How Zero9 Delivered Procurement Transformation for Deliveroo

As businesses grapple with rapid change and increasing pressure to deliver cost efficiencies, traditional consulting models are being challenged by more agile, flexible approaches. 

Zero9, a specialist talent solutions business operating within the procurement space, is leading this charge with a unique four-pillar approach that's already delivering significant results for major clients including Deliveroo.

A comprehensive talent solution

Zero9 operates across four distinct pillars designed to address different aspects of procurement transformation.

The first focuses on strategic hires – permanent roles such as CPOs, heads of function and category directors. The second pillar, project delivery, involves embedding teams of experts to drive change within organisations. The third offers advisory and strategic services as an alternative to traditional consultancy work, while the fourth provides fractional services – a pay-as-you-go model offering flexible expertise and advice.

Angharad Kenward, Managing Partner at Zero9, explains: "There's a huge amount of transformation going on in the market. The workforce is changing, and how you engage people and bring them in is definitely starting to evolve. 

“Our offering essentially allows clients to parachute great people in to deliver transformation.”

Flexible resources for modern challenges

The 'parachuting' approach represents a significant departure from conventional consulting models. 

Rather than providing generic expertise, Zero9 taps into what Angharad describes as a "vast network" to bring in specialists with deep category knowledge who can deliver change at pace.

"The ability to flex up and down, change your offering and really deliver at pace is what our project delivery offering is all about," she adds. 

This level of flexibility proves particularly valuable in today's volatile business environment, where requirements can shift rapidly and organisations must respond accordingly.

The model offers resource augmentation capabilities alongside more traditional consulting setups, providing everything in between to meet specific client needs. This adaptability has proven crucial in Zero9's ongoing partnership with Deliveroo.

Building the Deliveroo partnership

The collaboration between Zero9 and Deliveroo emerged from an existing relationship between Angharad and Rob Turner, the food delivery company’s CPO. 

When Rob joined Deliveroo, the pair began discussing how Zero9 could support the evolution of its procurement function, which was facing significant challenges around cost reduction and efficiency improvements.

“There was a big need for cost out and general transformation,” explains Angharad. “Our offering allowed Rob to have that flexibility to parachute people in with deep category expertise.” 

The project, now running for approximately 15 months, has allowed Deliveroo to maintain a flexible approach to team structure while accessing specialist knowledge in critical areas.

Delivering deep expertise

What sets Zero9 apart in the Deliveroo engagement is its ability to provide seasoned professionals with genuine category expertise. 

The project has required deep experience in areas such as logistics, supply chain technology, and professional services – knowledge that traditional consulting models don't always deliver.

Angharad continues: "We were able to put in people with 20-plus years of experience who could not only deliver at pace, but use their knowledge and background to support Deliveroo in driving costs out really efficiently.

“We could also help upskill and bring in knowledge from external markets and other industries, so the team felt like it was maturing and making progress."

The results for Deliveroo have been significant, both in terms of actual savings delivered and the value proposition offered by Zero9's pricing model. The ability to swap team members in and out according to changing business requirements has provided additional strategic value.

A unique market position

Zero9's positioning reflects a gap in the market that Angharad identified when founding the business. 

With a combined network developed over the course of 40 years between the founding partners, Zero9 offers something no other organisation can match.

Angharad concludes: “We’re able to de-risk the future of a procurement function by making sure the people brought into the organisation are exactly what they need: high calibre and able to deliver.”

To read the full story in the magazine, click HERE.