Procurement experience brings new paths for ConAgra’s Taylor

For Stacey Taylor, ConAgra Foods vice president, indi-
rect and capital procurement, the foray into the world of pro-
curement was accidental. After graduating from high school,
she wanted to work full-time prior to entering her freshman
year of college.

Fortunately, she was able to land a summer
job as a purchasing assistant with Logitek, a Bohemia, NY-
based aerospace firm. However, it was the next step that had
the biggest impact on Taylor.
“Just before I was supposed to head back to school, the
company offered me a permanent position and offered to pay
for my tuition,” she said. “The rest, they say, is history. I have
since remained primarily in the procurement field, dabbling
periodically in sales and operations, but always returning to
my roots.”

NATURAL PROGRESSION

After obtaining a bachelor’s from Dowling College and a
MBA from Anna Maria College, Taylor’s procurement career
continued to progress. It was at this point that Taylor accept-
ed a position with Tyco’s health care division where she held
various procurement-based positions.

She then joined Tyco
International Inc. and charged with the responsibility of lead-
ing the company’s global sourcing efforts for travel, tempo-
rary labor, office equipment and supplies, while also leading
Tyco’s corporate procurement department through Sarbanes-
Oxley compliance, developing auditable policies and proce-
dures for two years.
It was in July 2006 that Taylor accepted her current position
with ConAgra Foods. In this position, she heads up the indi-
rect procurement team — a group she is responsible for cre-
ating.“It didn’t exist here before, and I feel truly fortunate to
have built a talented management team that is well respected
within the company and supports the organization in virtual-
ly all aspects procurement,” she said.
In this role, Taylor is accountable for
generating significant savings year-to-
year, while driving continuous improve-
ment and compliance to all sourcing
practices and policies.

She also is the
organizational change leader for the
implementation of the SAP “Procure to
Pay” system. She also provides overall
change management guidance and facil-
itation of improved processes to ensure
a successful transition from legacy pro-
curement systems to SAP.

LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES

Along the way Taylor has had to over-
come a handful of obstacles. However,
she has always looked at obstacles as
learning lessons.The toughest by far has
been the change management associat-
ed with relocating her family several times in conjunction
with her career path.“Decisions in our family are made as a
group, and while not all the outcomes can meet everyone’s
needs, we are dedicated to work as a team to understand and
accept the change associated with my career,” she said.

Going through the changes has actually yielded her biggest
surprise to date.“My husband of 17 years decided to leave his
career — after 16 years with the same company — in order
to focus his attention on raising their two children, while she
pursued her career,” she said.“It was the first time in my life
that someone’s faith in me and their associated actions res-
onated with ‘I believe you can be all you want to be.’”
Taylor told Women’s Enterprise that throughout her
career she has ultimately learned how driven and deter-
mined she can be, and that she could quite easily become a
workaholic if it weren’t for her husband. “I am capable of
creating a true open-door policy and having a nurturing
environment within my group at ConAgra Foods,” she said.“I
also have found that I am just as passionate about the career
growth of my employees as my own, and drive just as hard
to support their success.”

SAGE ADVICE

As one would expect, Taylor has seen what does and does
not work as WBEs try to secure opportunities with corporate
prospects.As a result, she offers the following advice, network,
network, network.“Many times introductions come by way of
other contacts in the industr y, versus cold-calling a company.
Make sure to use resources such as WBENC to help facilitate
introductions,” she said.

“You should also leverage relationships
with the supplier diversity managers at other companies.They
can be your biggest ally in getting introductions throughout
their respective organizations. Also, give other women a help-
ing hand, as paying it forward often
results in a larger return.”
Taylor also recommends that women
thoroughly considering their options as
opportunities arise in coming years
while also being sure to help the next
generation along the way. “With all the
choices young women have today com-
ing out of college, and the gap of jobs to
fill within the retiring baby boom gener-
ation, young women will have their pick
of opportunities, inclusive of starting
their own business,” she said.

“Women in
positions of leadership need to make
sure that we are there to act as role
models and provide, mentoring and
guidance to help younger women suc-
ceed in their career endeavors and build
a generation of women empowered to
be anything they want to be.”