5 Reasons You Need to Attend Optimal ’22 Las Vegas

Last Spring, Arkestro, the leading Predictive Procurement Orchestration platform, held Optimal: The Leadership Summit for Predictive Procurement. The conference included presentations, workshops, keynotes, demos, and networking among hundreds of thought leaders and practitioners. 

If you missed the spring Optimal ’22 conference in New York or Optimal ’21, now is your chance to attend Optimal ’22 Las Vegas, the best procurement event of the year! Together, industry thought leaders will be revealing decades of experience and knowledge in supply chain and procurement. 

You don’t want to miss this exclusive event. Procurement, sourcing, CPO, and CFO leaders will be gathering to discuss the topics demanding today’s leading organizations’ attention. So make sure to mark November 8 and 9 in your calendar and get ready to learn from the shared expertise of fellow procurement professionals.

Why You Should Attend an Optimal Conference

At Optimal ’22 New York, we heard from some of the brightest thought leaders in the procurement community, like Linda Chuan (Box) and Joanna Martinez (Supply Chain Advisors). Among the topics covered at the spring Optimal were Third Party Risk and Orchestration in Liminal Spaces by Dr. Elouise Epstein (Kearney) and The Future of Supplier Negotiations with Mark Raffan (host and founder of Negotiations Ninja). 

Optimal ’22 Las Vegas will highlight real-world examples of Predictive Procurement Orchestration’s impact on both the enterprise balance sheet and strategic corporate initiatives. The event provides an excellent opportunity for procurement, sourcing, IT transformation, supply chain, and finance teams to gain professional development around digital initiatives and predictive procurement.

5 Reasons to Join Arkestro at Optimal ’22

Attending any conference is an investment, and you want to make sure to get the most out of its offerings. For procurement professionals, joining Optimal ’22 brings several benefits. But we’ve narrowed them down into a list of five of the top reasons to attend Optimal ’22 Las Vegas.

1. Hear the Amazing Speakers Leading Optimal ’22

Optimal ’22 has an impressive lineup of speakers, including

Keith Krach, Co-founder and Chairman, Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue:

An American businessman, silicon valley innovator, philanthropist, and public servant Keith Krach is noted for bringing transformational leadership to multiple sectors, including robotics, engineering, commerce, education, philanthropy, economic statecraft, and even the way people sign. Under Secretary of State, Krach led American economic diplomacy and had the rare distinction of being unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate. He was nominated for the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize for deploying his “Trust Doctrine” to defend against technological authoritarianism, safeguard global economic security,  preserve democracy in Taiwan, and protect human rights to advance  freedom and lasting peace.

Jean Michel Dos Remedios, VP of Strategic Sourcing, Bel Brands USA:

Jean Michel Dos Remedios will share how Bel Brands—maker of Babybel, The Laughing Cow, Boursin, and more—has used Arkestro to achieve savings and increase sourcing velocity

Linda Chuan, Chief Procurement Officer, Box:

One of the world’s most widely used enterprise technologies for secure content management, workflow, and collaboration—Box—is using Arkestro to ensure that over 25% of its spend goes to diverse suppliers, where the industry norm is 5.9%. Chuan will discuss this and other benefits, including improved supply chain sustainability, validated ROI for procurement, and more.

Susan Walsh, The Classification Guru:

Susan Walsh is a data classification, taxonomy customization, and data cleansing specialist. She’s renowned for her proven methodology, which accurately and efficiently classifies, cleanses, and checks procurement data for errors, helping prevent costly mistakes and bringing clarity and accuracy to data and procurement. She’s also an industry thought leader, TEDx speaker, and author of the published Between the Spreadsheets: Classifying and Fixing Dirty Data.

Damian R. Beil, University of Michigan – Stephen M. Ross School of Business:

Damian R. Beil is the Donald C. Cook Professor of Business Administration and Chair of the Technology and Operations Faculty Area at the Stephen M. Ross School of Business. His research and expertise focus on auctions and sourcing, where he has collaborated extensively with industry leaders and companies in areas ranging from aerospace to retail.

Jacob Gorm Larsen, Founder, Moneyball CPH:

Founder of Moneyball CPH, a boutique consultancy that specializes in digitizing procurement and negotiation processes, Jacob Gorm Larsen is recognized as a global thought leader within digital procurement. Gorm Larsen is also the former head of digital procurement for a global shipping company and is experienced with digital in oil and gas, retail, and off-shore. He’s also won industry awards, including the Plumes D’or award for “A Practical Guide to E-auctions for Procurement,” which is considered the defining book on e-auctions.

Amy Fong, Partner, Everest Group:

Amy Fong leads Everest Group’s Sourcing and Vendor Management practice, where she advises enterprises on maximizing value from strategic provider relationships in global services categories. She has more than 20 years of buy-side company, consulting, and advising experience with a focus on procurement, supply chain, outsourcing, and organizational effectiveness. Fong has authored numerous publications and speaks on source-to-pay topics and managing complex supply chain partnerships. She focuses on optimizing the services and relationships within the CPO ecosystem.

Of course, there will also be presentations and sessions by Arkestro executives, including Founder and CEO Edmund Zagorin, CTO Ben Leiken, and Head of Data Science and Machine Learning Eric Buras.

2. Participate in Sessions with Industry Thought Leaders 

In addition to the speakers, there will be plenty of opportunities for collaborating with thought leaders in procurement and supply chain. Take advantage of interactive sessions, workshops, and CPO and CFO panels. 

During the CPO and CFO Panels, you’ll learn how to

• • • Predict and stay ahead of price increases
    • Drive predictable cost savings using data
    • Align with C-suite strategic objectives

You’ll want to leverage the knowledge you gain from experts at the conference: 

• • • Share what you learned with your colleagues and teams
    • Obtain recordings of the sessions you are unable to attend
    • Keep in touch with new contacts
    • Apply what you learn 

3. Network with Procurement Colleagues 

Networking is always a big win. But to make the most of this networking opportunity at Optimal, you should: 

• • • Build a list of people you may want to speak to (for example, colleagues or vendors) 
    • Have an objective for the conversation
    • Know if you want to continue to have ongoing conversations
    • Attend the networking lunch and closing networking cocktail hour and reception 

4. Watch Cirque du Soleil’s The Beatles Love!

As part of Optimal ’22 Las Vegas, you’ll get the opportunity to discover one of the most celebrated shows in the world: Cirque du Soleil’s The Beatles LOVE.

LOVE is set to an iconic soundtrack, celebrating the musical legacy of one of the most influential bands of all time, and it’s also the recipient of three GRAMMY awards. The psychedelic, captivating, and immersive theatre-in-the-round show has thrilled over 10 million people. So you won’t want to miss it.

5. Earn Continuing Education Credits

Beyond everything we’ve covered—speakers, breakout sessions, panels, workshops, entertainment—you can also earn Continuing Education (CE) credits by attending Optimal ’22. These credits are available through the SIG University workshop. Experts will be covering topics like Supplier Management and Third Party Risk. 

Also, target what you learn by developing a list of sessions you want to be part of. Then, be sure to take extensive notes.

Optimal ’22: We’ll See You in Las Vegas

Procurement professionals have had no lack of challenges over the past few years. With factors including inflation, ongoing supply chain disruptions, logistical disruptions, and extreme weather events, the case for attending Optimal ’22 is strong. 

Optimal ’22 will be on November 8 and 9 at Las Vegas’ Paris Hotel. See the full list of Optimal ’22 speakers, presenters, and sponsors here. Then, make sure you register so you don’t miss out on the insight and innovation thriving in the procurement and supply chain industry.

We hope to see you there!