The Leading Edge

The margin problem facing CFOs – and the commercial solution

In this episode we explore why revenue growth is failing to translate into margin growth, and how a more integrated commercial operating model could help reduce value ero

The neglected asset that erodes financial performance

In this episode, we explore how organizations can turn fragmented commercial data into actionable intelligence – giving CFOs greater visibility of emerging risks, opportu

Transforming Contracts at Scale: Seth Claus & Mike Stetz on CLM for Federal Primes

Recorded live at NCMA’s World Congress, Nikki Mackay is joined by PwC Partners and CLM Leaders Seth Claus and Mike Stetz to explore what it really takes to transform cont

Legal y Procurement: ¿Socios o todavía están en mundos separados?

Analizar cómo está evolucionando la relación entre Legal y Procurement, dónde persisten los principales puntos de fricción y qué oportunidades existen para que ambas func

Powering the Business of Government: Nancy Patel on Connecting Cost, Contracts, and AI

Recorded live at NCMA’s World Congress, Nikki Mackay is joined by Nancy Patel, Vice President of Go-To-Market at Unison, to explore how technology is reshaping the busine

Beyond Efficiency: Ivalua’s Paul Zammit on What Agentic AI Really Changes in Acquisition

Recorded live at NCMA's World Congress, this episode brings a perspective The Leading Edge doesn't feature often: the view from inside a software vendor buildin

Speed vs. Control: What Top Contractors Are Getting Right and How They’re Evolving in 2026

Recorded live at NCMA World Congress in Florida, this special episode of The Leading Edge explores one of the defining tensions in government contracting: how to move fas

Elevating SRM from framework to competence

Supplier Relationship Management has never been more important—but why do so many organisations still struggle to make it work? In this episode of The Leading Edge, Nikk

Revealing the 2026 US Public Procurement Benchmark: Product vs. Practice, and Will AI Elevate or Eliminate Us?

Recorded live at World Congress, this special episode of The Leading Edge offers an exclusive first look at the findings from the 2026 US Public Procurement Benchmark Rep

The performance of performance-based contracting in public outsourcing: a meta-regression analysis

In this episode of The Leading Edge, Nikki Mackay is joined by Pedro Espaillat to explore the realities of performance-based contracting in public outsourcing. Drawing on

América Latina y China: oportunidades y nuevas exigencias para contratos, procurement y gestión comercial

Analizar cómo la creciente relación entre América Latina y China está transformando los negocios en la región, y qué implicaciones tiene para los profesionales de contrat

The Cost of Mismanaged Agreements; Why Contracting Must Reinvent Itself

Recorded live at Docusign's flagship event, Momentum, this episode of The Leading Edge tackles one of the most persistent and under-acknowledged problems in global b

From Contract Management to societal Value Creation: A public Procurement Portfolio Model

In this episode of The Leading Edge, Nikki Mackay is joined by Andrea Patrucco, Robert Handfield, and Daniel J. Finkenstadt to discuss a new approach to public procuremen

Desbloqueando el potencial de la Contratación Basada en Resultados

A medida que los gobiernos y las industrias buscan formas de generar más valor con recursos limitados, la Contratación Basada en Resultados (OBC) ofrece una alternativa s

The Role of Lawyers in a Changing World

In this episode, we explore how the role of lawyers is evolving in response to shifting market dynamics, technological disruption, and new contracting models. We examine

Decades of Lost Potential in Defense Research and Development

In this episode, we unpack a deep and systemic challenge at the heart of U.S. defense innovation: how a flagship program intended to catalyse breakthrough technologies ha

China's CCM capability gap: a strategic inflection point for global commerce

In this episode, we explore whether China’s transition from manufacturing to services is truly constrained by a lack of Contract and Commercial Management (CCM) capabilit

¿La IA es la oportunidad que Procurement (Compras / Abastecimiento) estaba esperando para reinventarse?

Enfoque: En este episodio exploramos cómo la IA está transformando el panorama de Procurement, no al mejorar el modelo tradicional, sino al cuestionar su propia existenci

To become ‘commercial’, public procurement must confront its contradictions

In this episode, we explore the uncomfortable truth behind the push for “more commercial” public procurement. Governments want faster delivery, better value, and more in

The Risk No Board Is Talking About: CEO Burnout

In this episode, we examine CEO burnout not only as a personal wellbeing issue, but as an overlooked leadership and governance risk. We explore how the very traits boards