FRANK MCKAY
THE PROCUREMENT INTERVIEW
Frank McKay has spent the best part of three decades at Jabil, the global manufacturing solutions provider serving approximately 450 of the world’ s leading brands. Now, as Chief Supply Chain & Procurement Officer, he leads the company’ s procurement and supply chain organisation and services division across a truly global operation.
Frank’ s journey into the profession began in the 1990s when, fresh out of college, he accepted his first role as a buyer. It came at a pivotal moment in the industry’ s evolution as technology was just beginning to reshape the procurement landscape.
“ I got the procurement bug and decided this was an area that would continue to evolve,” reflects Frank.“ It was a time when technology was just starting to become part of the ecosystem of procurement and supply chain.”
That technological revolution has only accelerated in the ensuing decades, transforming how companies manage complex global supply networks. Today, Frank oversees supply chain operations for a company generating approximately US $ 30bn in annual revenue and operating around 100 facilities across 30 countries.
Jabil’ s global footprint spans Asia, Europe and the Americas, positioning it as what Frank describes as“ an engineeringled, supply chain-enabled company” that helps bring products to life for manufacturing partners. This scale and geographic diversity have become crucial advantages in an era of unprecedented supply chain disruption.
FRANK MCKAY
TITLE: CHIEF SUPPLY CHAIN AND PROCUREMENT OFFICER
COMPANY: JABIL INDUSTRY: MANUFACTURING
As Chief Supply Chain & Procurement Officer, Frank McKay leads Jabil’ s procurement and supply chain organisation and services division across a global operation.
Negotiating the tariff challenge The events of recent years have tested supply chain professionals like never before, delivering an unprecedented succession of crises and challenges.
For Frank, one challenge stands out above all others in terms of its complexity and daily impact: tariffs and the ever-changing landscape of international trade restrictions.
So testing is the situation that Frank has found himself operating in territory he never would have anticipated as a young professional.
Highlighting the difficulties tariffs have brought to publicly-traded organisations like Jabil, he says:“ Who’ d have thought I’ d be in Washington, D. C. meeting with Congress and House representatives to put the Jabil position forward?
“ We’ ve had to really shift our supply chain to avoid and minimise the disruption tariffs are bringing. We’ ve done it because we’ ve got to try and keep our customers as competitive as possible – but that’ s not easy.”
26 February 2026