Kuldeep Patni

 Kuldeep Patni, MBA, PMP Toronto, ON | - |-| linkedin.com/in/kuldeeppatni CAREER SUMMARY Kuldeep Patni is a leader in Source-to-Pay process and technology with more than 17 years of experience with different multinational organizations in various capabilities such as technology strategy, continuous improvement, source-to-contract, procure-to-pay, category management, project management, supplier management, risk and transformation projects including ERP and AI integrations. Kuldeep has an excellent track record in managing internal and external stakeholders including senior leadership, as well as providing significant cost savings by improving existing processes, contract negotiations and benchmarking. Having PMP certification (led Waterfall, Agile and Hybrid projects) and having extensive experience in business operations, Kuldeep can analyze variety of business problems, provide recommendations, and leverage his experience and expertise to effectively implement solutions to suit organizations’ needs. SKILLS HIGHLIGHTS Project Management (PMP Certified) Process Improvement Strategic Partnerships Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) Source to Pay Transformation Category Management Strategic Sourcing & Contracting Leadership and Team Building Change Management Automation (RPA) Tools - Confluence, Tableau, JIRA, SharePoint, Visio, MS Projects, and ERP implementation (SAP, Oracle, PeopleSoft) Procurement Tools – Coupa, SAP Ariba, iValua, GEP, Jagger, ServiceNow, SAP Fieldglass, Ariba CMS and other SAAS tools with Gen AI and Cloud capabilities PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE \ Independent Management Consultant| Toronto, ON July 2023 – Present Client based in Canada – Nutrien, Global Agriculture Industry (SAP Ariba & multiple ERPs) Report to the Director – Procurement Process, Governance and Technology (Center of Excellence Team), responsible for strategic planning, managing key supplier relationships, lead the project team for re-engineering current processes, identify and streamline gaps within Source to Pay function (SAP Ariba, Fieldglass, Multiple ERPs) Accountable for multiple work streams/projects including Source to Pay process and technology to drive innovation, develop key strategies, and provide forward-looking procurement thought leadership; manage relationships with key suppliers, for e.g. SAP, System Integration (SI) partners and others. Leading initiatives within AI space and conducting demos with suppliers within AI space to identify opportunities and initiate projects to help optimize costs in several business units. Leading team of 10 in addition to SMEs groups for Source-to-Contract (STC) processes, develop strategy to increase adoption for SAP Ariba, support enhancement activities for Ariba STC, develop strategy for supplier enablement team, create reporting capabilities and KPIs to increase spend management through Ariba. Conducted series of workshops to understand the current processes, identify gaps and pain points, define new processes, prioritize, and create implementation roadmap and define training strategy. Facilitate definition of project scope, goals, and deliverables in support of assigned projects in collaboration with Project Sponsors and Steering Committee members. Effectively communicate project expectations to team members and stakeholders in a timely and clear fashion Estimate resources and submit budget proposals, adhering to strict financial and resource management practices during the life of the project. Monitor and maintain project budgets, providing monthly forecast updates and variance explanations to the PMO. Develop full-scale project plans and resource schedules, and track project timelines/milestones, using appropriate planning tools. Conduct regular, recurring meetings with project sub-teams to identify status of efforts, convening all such sub-teams on a regular cadence to ensure entire team awareness of intra-project dependencies and overall project status. Develop and deliver status reports and Steering Committee presentations to both Functional management and the PMO on a timely basis. Proactively manage changes in project scope, identify and document risks and potential issues, and devise contingency plans. Build, develop, and grow any business relationships vital to the success of the project to ensure successful adoption of the business solution. Continually assess project team efforts as iterative milestones are achieved, modifying approach and procedures based on documented project successes and opportunities. Conduct post project reviews and create recommendations in the final Project Close report leveraging successful and unsuccessful project lessons learned. Scotiabank| Toronto, ON Mar 2022 – June 2023 Senior Manager – Global Procurement Process & Technology (Coupa, Icertis, SAP Ariba & multiple ERPs) Report to the Vice President – Process and Technology, responsible for spend management, strategic planning, designing new processes, re-engineering current processes, identifying and streamlining gaps within Source to Payment functions and lead decommissioning of legacy procurement and finance tools including ERP Accountable for multiple work streams/projects to drive innovation, develop key strategies, and provide forward-looking procurement thought leadership; lead a team for P2P processes, develop strategy to increase adoption for Coupa, support enhancement activities for Coupa, develop strategy for supplier enablement team, create reporting capabilities and KPIs to increase spend management through Coupa procurement platform. Lead Guided Buying initiative and develop strategy to help business users on their purchasing requests; this initiative will help reduce procurement lead time by up to 30% and provide efficient purchasing paths for procurement requests. Lead strategic initiatives to reduce current technology landscape and provide simplified recommendations to senior leadership; part of cost reduction activities to provide simplified technology landscape. Pursue effective and efficient operations, while ensuring the adequacy, adherence to and effectiveness of day-to-day business controls to meet obligations with respect to operational risk, regulatory compliance risk, AML/ATF risk and conduct risk, including but not limited to responsibilities under the Operational Risk Management Framework, Regulatory Compliance Risk Management Framework, AML/ATF Global Handbook and Guidelines for Business Conduct Create processes and technology support for new invoice submission third party supplier; supporting activities to define most effective process for invoice submission