Strategic Procurement Transformation!
Procurement plays a fundamental role in shaping organizations’ operational and strategic efficiency. It extends beyond cost savings, increasingly contributing to innovation, sustainability, and value creation. As businesses adapt to new challenges and opportunities, procurement becomes a strategic enabler, nurturing collaboration with suppliers, aligning with corporate objectives, and integrating advanced technologies like AI and analytics. Its transformation is marked by a focus on creating resilient supply chains, ethical sourcing practices, and partnerships that drive innovation while ensuring operational excellence. By positioning itself as a critical function that bridges internal and external stakeholders, procurement redefines its contribution to long-term organizational success.
Vivian Wu, Vice President of Global Indirect Procurement, characterizes a forward-thinking leadership approach that inspires transformation within her field. Recognized for her strategic vision and inclusive approach, she simplifies intricacies, cultivates trust, and drives collaborative outcomes. Her ability to develop diverse teams and embrace innovative strategies has established her as a leader who delivers results and empowers her organization to steer challenges with confidence and agility. Vivian’s leadership reflects a commitment to building impactful solutions while nurturing growth and inclusivity within her teams.
At The Estée Lauder Companies Inc., procurement is more than a function—it is a strategic force that aligns with the company’s long-term objectives of sustainability, innovation, and growth. As a leader in the global beauty industry, the company is committed to using advanced technology and making collaborative partnerships to enhance efficiency and create meaningful connections with consumers. Through initiatives like the AI Innovation Lab, The Estée Lauder Companies continues demonstrating its dedication to innovation and excellence, with indirect procurement playing an integral role in advancing these objectives.
Let’s explore Vivian’s inclusive leadership strategies in procurement:
From MBA to Supply Chain Optimization
After completing her MBA, Vivian unexpectedly entered the sourcing and procurement field with her first job at a Miami-based private-label cosmetics company. The owner, an experienced entrepreneur, was looking for a Chinese speaker to help optimize the supply chain and facilitate low-cost sourcing from China.
Despite lacking formal experience in the field, she was fortunate to land the role. Over time, she discovered a natural aptitude for connecting with people, simplifying intricate challenges, and driving toward mutually beneficial solutions. Managing the entire process for a small company proved to be an excellent way to begin her career.
Driving Profit Recovery and Growth
Leading organizational change is both fulfilling and challenging. This is the third significant transformational role in Vivian’s career that involves driving enterprise-wide change management.
Currently, an internal initiative is being executed that focuses on managing the entire indirect spend. This initiative is co-led by Procurement and Finance, with sponsorship from the CEO, CFO, and CSO. The goal is to enhance demand management, governance, and the end-to-end sourcing process for indirect spending, ultimately generating “fuel” for top-line growth. Vivian and her team are excited to be the driving force behind this program, which directly supports The Estée Lauder Companies’ focus on profit recovery and growth.
At the same time, it highlights the progressing role of procurement in shaping and supporting the company’s long-term objectives. Since indirect spending impacts nearly every employee across the company, the change management effort is substantial and challenging. It requires strategic thinking, effective stakeholder management, exceptional communication skills, and flawless execution.
The Strategic Advantage of Diversity
In Vivian’s view, a successful team functions much like a soccer or basketball team, where each player brings unique skills to help the team win. Interestingly, the most successful teams do not always have the most individual talents or resources.
To build a winning team, diversity in talent and an environment that promotes trust, accountability, and a commitment to working together are essential. These qualities ultimately lead to high-performing results. For her team, the slogan is “One team with One Goal,” and the guiding principles are “connect, communicate, and collaborate” to ensure effective teamwork.
Vivian often jokes that she needs a team like Ocean’s Eleven. To her, diversity is more than just a buzzword—it’s a strategic advantage that brings strength, creativity, and innovation. Her team represents over 30 nationalities with varied cultural, educational, and career backgrounds. This collective richness enables them to build well-rounded sourcing strategies and solve challenges with creative, simple solutions.
Conflict is inevitable in any relationship. However, when there is trust within a team—that teammates have each other’s best interests at heart, even if it doesn’t always seem that way—it encourages a more profound commitment to the group.
Finally, one key to driving high performance is creating a safe space where mistakes can be learned from. To encourage this learning, a “Lunch and Learn” series is being launched to discuss missteps in some projects and how improvements can be made. Vivian is confident this will be both refreshing and eye-opening for the team.
Cultivating a Learning Culture in Teams
Vivian begins with a quote from one of her favorite shows, Ted Lasso: “Be curious, not judgmental.” In her view, this is golden advice for maintaining a forward-thinking approach. With all the emerging trends, it’s essential not to be fearful or judgmental simply because “we’ve always done it this way.” Curiosity encourages the right mindset to learn and explore new possibilities.
Secondly, it’s about learning—constantly. A Chinese saying goes, “With three men walking together, there’s always a teacher among them.” Everyone can learn from each other—within the team, from stakeholders, industry peers, and even vendors. It’s essential to learn not just from successes but also from challenges.
As leaders, cultivating curiosity as a core attitude and learning as a team habit is essential. At The Estée Lauder Companies Inc., various learning modules support employees’ cross-functional development and enhance their business acumen. In the procurement function, specific sourcing trainings are hosted, and team members are encouraged to attend industry events that promote growth and keep them engaged with emerging trends.
Indirect procurement uniquely connects with external vendors who often bring industry-specific expertise. Learning from vendors and collaborating with cutting-edge suppliers who share the vision for the future builds win-win partnerships that drive innovation.
