Name: Amanda Quinn
Position: Procurement Projects Delivery Lead
How long have you been working at YPO? 11 years
What do you like most about working at YPO?
I love the ethos of YPO! Working for an organisation that gives back to the public is so rewarding and makes me truly value my role. YPO has brilliant core values and really cares about its customers and employees.
What are your main responsibilities in the education procurement team?
As procurement projects delivery lead, I’m responsible for supporting our education customers with their procurement pipelines and end to end procurement projects. Whether it be to put a cleaning service contract in place or to procure a large amount of IT hardware, I’m on hand to help and advise on all category areas. I’m ultimately responsible for taking the confusion out of complex procurement processes, ensuring that customers achieve a compliant, value for money outcome.
What’s the most rewarding part of your job?
I really enjoy helping and advising customers with all their procurement needs, making the procurement process simple for them. Some of our education customers have never carried out a procurement process before, so it’s very satisfying being able to support them through it all end to end. Being able to achieve savings and efficiencies along the way is a great bonus, especially when education customers often have limited budgets.
Describe your role in three words: Exciting, fulfilling, supportive
How did you get involved in procurement?
I started at YPO in 2009 in the contracts team where I learnt everything I could about procurement, supporting on many different procurements from canned tuna, to specialist vehicles and furniture. The breadth and depth of the procurements helped me gain invaluable knowledge and experience in many different areas. I then spent four years completing bids and tenders on behalf of YPO before moving on to work in the business change team on various projects across the organisation.
I came back into a procurement role two years ago. During this time, I’ve enjoyed secondments in procurement teams at other organisations, including two of YPO’s owning local authorities and Y2019 who delivered the 2019 UCI Road World Championships. Throughout this time, I’ve also worked on a procurement consultancy basis for a large multi academy trust, managing their procurement pipeline, advising on procurement options and undertaking procurement on their behalf.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I enjoy going to the gym in an attempt to keep fit, socialising with family and friends and going to new places, whether that be a new coffee shop down the road or a country I’ve never been to before.