We have known Boliden for several years and have followed their sourcing and procurement development with interest. EBG | Network are happy to welcome Björn Stenecker, CPO at Boliden who will share his insight on stage and during round table discussions on October 11th in Stockholm.
There are several aspects of sourcing and procurement that interest Björn – governance and compliance being two such aspects which we will cover in October. Björn is also a forward thinking CPO who find the new wave of automation, RPA and artificial intelligence extra interesting for sourcing and procurement.
A voice from the past
About three years ago, EBG interviewed Björn at the Boliden headquarters in Stockholm. Let’s find out how the perspectives may have changed since when we meet again in October! We can all agree a lot has happened within sourcing and procurement – and business development at large – since.
Expert in Category Management
Fun fact. When EBG asked around looking for the expert to invite to speak about category management – several – from each other independent persons – pointed towards Björn. There is hence both width and depth to his knowledge and so we understand many invite him on stage!
About Boliden
Boliden is a high-tech metal company with its own mines and smelters that work over the long term to guarantee society’s supply of base metals and precious metals through the mining of ore (minerals) and the production and delivery of high quality metals to industry.
Our high productivity is based on experience, innovation and advanced technology, developed in collaboration with Nordic technology and engineering companies. Today, around 5,700 people work at Boliden, which has operations in Sweden, Finland, Norway and Ireland.
Metals are needed in all sectors and without them, modern society would cease functioning.
The Boliden history
In December 1924, gold fever breaks out around 30 km north west of Skellefteå. The first ore deposit is discovered in Fågelmyran, laying the foundations for what today is the Boliden Group. Two years later, the first ore is mined and a flourishing community soon grows up in Boliden.
It’s a cold winter’s day in December, 1924. At the Fågelmyran mine outside Skellefteå, the persistent grinding of a drill can be heard. Silence falls as the final drill core is retrieved. “What on earth… Good heavens, it’s pure gold!” What came to be known as the Boliden ore body was discovered. The first ore is mined a few years later and the Boliden mine grows to become one of Europe’s biggest and richest gold mines.
However, gold fever had already broken out in 1900 in Skellefteå and surrounding regions. A shortage of metal during the closing years of the First World War led to an increasing interest in prospecting the area for ore. A new type of speculative holding company known as an issuing company was established by the banks. The Boliden we know today has its origins in one such company, Centralgruppens Emissionsbolag.
From a sourcing and procurement perspective – as well as at large – what is extra interesting about Boliden is the huge revenue and profit the company have. Especially given the – comparing to other companies – reasonable amount of employees the company have. In 2017 revenue was SEK m 49,531 and the operating profit SEK m 9,015. What role does procurement have given these circumstances? We look forward to finding out!
About Sourcing Outlook
You know these are times of change. Change in what constitute modern ways of doing business, ways of working with internal and external stakeholders and ways of managing business as a whole. Sourcing and procurement are moving away from old ways of contractual cost reductions and into ways of enabling company growth. The speed in which we see transparent information becoming the norm is interesting, especially since many companies still struggle with coming to terms with the here and now.
So how can you – on a personal and corporate level – make use of the changes taking place, what could it mean for your personal growth and the ways in which your company could improve? EBG do not offer all answers but we promise you in-depth and to-the-point experience exchange that just might give You the push and inspiration You need.
Round tables come at a first come first served basis, change may occur – but we strongly advice you to register now if You want to pick and choose. Learn more and register here!