Matt Buckley

Why I founded Caventis

I founded Caventis to bring the discipline of large-corporate procurement and cost transformation to businesses where it makes the greatest difference: UK mid-market operators and private-equity-backed portfolio companies. Most of these organisations do not need - and cannot justify - a Big 4 team on the ground. They need senior operators who have delivered before, who understand commercial pressure, and who are prepared to be measured on outcomes rather than activity.

My background

Over the last 15+ years I have led procurement, supply chain and cost transformation work at bp and General Motors, across the UK, Australia, Malaysia and the Middle East. My roles have spanned strategic sourcing, indirect category management and capital-project procurement on major EPC/EPCM programmes - the kind of environments where sourcing decisions carry real balance-sheet consequences and where governance has to hold up to serious internal and external scrutiny.

[ADD: specific programmes]

Academically, I am MCIPS-qualified, hold an MBA from Cranfield School of Management, and am a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute (FCMI Chartered Manager).

Why this matters to mid-market and PE-backed clients

Procurement and cost work is only useful when it moves the P&L and the cash line. My experience across bp and General Motors was built in environments where every pound of committed spend was scrutinised, where supplier decisions had multi-year consequences, and where operational performance mattered as much as the paper savings. That is precisely the lens PE sponsors and mid-market boards need: commercial rigour, credible supplier engagement, and an ability to see a plan through to realised savings rather than a signed contract.

The international dimension matters too. Operating across the UK, Australia, Malaysia and the Middle East means I have worked with suppliers, tax regimes, logistics networks and cultural norms that most mid-market teams never see in-house. For businesses considering offshoring, nearshoring, or supply-chain diversification, that lived experience shortens the learning curve considerably.

Capital-project procurement on EPC/EPCM programmes has shaped how I approach governance. On those programmes there is no room for loose commercial hygiene - contracts, change control, claims management and supplier performance all have to be tight. I bring the same standard to mid-market engagements, scaled sensibly for smaller teams.

How I work with clients

I typically work on a shared-savings basis, with fees funded from realised outcomes. Where a day-rate or fixed-fee arrangement is more appropriate - for example, interim leadership or a defined diagnostic - I will say so. Either way, the commercial model is designed so that Caventis only succeeds when the client does.