and payment that will help reduce lead time for payments to suppliers; lead integration of new supplier to Coupa invoice module for payment activities. Champion a high-performance environment and implement a people strategy that attracts, retains, develops, and motivates team members by fostering an inclusive work environment, communicating vison/values/business strategy, and managing succession and development planning for the team. Peter Kiewit Sons ULC | Toronto, ON Nov 2019 – Feb 2022 Procurement Manager (SAP Ariba, GEP) Report to the Project Director, responsible for procurement of all materials and services for $2.5 Billion and $175 Million infrastructure project, led process improvement initiatives and led change management of new procurement tool GEP. Created Project Specific Procurement plans, RFP & bid evaluation templates, contract templates, project reporting, etc. to oversee procurement team performance as per company guidelines; generated more than 15% in cost savings from original estimates and led process improvement initiatives to reduce approval lead times. Led implementation and change management activities for new P2P tool GEP; defined processes, modules, and timelines for the project activities; achieved successful implementation of the project with effective management and supported post implementation activities to help with trouble shooting and escalations. Helped define KPIs for Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) modules and improved vendor onboarding process. Trusted advisor for the project team and Eastern Canada Kiewit team for select categories in infrastructure, technology products, catalogue purchasing, non-catalogue requisitions and POs. Conducted trainings for new hires and project members for overall procurement processes, including training in tools and systems, including SAP, GEP, Tableau, PowerBI, etc. Achieved more than 20% in process efficiency by utilizing new technologies and tools for faster approvals on key project deliverables and on time execution of critical path tasks. Rogers Communications Inc. | Toronto, ON July 2018 – Oct 2019 Project Manager, Procurement Strategy and Transformation (SAP Ariba, iValua) Reported to Director of Procurement Strategy, acted as a trusted advisor for cross-functional teams, led process improvement initiatives, spend management for key categories and played a key role in the formation of PMO office. Analyzed Canadian market for 5G products for customer and enterprise using industry research (competition, customer, industry trends, market size/growth, etc.) to arrive at market entry strategy; coordinated with a cross-functional team to define product launch strategy and business case approvals. Evaluated existing procurement application SAP Ariba and conducted primary and secondary research to identify a more cost-effective Source to Contract SaaS tool; managed a team of 10 resources including system integrators for planning and strategic implementation of new procurement tool Ivalua to meet organizations’ objectives. Developed and presented monthly financial reports to senior management for $10 Million portfolio of IT projects: optimized monthly forecast vs actuals tracking at resource level leading to >95% accuracy and increased utilization. Created business cases and collaborated with in-house IT Team for successful implementation of key projects: New and existing Supplier onboarding - Streamlined existing vendor database, gathered requirements from stakeholders and designed new web tool to help reduce lead time for vendor registration process. Contractor email differentiation - Led third party risk program, analyzed industry best practices, helped in solutioning and organizational change management procedures to reduce operational risk by differentiating third party contractors from full time employees; saved 30% of project costs through planning and effective implementation. Concordia University | Montréal, QC Feb 2017 – Jan 2018 Operations Manager Reported to the Board of Directors for MBA International Case Competition, responsible for strategy, procurement, and project budget of $350,000 to ensure seamless experience for event participants. Conducted requirements gathering session and coordinated with IT partner for design, development and testing of website and mobile app, for both iOS and Android platforms. Built a high performing team of MBA students and volunteers to successfully lead event execution; achieved savings of 10% of project costs by sourcing equipment from new vendors and negotiating critical contract with partners. Bombardier Aerospace | Montréal, QC Sept 2016 – Dec 2016 Management Consultant, MBA Consulting Project Led a team of 3 Consultants to examine extent of engagement between senior leadership and middle management during on-going transformation. Acted as trusted advisor and recommended strategies for successful transformation. Led strategic due diligence consisting of industry research, company analysis (organization structure) and interviews to understand the impact of empowerment, communication, accountability, and transformation feasibility. Analyzed survey results to identify accountability and communication as highest lagging areas during transformation; provided recommendations to drive successful implementation and provide effective reporting to leadership. Larsen & Toubro | India July 2009 – July 2015 Senior Engineer, Proposals and Project Management (SAP) Reported to the Project Director, responsible for managing end to end delivery of Water Treatment Plant worth $10 Million by collaborating with engineering partners, client consultants and external suppliers. Collaborated with internal and external stakeholders and led a team of 3 Engineers to accomplish activities including project planning, documenting vendor SOWs, contract negotiations, risk analysis, construction, and commissioning. Achieved 14% reduction of project costs by leading Procurement Team to strategically source equipment from new vendors; achieved savings of 12% of transportation costs by optimizing project logistics through route optimization. Led a team of 5 engineers for bid submissions and prepared winning bids for two projects worth $1 Billion each. EDUCATION Master of Business Administration, Strategy & Operations Aug 2016 – June 2018 John Molson School of Business | Concordia University, Montreal, QC Awarded Scholarship - Bessie Schulich M.B.A. Fellowship for Entrepreneurship, Total Value $5000 Awarded 1st position - Diversity & Inclusion Case Competition, Ryerson University Bachelor of Engineering, Mechanical Aug 2005 – June 2009 Sardar Patel University | India