Procurement transcends disparate industry sectors such as entertainment and pharmaceuticals. Lisa Martin, chief procurement officer at Pfizer, worked early in her career as a buyer and expeditor at NBC when the network was acquired by General Electric, which she says highly values the procurement and sourcing function.

“It was a very good training ground,” Martin says, adding that working in the entertainment business, with its creative personalities and greater flexibility, gave her another important strength. “I definitely grew a thick skin,” she says.

Martin was working at Warner-Lambert in 2000, when it was acquired by Pfizer. Since then, she has risen to senior vice president and head of the $67.4 billion pharmaceutical company's global procurement function, leading the development and implementation of sourcing strategies that leverage the $17 billion Pfizer spends annually. Two years ago, Martin was given additional responsibilities for operations, including managing real estate as well as the facilities at the company's research and development and commercial sites. She now sits on the company's finance and business operations leadership team and reports directly to CFO Frank D'Amelio.