For example, earlier this year, a partnership with Microsoft was announced to create an AI Innovation Lab as part of a broader global strategic relationship. This collaboration will develop solutions that empower The Estée Lauder Companies’ 20+ prestige beauty brands to create closer consumer connections and accelerate speed to market with local relevance.
By utilizing cutting-edge generative AI capabilities through Microsoft’s Azure OpenAI Service, innovation is achieved, and business is transformed. Indirect procurement was an enabler in this strategic partnership, with strong support from the CIO, CPO, and Chief Data Officer.
Balancing Strategic Focus and Operational Execution
Morning is Vivian’s time—it’s the most essential part of her day. A quick workout sets the tone, clearing her mind and energizing her for what’s ahead. She usually listens to an audiobook while running, and often, her mind races ahead of her running speed. Interestingly, this is when she comes up with creative, out-of-the-box ideas or solutions. Afterward, she gets her two boys off to school before diving into work.
A typical workday combines strategic focus, operational execution, and problem-solving, a series of events involving connection, communication, and collaboration. As co-leader of key initiatives like “Fueling the Journey,” which impacts every corner of the company, she meets with the core program team almost daily to remove roadblocks and ensure progress continues smoothly. She also stays closely connected with her leadership team, addressing both project- and people-related matters. She typically dedicates time to meeting with vendors and stakeholders in the afternoons.
She spends at least 30 minutes reflecting on what transpired, considering what she could improve, or adjusting priorities for the coming days and weeks. It’s a bit old school, but she also maintains a daily journal.
Building Trust and Collaboration in Teams
In her experience, the qualities that make a successful leader in procurement and sourcing extend beyond traditional traits like being visionary, strategic, innovative, inspirational, and motivational. While these adjectives are essential, one quality that is often overlooked but is incredibly crucial is humility. Humility reflects authenticity and humanity, and it has the unique ability to bring people together meaningfully.
A leader who demonstrates humility creates an environment of trust and collaboration where people feel valued and motivated to contribute. One leader who stands out for Vivian in this regard is Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft. When he took the helm in 2014, Nadella highlighted empathy, inclusivity, and a growth mindset within the company. He openly acknowledged that he didn’t have all the answers but was committed to learning and creating an environment where everyone could succeed. His humility helped shift Microsoft’s culture to one that was more collaborative, compassionate, and focused on growth.
As for a good sourcing leader, beyond the qualities mentioned earlier, it’s essential to move beyond simply securing the best deals. A sourcing leader must focus on creating a resilient, ethical, and high-performing procurement function that aligns with the organization’s long-term objectives and values.
This requires a leader who can build strong relationships with suppliers and stakeholders, connect the dots across various departments, and make data-driven decisions that guide the sourcing strategy. Additionally, emerging technologies such as Generative AI are poised to revolutionize the sourcing process in today’s rapidly changing environment. Successful sourcing leaders must be open to embracing these technologies, helping their teams adapt to new tools and methods, and positioning the function to thrive in an ever-changing environment.
Effective Engagement with Stakeholders
Vivian’s team often seeks her advice on engaging with “difficult stakeholders.” Her first question to them is always, “What do you think is driving this person to be difficult?”
To engage stakeholders effectively, it’s crucial to first understand their needs, objectives, and perspectives on procurement. Then, it is essential to assess whether they trust that procurement can provide valuable support in helping them achieve their goals.
While conflicts may sometimes appear—such as when stakeholders want to onboard a vendor quickly to ensure speed to market while sourcing recommends following a more rigorous process to secure the best cost, service, and mitigation risks—Vivian views these as different priorities, not conflicting interests.
Both parties are ultimately working toward the same goal: the company’s success. At this point, an open, data-driven dialogue with clear criteria for cross-functional decision-making is essential. The key is approaching the conversation with a collaborative and respectful mindset to find a mutually beneficial solution.
It’s important to remember that building trusted stakeholder connections takes time, like any relationship. In a global corporate environment, it is also necessary to be sensitive to cultural differences and adapt accordingly. Patience is needed, and preparing for some bumps is important as these intricate dynamics are steered.
Building a Foundation in Supply Chain and Analytics
She recently received inquiries from interns and college students interested in pursuing a career in global strategic sourcing.
Procurement wasn’t a field of study when she was in college, but it has since grown into a specialized area you can major in. Vivian sees global strategic sourcing as a perfect “marriage” of science and art. It requires building a solid foundation in the Supply Chain, developing strong data analytics, problem-solving, and strategy skills, staying adaptable to new technologies and learning about sustainability.
But it doesn’t stop there. To be successful in this field, she advises, “You also need to become an expert in communication—engaging with various stakeholders, working effectively with cross-cultural teams, and finding win-win solutions with vendors. If you’re curious and enjoy working with numbers and interacting with people worldwide, global strategic sourcing could be your perfect career.”
Future Aspirations for Procurement
Looking to the future, Vivian’s aspirations for the procurement function at The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. are centered around continued transformation and growth. As mentioned earlier, the Indirect Procurement team is leading an enterprise initiative that drives top-line growth by changing how procurement is conducted. This is precisely how she envisions the future of procurement: not just as a support function but as a strategic partner that directly impacts the business and drives innovation.
Vivian is grateful for the tremendous support from the leadership team at Estée Lauder Companies Inc., which empowers the team to take the driver’s seat in co-steering impactful business decisions. Her goal is for procurement to continue being a key part of shaping the company’s future, leading change, and consistently delivering value across the organization.
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