How Procurement Drives Value in Social Housing with John Wallace

In this episode of Powering Procurement, hosts Sian Lloyd and Gareth Burch are joined by John Wallace, Director of Procurement at Clarion Housing Group. Together, they navigate procurement challenges in social housing, how Clarion is driving social value beyond cost, the role of sustainability in social housing procurement, and how procurement can drive innovation.

In his role, John leads the procurement strategy for an organisation that provides homes for 350,000 people and builds over 2,000 new homes annually. His work is central to Clarion’s mission of addressing the housing crisis by ensuring the delivery of affordable homes and improving communities across the country.

John brings over 35 years of procurement experience from both the public and private sectors, having held senior positions across healthcare, housing, and F&B. His previous roles include Procurement Director at Metropolitan Thames Valley and Head of Procurement at Anchor Trust.

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Episode Highlights:

[14:36] - Driving Value in Social Housing: Balancing cost reduction with core values is crucial in social housing. John highlights the importance of integrating sustainability, social value, and effective contract management into procurement strategies, as well as focusing on developing commercial skills and understanding market dynamics. As the industry shifts, this is an opportunity for procurement teams to respond proactively, ensuring they contribute significantly to their organisations and communities.
[25:08] - Mastering Compliance in the New Procurement Act: Compliance with the new Procurement Act 2023 is essential for housing associations, but it can be a challenge. To succeed despite the new administrative requirements, procurement teams should focus on streamlining processes to free up resources for strategic initiatives. To enhance procurement outcomes without losing momentum, organisations must stay proactive and be transparent.
[33:35] - The Role of Sustainability in Social Housing Procurement: Sustainability in the social housing sector is becoming increasingly important, especially in procurement. Organisations like Clarion are taking significant steps to understand and reduce their carbon footprints by focusing on new builds and repairs. Collaborating closely with sustainability teams, they integrate sustainability criteria into their procurement processes, ensuring that projects, like property regeneration, align with environmental goals.
[46:22] - How Procurement Can Drive Change: Procurement plays a key role in driving innovation within organisations, acting as a catalyst rather than an incubator. To foster innovation, it's essential to break down silos and encourage open collaboration across various teams, from sustainability to compliance. This means shifting from traditional requests for information to requests for outcomes, focusing on the desired results.

Episode Resources:

Powering Procurement is bought to you by https://atamis.co.uk/
John Wallace on LinkedIn
Clarion Housing Group Website