record in procurement transformation, supplier negotiations, and operational excellence within the beauty and luxury retail sectors.