John Collington
Chief Procurement Officer for Government
 John was appointed as the Government’s Chief Procurement Officer in April 2011, with the remit from the Minister of the Cabinet Office to transform how Government and Departments procure goods and services, with the aim of delivering sustainable and demonstrable cost savings and value for money. John’s appointment was confirmed following a successful eight-month programme to implement Cabinet Office-led strategy, policy and governance in better procuring and managing common goods and services spend, which resulted in year one savings in excess of £1.8bn. John also has responsibility for developing the Government’s next generation Shared Services strategy.
Prior to joining the Cabinet Office, John spent nearly four years at the Home Office in the key role of Group Commercial Director, with responsibility for transforming how the Department managed its £2.4bn per annum expenditure on goods and services. John led the Home Office team to deliver significant results through the development and execution of a clear three year strategy, focused on holistic end-to-end procurement, strengthened resources, effective use of eProcurement technologies and the creation of a leading-edge, low-cost Procurement Centre of Excellence in Newport, South Wales. His role at the Home Office also included responsibility for leading the delivery of the Department’s Shared Services strategy in the position of Programme Director, which was delivered on time and to budget.
Before joining the Home Office, John spent 25 years in the private sector, laterally as a Senior Executive with Accenture, where he spent 11 years in a number of senior procurement and supply chain roles on a global basis, most notably as Senior Executive Global Sourcing and Category Management, where he developed the in-house capability from scratch to a team of over 250 operating out of 12 countries when he left to join the Home Office. His career before Accenture encompassed 14 years in operational and business development management positions with American Express, Thomas Cook and the Thomson Travel Group, specialising in corporate business travel. |
Brian joined the BBC in 1985. After a spell co-presenting the political programme Left, Right and Centre, he was appointed Political Correspondent and then Political Editor. In that role, he covers Scottish politics for all outlets, including BBC Scotland and UK network programmes. In addition, he has presented Good Morning Scotland and is a regular contributor to other BBC programmes.
Alex is Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure and Capital Investment with particular responsibility for procurement, Scottish Water, European funding, the Scottish Futures Trust, transport and housing and communities. Since the Scottish Parliament election in May 2011, Alex has been SNP MSP for Airdrie and Shotts, having previously represented Central Scotland since 1999.
John has extensive experience across the private and public sectors. He was Vice President of Worldwide Operations for IBM’s personal computer company before joining Digital Equipment Corporation in 1995 where he was a Senior Vice President. He was also Global Chief Industrial Officer and Board Member of Philips Consumer Electronics, and latterly President of 3Com’s business networks company.
Christopher is H.K. Bevan Chair in Law and Professor of European Business Law at the University of Hull. He is an internationally renowned specialist in public procurement, public private partnerships and a leading authority on European Union business law, anti-trust, and international trade law and corporate law. 
Barry leads a team putting in place national and central government collaborative contracts covering a range of corporate and professional services. In addition, Barry is responsible for the core Scottish Government procurement activities. Barry also leads the procurement reform programme for central government and works closely with senior stakeholders and Heads of Procurement to improve capability. Previously, Barry headed the Central Government Centre of Procurement expertise (CGCoPE) in the Scottish Government. Following a period putting in place outsourcing solutions in the Ministry of Defence, he joined the Scottish Office in 1993, market testing support services. Since then he has led procurement teams placing contracts for corporate services and projects supporting policy initiatives including electronic monitoring of offenders, Disclosure Scotland, lifeline ferry services and Scottish Crime Campus. He represents the central government procurement community on the Scottish Government’s Procurement Reform Delivery Group and the national Procurement Policy Forum.
As Scotland Excel's Head of Professional Services, Irene is responsible for corporate services which support the delivery of the organisation’s remit, including Human Resources, Finance, Information Technology, Business Services and Communications. 
Collette has been working for the Scottish Government for the last three years in the Procurement Capability branch. She is responsible for facilitating the development of best practice procurement guidance and processes across the Scottish public sector, leading projects such as the Procurement Capability Assessment, the Procurement Journey and Professional Buying Tools. Collette has over 15 years' procurement experience and has previously worked for the Royal Bank of Scotland, the National Australia Group and the Department of Trade and Industry. 
Paul is the Deputy Director responsible for procurement policy, strategy and systems in the Scottish Government. Paul’s division leads on procurement legislation (Scottish and EU) and policy and best practice development, including Scotland’s Procurement Reform Programme. It is also responsible for delivering a comprehensive suite of eProcurement tools to underpin best practice and procurement reform.
Ronnie joined Lothian and Borders Police in 1989 and served initially in the West End of Edinburgh. During his 22 years of policing he has worked in a variety of diverse roles, including a three-year secondment as an Instructor at the Scottish Police College. 
Alastair Merrill is Director, Commercial and Procurement, in the Scottish Government, where he leads efforts to drive forward public sector procurement reform in Scotland, delivering greater efficiency and value for money and contributing to sustainable economic growth.
Barbara is a Director of Sustainable Procurement Ltd and has worked in the field of procurement and supply chain management for over 25 years, during which time she has specialised in helping organisations to integrate sustainability into procurement practice. She chairs the Strategic Supply Chain Group. 
Gillian has 36 years’ experience in delivering the policies of the Scottish Government, including the development of devolved and reserved policies, leading legislative change, project and programme management, corporate and financial accountability, operational and organisational change and service delivery.
Willie has worked at the multi-award winning Dundee architectural practice, Nicoll Russell Studios, since the late 1990s and has been a partner in the practice since 2005. He has contributed to a range of prominent projects across Scotland in both the public and the private sectors. First and foremost an architect, Willie has built a growing knowledge base related to procurement practice in the construction industry as both a bidder and an assessor-technical advisor and via his work with the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS).
Barry White is the Chief Executive of Scottish Futures Trust (SFT) and leads the executive team of SFT in delivering its central remit of improving value for money in infrastructure investment in Scotland. Most recently Managing Director of the UK arm of a major European infrastructure investor and developer, Barry worked previously as a Director at Skanska Infrastructure Development. His earlier career included roles at Partnerships UK and Morrison Construction, which he joined after serving in the Army. Barry has wide experience of projects across a range of sectors, particularly in health, education and justice.
