Maverick Spending Is Draining Your Margin. Inventory Is Eating Your Cash. Supplier Evaluation Is Years Overdue.
The problem isn't a lack of technology. It's misaligned people, process, and data. I've watched this exact gap break two procurement teams I built from scratch — and I see it in almost every plant I walk into. If that sounds like you, we fix it with your team, not ours. No software to buy. No dependency created.
If your spend data is scattered and your suppliers aren't accountable — that is the problem. Not a lack of technology.
These aren't broken systems. They're broken habits — and no new software fixes a habit.
Scattered Data
Spend data lives in five spreadsheets, and none of them match.
Inventory swings between crisis and cash drain — never optimized.
New software gets purchased. The problem stays.
Which means every forecast, every negotiation, every board update is built on numbers nobody fully trusts.
Unaccountable Suppliers
Suppliers gain leverage over time if they're never held accountable.
Contracts renew automatically because no one has time to renegotiate.
Tariffs are an untracked, variable cost.
Which means you're the one explaining the miss when a supplier fails — not them.
Most manufacturers don't have a procurement problem. They have a Clarity, Ownership, Rhythm and Evolution gap.
Clarity
We map every gap in your procurement structure — spend visibility, supplier accountability, process documentation, and data integrity. You see the full picture before we touch anything.
- Spend analysis
- Supplier scorecards
- Gap assessment
- KPI baseline
Ownership
Every tool, template, and system we build gets built with your team — not handed to them afterward. Your people own the work from day one.
- Process documentation
- Team training
- Playbook development
- RACI design
Rhythm
We install the operating cadence your procurement function has never had — supplier reviews, cost tracking, inventory discipline, and performance accountability on a repeatable schedule.
- Supplier review calendar
- Cost tracking cadence
- Inventory discipline
- Reporting rhythm
Evolution
Most procurement functions don't fail — they pause. We build a system that keeps getting better after we leave — no retainer required, no software dependency, no follow-up needed.
- Succession planning
- Self-audit tools
- Continuous improvement framework
- Exit documentation
What we do together.
Performance & Analytics
KPI development, spend analytics, supplier scorecards, commodity benchmarking. All of it in one place so decisions stop being guesswork.
Strategic Sourcing
Supplier selection, RFQ development, total cost analysis, award strategy. Executed with discipline, not speed.
Supplier Management
Supplier rationalization, risk tiers, performance management, and accountability structures. Supply chains don't manage themselves.
Inventory & Operations
EOQ modeling, safety stock, demand alignment, carrying cost vs. service risk. Working capital you can actually touch.
Knowledge Transfer
Custom training, playbook development, team capability building. Built with your people so it stays when we leave.
Tariff Cost Recovery
IEEPA exposure mapping, broker coordination, credit recovery. The money is in the data — we find it.
Not a consultant who studied procurement.
25 years on the plant floor, at the negotiating table, and inside the data — across every size of manufacturer supply chain.
I've built two procurement teams from scratch. Here's what forced me to get it right both times.
The Director's Challenge
“Chris, you talk a lot in concepts — but a great leader can convert them to coaching, action, and high performance.”
That challenge sent me to Chapter 2 of Good to Great and launched a three-year transformation. It became the foundation of how I build teams — and how I teach procurement professionals to convert ideas into results. I stopped talking about what good looked like and started building the systems that made it measurable. That discipline followed me across every company after.
The Partner's Challenge
“Chris — I don't want you to come back in 5 years and say What if.”
In 2013, my wife said something I have never forgotten. I heard it as the clearest possible instruction: stop planning and start. That conversation is framed and hanging in my home office. It is the reason TRU North exists. Paula did not let me wait until conditions were perfect. She held me to the standard I had always held my teams to — and I have never been more grateful for it.
The Launch
On April 1, 2026 I stepped away from what I officially counted as TRU North Partners LLC — a consulting firm built on the idea that manufacturers deserve senior-level procurement expertise without the Big 4 price tag or the software dependency. Everything I have built in the last 25 years was preparation for this. TRU North is where it becomes yours.
The Career Arc
I'm not a former practitioner. I'm an active one — the $2.5M reduction and $250K recovery happened in the last 12 months.
Operations Foundation
LTL logistics pricing, early exposure to cost structures and carrier accountability.
Executive Quality
Supplier quality leadership across automotive and defense — the origin of the accountability framework.
