WHAT I DO

Three engagements. One method.

Hard-dollar outcomes.

Every engagement deploys the same four-phase methodology across the same six diagnostic dimensions. What changes is the depth, the duration, and the price. Pick the tier that matches your stage.

The six diagnostic dimensions

Indirect spend

SaaS, cloud, AI, MarTech, professional services, MRO. Year-over-year growth rate, vendor concentration, line-item duplication.

Supplier portfolio

Top suppliers by spend, concentration risk, performance, switching cost, contract status.

Source-to-Pay process

Request-to-PO cycle time. Approval matrix. Contract lifecycle. Payment cycle. Exception rate.

ERP and systems

Coupa, SAP Ariba, Oracle, NetSuite (or absence). Master data quality. Integration with AP and the GL.

Working capital

DPO baseline, payment-term variance across suppliers, AP discipline against stated terms.

Governance and controls

Spend authority matrix, third-party risk register, SOX/OCC/FFIEC posture where regulated, policy currency.

The three tiers

Tier 1

The Procurement Reality Check™

4-week, fixed-fee written audit.

A structured assessment across all six diagnostic dimensions. Surface the spend baseline, score the supplier portfolio, walk the Source-to-Pay process, and rank the 90-day opportunity. The deliverable is a 25-page written report plus a 60-minute live debrief. Not advisory. Written, and defensible to the CFO and the board.

What you get:

a 25-page report
a prioritized 90-day opportunity list with named contracts and target savings per line
a 60-minute leadership debrief, and a recommendation on whether the 90-Day Reset is the right next step.
A prioritized renegotiation pipeline ranked by hard-dollar opportunity, contract expiration, and supplier dependence

What you don’t get:

Execution. The audit names the opportunity. It does not capture it. That is the 90-Day Reset.

Conversion mechanic:

The audit fee credits against the first month’s retainer if you engage the 90-Day Reset within 30 days of the audit close.

Inquire about the Reality Check

Tier 2

The 90-Day Procurement Reset™

12-week productized engagement.

The core engagement, on the retainer-plus-savings-share structure that defines Black Lion, with named deliverables at each phase of an explicit 30-60-90 cadence.

Days 1–30, diagnose and align

Strategic Alignment Brief. A 30-day scorecard with the first quick win in progress.

Days 31–60, build and execute

Weekly written updates. Midpoint Impact Report at week 6. First validated savings reconciled to the GL.

Days 61–90, optimize and recommend

Final 90-Day Impact Report. Future Growth Roadmap. Recommendation on the Full Function Build or a clean close-out.

Inquire about the 90-Day Reset

Tier 3

The Full Function Build

Extended engagement. Monthly retainer plus a savings share.

For companies that need the function stood up end-to-end, not just reset. Documented Source-to-Pay and Procure-to-Pay flows, a configured ERP with clean master data, supplier-tier governance, the regulated-environment controls where they apply, and a hiring spec, interview process, and 30-60-90 plan for the permanent hire who takes the seat after I exit.

Inquire about the Full Function Build

How I Engage

The engagement model

Monthly retainer plus a savings share. Time-boxed. Aligned by design.

Retainer

Secures the operating seat. I lead the function, run negotiations, sign contracts, install governance, and report to the CFO or the board on the cadence they need.

Savings share

A defined share of validated savings, reconciled to the general ledger, keeps the firm honest about what is real versus what is performative. I get paid more when the client does.

Typical engagement

Six to twelve months from start to permanent hire handoff. Material savings inside 90 days. Documented exit plan from week one.

Retainer

A monthly retainer secures the operating seat. I lead the function, run negotiations, sign contracts, install governance, and report to the CFO or the board on the cadence they need. The retainer secures the discipline of full-time leadership inside a part-time engagement.

Savings share

A defined share of validated savings, reconciled to the general ledger, keeps the firm honest about what is real versus what is performative. I get paid more when the client does. This is the structure that keeps me from running long on engagements that should have ended.

Typical engagement

Six to twelve months from start to permanent-VP handoff. Material savings inside 90 days. Documented exit plan from week one.

No headcount in the firm. The principal does the work. The brand does not sell to clients it cannot serve well.

Pricing

Engagements are scoped to the company, the stage, and the trigger event. The 15-minute qualification call and any subsequent scoping conversation are at no cost. The proposal comes after.