Speakers

Chairman – Neil Argyle

Former Director, NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency

Neil’s career spanned over 40 years in procurement, 31 of which were in the health care sector. After working in Trent and Oxford regions he became Divisional Supplies Manager in North West Thames in 1983, providing a procurement and logistics service to hospitals in Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire. In 1991 the Division merged into East Anglia Regional Health Authority and he was appointed Director of Purchasing. Shortly afterwards, NHS Supplies was formed and Neil became National Purchasing Executive for the medical category. When NHS Supplies was disbanded and the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency came into existence in 2000, Neil was appointed Director of Policy and Performance. His responsibilities included business planning, supplier relationships and communications, legal and procedural issues, the environment and emergency planning. In 2005 he was appointed Director of Pharmaceuticals, a position he held until taking retirement at the end of 2006.

Keynote Speaker – Chris Hurst

Chris Hurst

Director of Finance, Health and Social Services Directorate General, Welsh Assembly Government

Chris has spent over 30 years working as a finance professional. He started his career in the banking sector, before moving into local government. In 1989 he returned to the private sector where he developed and marketed specialist software to public sector organisations; subsequently he spent two years as a management consultant, working for a number of local authority and NHS clients.
In 1992 Chris joined a new NHS Trust as a Finance Director and, four years later, was promoted to work in the NHS Executive – for two years as the Head of Provider Finance for the Anglia & Oxford region, and then as Head of Performance Analysis for the South East region.
In 2000 Chris became Deputy Chief Executive & Finance Director of the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals. In 2009 he was Acting Chief Executive for several months, prior to taking up his current role as Finance Director for the NHS & Social Services in Wales from October 2009.

Nic Cowley

Deputy Director, Welsh Health Supplies

Nic is Deputy Director of Welsh Health Supplies, working on major and often complex procurement activity on behalf of NHS Wales and the Welsh Assembly Government. He has previously held the position of Procurement Adviser for the NHS Wales Informing Healthcare Programme, assisting with the management and strategic planning of Welsh Health Supplies. Nic has been with the NHS since 1985, primarily working in procurement. He is MCIPS qualified and has a great deal of experience of the practical application of the EU Procurement Regulations, and in ensuring that the optimum commercial/service benefits are maximised through effective procurement.

Günther Kostyra MSc MCIPS

Günther Kostyra MSC MCIPS

Head of Sustainable Procurement Programme, Value Wales

Günther joined the Welsh Assembly Government’s Value Wales division as Head of the Sustainable Procurement Programme in 2006. In this role he works with all parts of the public sector in Wales to ensure that social, economic and environmental impacts are embedded into procurement practices. Among the many projects he has managed at Value Wales have been initiatives which have succeeded in opening up more public sector opportunities for SMEs, third sector organisations and supported businesses; and the Community Benefits programme, which has used social clauses to gain positive outcomes from major construction contracts. Günther has over 30 years’ experience in public sector procurement, including roles in purchasing, contract management and logistics. Much of his career has been spent in the NHS, working for numerous NHS organisations at a variety of hospital sites. Günther represented Wales on the UK Sustainable Procurement Task Force, which produced “Procuring the Future”, and sits on the British Standards Institute Technical Committee, advising on the drafting of BS 8903 2010 “Principles and Framework for Procuring Sustainably – Guide”.

Ian Mabberley

Regional Enterprise Networks Manager, Welsh Assembly Government

In his role as Regional Enterprise Networks Manager for the Welsh Assembly Government, Ian works with SMEs to assist them in the process of winning public sector contracts and developing added-value via collaborations and clusters. Prior to this, he ran the information and signposting service Business Eye. Ian has an extensive background in marketing in the private sector with companies including Nestle, Booker and Acco-Rexel.

Larry Petterson

Head of Procurement and Commercial Development, Cardiff and Vale University Local Health Board

Larry began his NHS career in Purchasing and Supply in 1961. He has held various senior managerial positions, finally being appointed Head of Procurement and Commercial Development for Cardiff and Vale University Local Health Board in 1995. He chairs the CIPS UK Public Sector Group and is a Trustee of the CIPS Pension Fund. He is a member of the Welsh Assembly Government’s Business Procurement Task Force and has been a keen supporter of the use of the third sector and Supported Business Organisations such as Remploy. He is also a past Chairman of the Health Care Supply Association. Larry was awarded the MBE for services to the NHS and charity in 2003 and the Government Opportunities (GO) Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004.

Mark Roscrow

Director, Welsh Health Supplies

Mark joined the NHS in 1978, and has had a number of roles in procurement, mainly in Wales. He became Director of Welsh Health Supplies in 1996, since when he has led a major drive to ensure continuous improvement in the organisation through the implementation of the EFQM model. Mark is a member of the Procurement Board for Wales and the UK Four Nations Strategy Group, and represents the NHS on a number of Welsh Assembly Government forums.

Paul Skellon

Programme Director, xchangewales, Welsh Assembly Government

Paul is Director of the xchangewales programme, which aims to create efficiencies in procurement through the delivery of electronic procurement tools and services and greater collaboration between customers and suppliers. xchangewales also aims to break through the barriers to trading with the Welsh public sector for Welsh SMEs. The five-year programme is targeted to deliver savings in the range of £70m to £200m. Paul’s previous senior posts in Wales include Head of Procurement in the Welsh Office and Welsh Assembly Government. He was co-author of ‘Better Value Wales’ – a review of Welsh Public Sector procurement – and helped to establish the Business Procurement Task Force.

Martin Sykes

Chief Executive, Value Wales

Martin joined the Welsh Assembly Government in October 2006, having been Executive Director, Smarter Procurement at the OGC. At the OGC, he led the work on procurement policy, sustainable procurement, the engagement of SMEs, capacity and competition in key markets, eProcurement, construction best practice and strategic supplier relations. Martin has previous public sector experience,as Director of Supply Strategy and Estates at the Department of Social Security, and later as the first Commercial Director in a government department at Transport and Local Government.