Global Sourcing & Leadership
Rolls-Royce, Komatsu, Club Car, FN America. $500M+ in managed spend. Teams of 2 to 22.
Credentials & Education
MBA, Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina — Business Analytics concentration
Kepner-Tregoe Problem Solving & Decision Making
SCOTWORKS Negotiation
Karrass Negotiation
Lean Manufacturing — Rolls-Royce certification
A3 Problem Solving
Case Studies
If any of this sounds familiar, here's what happened when three other manufacturers fixed it.
Surfaced, structured, and recovered — completely.
$250K
IEEPA Credits Recovered.
The Situation
Following the Supreme Court's IEEPA ruling, the company was entitled to recover overpaid import costs — but no one knew the money existed or how to claim it.
Result
$250,000 in approved credits. No new tools. Executed with existing data and import broker relationship.
A repeatable system — not a one-time cut.
$2.5M
Inventory Freed in One Year.
The Situation
Inventory was bloated from reactive ordering habits — no EOQ methodology, no demand alignment, no visibility into true carrying costs vs. service risk.
Result
Reduced inventory by $2.5M in 12 months through EOQ-driven right-size ordering. Working capital improved. No stockouts.
From no data to real-time intelligence.
Live
Procurement Dashboard.
The Situation
The team had no real-time data. OTD, inventory, open POs, and supplier performance lived in spreadsheets and tribal knowledge. Decisions were reactive by default.
Result
Live command center built via SQL connection. Team fully trained and self-sufficient. Zero ongoing external dependency.
Every competitor leaves a dependency. TRU North leaves capability.
What they leave behind
TRU North Partners
Capability your team owns forever.
Big 4 & Large Firms
Expensive report. Rarely implemented.
Software Vendors
A license you now depend on.
Who does the work
TRU North Partners
Chris. Personally.
Big 4 & Large Firms
Mostly junior analysts.
Software Vendors
Implementation team — then you're on your own.
Software required
TRU North Partners
None. Built from tools you own.
Big 4 & Large Firms
Often requires new platforms.
Software Vendors
Yes — that's the entire business model.
Ongoing dependency
TRU North Partners
Zero. Designed to make us unnecessary.
Big 4 & Large Firms
High. Retainer relationships preferred.
Software Vendors
Complete. You can't leave without losing everything.
Manufacturing experience
TRU North Partners
25+ years across 9 companies, 5 industries.
Big 4 & Large Firms
Generalist frameworks applied to your plant.
Software Vendors
None — the software wasn't built for your floor.
| Dimension | TRU North Partners | Big 4 & Large Firms | Software Vendors |
|---|---|---|---|
| What they leave behind | Capability your team owns forever. | Expensive report. Rarely implemented. | A license you now depend on. |
| Who does the work | Chris. Personally. | Mostly junior analysts. | Implementation team — then you're on your own. |
| Software required | None. Built from tools you own. | Often requires new platforms. | Yes — that's the entire business model. |
| Ongoing dependency | Zero. Designed to make us unnecessary. | High. Retainer relationships preferred. | Complete. You can't leave without losing everything. |
| Manufacturing experience | 25+ years across 9 companies, 5 industries. | Generalist frameworks applied to your plant. | None — the software wasn't built for your floor. |
Designed with your team. Built for your team. Left with your team.
Four ways to work together — each one reduces your risk a little more.
Free Call
Quarterly Health Check
A 90-minute diagnostic of your KPIs, supplier risk, and cost exposure. No commitment beyond the conversation — this exists so you can evaluate us before you hire us.
Project
Fractional Capacity Support
When a procurement seat opens up, the risk isn't the vacancy — it's a rushed hire. We cover the work at senior-level quality while you fill the role right.
Flagship
CORE Engagement
Full procurement transformation — Clarity, Ownership, Rhythm, Evolution. Built with your team, so the capability is yours before the engagement ends. This is the offer behind every case study on this page.
Retainer
Fractional CPO / Retainer
For organizations that want continuous fractional leadership rather than a fixed-scope project — priced and scoped to what you actually need, not a standard package.
The procurement questions you're afraid to ask.
Straight answers from 25 years in manufacturing.
Procurement Fundamentals · Strategic Sourcing · Supplier Management · Leadership
@TRUNorthProcurement
Watch on YouTube →Watch the latest episode
Schedule a conversation.
Tell us where procurement hurts today. We'll tell you what we can do about it — and what it would cost. No obligation.