Daniel Collings takes over from ArcBlue founders Chris Newman and Dan Fielding

Bain-owned procurement and supply chain consultancy ArcBlue has welcomed Daniel Collings as its new managing director, with company founders Chris Newman and Dan Fielding departing.

Emerging out of the long-running PMMS Consulting Group, Dan Fielding and Chris Newman established ArcBlue in Melbourne in 2013, before the procurement and supply chain consultancy was picked up by Bain & Company one decade on.

The pair of departing managing directors now hand over to Daniel Collings, former executive vice president of European and US sister company Proxima, which was bought by Bain in 2022 shortly after its purchase of ArcBlue.

Collings has been with Proxima for more than two decades between London and Chicago, helping to establish and lead its North American business.

Now, as ArcBlue managing director, Collings will be responsible for overseeing a team of more than 150 consultants serving clients across the Asia Pacific from outlets in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, and most recently Malaysia. The firm has been recognized as one of the leading procurement consultancies in the region.

Collings will be based out of the firm’s Auckland office, and brings deep industry knowledge to his new role, having started out at Proxima as a graduate in 2004 after completing a business degree at the University of Bath. He is noted for having served some of the world’s largest organisations in the media & entertainment, professional services, aviation, and private equity sectors.

For the past eight years, Collings has been a member of the Proxima board, tasked with building up the UK-headquartered firm’s North American practice, where he has had responsibility for hundreds of cost and capability transformation initiatives for clients operating in a variety of sectors. Proxima has an overall global headcount of around 300 consultants.

Like Proxima, ArcBlue serves a range of industries such as financial services, healthcare, energy, construction and the public sector among others on procurement transformations, with its broad portfolio of service offerings grouped around four core lines; performance improvement, learning & development, social & sustainable procurement, and project procurement.

Co-founders

Fielding and Newman, who started the business in a shared one-room apartment in Melbourne, have yet to announce their next moves, but both spoke of exploring exciting new opportunities after taking a well-earned break. The pair also paid homage to their ArcBlue staff over the past twelve years, and expressed confidence in the future of the business under the direction of Bain.

“We are so proud of the incredible team we have built, the clients and partners we have worked with, and the amazing range of projects we have had the opportunity to deliver,” Newman stated. “We have also strived to make a difference, and it has been a privilege to have been able to contribute to the growth of social and sustainable procurement across the region.”