My Experience

 Senior Advisor with over 30 years of Supply Chain, Procurement & Buying experience advising private and public sector executive teams and boards.  My experience covers a broad range of sectors: Retail, Consumer Goods, Health, Defence Industries, Distribution & Logistics, Manufacturing and Agri Businesses.  Project and Programs I have led and delivered span; strategy development, short term performance improvement programs to multi-year transformation programs bringing lasting and strategic change to organisations Supply Chains, Procurement and Buying functions.    Key areas of my expertise include: 

• Supply chain network design, 
• Distribution & logistics design and optimisation,
• Procurement & buying diagnostics,
• Complex procurement & buying processes (development and running), 
• Operational improvement across all supply chain procurement and buying functions and assets, 
• Transformation strategy planning and execution, 
• Strategy facilitation and development, 
• Business development (organic business building from the ground up addressing processes, data, systems, people, controls and performance management, commercial – buy and sell side), 
• Acquisition / integration / disposal / carve out planning / operational due diligence and execution.   

This experience is built upon a strong quantitative mind set (data matters), ability to operate from strategy to the operational detail, deep understanding of risk across all its dimensions, strong listening and coaching approach and respect for people and client’s perspectives and insights

Principal

Oliver Sargent Advisory Pty Limited

2025 August

Partner

PwC, Melbourne / London / Sydney

2007 to 2025 February

• Over 18 years as Partner I fulfilled the role of leader of PwC’s Supply Chain Procurement & Buying capability in Australia and London.  The Supply Chain Procurement and Buying practice in Australia, comprised some 6 partners and 60 staff over this period.
• My clients and projects over this period covered a broad range of sectors: Retail (food, merchandise and apparel), Consumer Goods, Health, Defence Industries, Distribution & Logistics, Manufacturing and Agri Businesses.  
• Project and programs spanned strategy development, short term performance improvement programs to multi-year transformation programs to bring lasting and strategic change to organisations Supply Chains, Procurement and Buying functions.    
• Outcomes included: Supply Chain operations for a major Food Service operator, established redesigned operations at sustainably lower operating cost, with capacity to support 10-year growth strategy to double in size as well as identifying critical capacity and service constraints over the same period, 1 to 3% reduction in food input costs over the 5year life of a $500m food contract countering 15% inflation over the same period (net saving 20%),  ~3% margin growth and closing under-trading gaps across whole of range as a consequence of transformed end to end buying processes,   new supply chain build over an accelerated period achieving in 6 months what the businesses would otherwise have achieved in 2 to 3 years examples in retail (addressing $400m pa primary freight operations previously managed by their supplier base) and defence industries (enabling 30 year $10Bill program), consolidated supply chain operations for apparel retailer delivering a sustained cost reduction to serve of 10% post consolidation, ~5% procurement spend reduction identified across a ~$1.5bill spend base for a major public health authority, specific focus on redesigning commercial terms across key OEM’s to reduce purchase price variations.
• Clients included the likes of: BAE Systems (AU), Metcash / IGA (AU), Woolworths (AU), PFD Foods (AU), JB-HiFi (AU), Co-Op (UK), Tesco (UK), Foodstuffs (NZ), Aldi (AU & Global), Metro AG (UK), YUM! (UK) Coca-Cola Enterprises CCE (UK), Monsoon Accessorize (UK), PAS Group (AU), Health departments of; NSW, Victoria, South Australia & Queensland, Ramsay Health (AU), Healthscope (AU), Red Cross (AU), One Steel (AU), Australia Post (AU), Gresham (AU), Pacific Equity Partners (AU).

Director
PwC – Melbourne
2004 to 2007

• Created and built the Supply Chain & Procurement practice in PwC Australia’s consulting division, hired a team and established a client base which established the foundation of my promotion to Partner.
• Focused largely on Retail, Consumer goods, Manufacturing and Agri business sectors.
• Program and projects addressed warehouse operational improvements, network design and supply chain strategy and transformation programs across a broad range of clients and sectors.
• Led a range of procurement diagnostics both as performance improvement initiatives and as part of acquisition and disposal activities.
• Led a detailed multi-year study into the impact of Australian Grocery Retailers supply chain transformation on the sector.  I leveraged these insights to advise on acquisitions and disposals, business development initiatives in major retailers and wholesalers and consumer goods suppliers across Australia and New Zealand.

Sales Manager UK
Descartes – London

2000 to 2004

Led sales and implementation of supply chain and transport management systems, primarily focused at online and multi-channel retailers home delivery operations.

Business Development Manager eProcurement
Oracle – Melbourne
1997 to 2000

Development of eProcurement and exchange solutions for clients across the Asia Pacific regions. Customers spanned sectors from public and private sector; retail, manufacturing, services and start up / .com organisations. 

Assistant Manager
PriceWaterhouse  – Brisbane / Melbourne
1991 to 1997

Developed PriceWaterhouse's core global operational risk management capability and system CHEKHOV, developing and implementing globally across a number of major multi nationals. I was responsible for development of this capability across the PW network in the UK, US, Asia and South Africa.

Chartered Accountant
Chartered Accounts of Australia and New Zealand - 1992 to 1994 

Bachelor of Commerce

University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia - 1988 to 1990 

CA - Chartered Accountants of Australia and New Zealand 1994

Kellogg Executive Education – AI applications for growth 2024

• Supply chain strategy and network design
• Supply chain cost to serve and performance management development
• Procurement process design
• Procurement sourcing and negotiation
• Strategy facilitation and development 
• Transformation program planning and execution
• End to end business development / building 
• Change management and skills transfer
• Financial and data analytics 
• Risk assessment and management
• Team leadership and coaching 
• Workshop facilitation and training

Available upon request