AB INBEV
“Our procurement function has been elevated within the business and it ’ s become even more apparent ”
JACQUES ELS PROCUREMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY DIRECTOR : BU SOUTHEAST AFRICA , AB INBEV
quickly what the pain points were for small companies looking to develop more responsibly .
“ As soon as the procurement team started taking over sustainability as part of our business initiatives within our supply chain – renewable energy , water usage , climate change , etc – suddenly everyone realised that what we ’ ve missed is that additional supply chain value that procurement has access to ,” says Els .
“ Globally procurement developed , but within the group it was us as a team really embedding our value in the business .”
Regulatory perspective : The regulation hurdle of localisation Returning the focus to operations , the hurdles overcome by the procurement team at AB InBev are what make it a crucial department for the team to embrace globally . Looking at the company ’ s African expansion , regulation is a key factor to contend with when trading across multiple countries .
As a commercial endeavour with economic benefits , Els prides his team ’ s efforts to accelerate legislation to improve trade across Africa , which consists of duties and taxes that hinder progress of executing its processes in this area of the supply chain .
“ You still find challenges between different African countries that do affect efforts to efficiently speed up and execute some of these localisation initiatives and inter-trading initiatives ,” says Els .
“ Also , when you look at the sustainability side , when it comes to recycling plastics and the way the governments interact with businesses , it sometimes feels very reactive . We do find ourselves sometimes having to react very quickly to bans on plastics ; legislation changes that come across overnight .”
Overcoming myriad challenges from the project inception to execution is where Els ’
150 September 2023