Mary Mitchell

Chief Procurement Officer , Scotland Excel

Since December 2023, Mary has been Chief Procurement Officer for Scotland Excel, the national procurement centre of expertise for local government. She oversees procurement activity across corporate, education, ICT, construction, transport and environment contracting activities.

Mary joined Scotland Excel in 2019 to lead a collaborative two-year programme that delivered positive change in procurement practice for member organisations in the Tayside region.  On completion of the programme, Mary was appointed as Strategic Programme Manager for Scotland Excel's construction, transport and environment category teams in June 2021.

As an experienced leader with extensive background in local government and the private sector.  Before joining Scotland Excel, Mary was the Corporate Procurement Manager at Perth & Kinross Council, the General Manager at a successful garage and MOT station and held Branch Manager roles with Unipart, Partco and Brown Brothers.

My Speaker Sessions

Tuesday 24 November 2026

14:00

Scotland Excel: Practical Procurement for Scotland's Roads

14:00 - 14:25

Scotland's local authorities spend millions each year on the operational materials and services that keep roads running — from winter salt and bitumen to fleet maintenance and workshop supplies. This session cuts through the complexity of public procurement to help both buyers and suppliers understand how Scotland Excel's frameworks work in practice, when to use them and what's coming next.

  • How local authorities are using Scotland Excel frameworks to save time, reduce risk and achieve better value (and/or include: What Scotland Excel does and doesn't cover — clarifying the scope for roads and highways procurement)
  • Operational procurement priorities: winter maintenance, bitumen and roadstone sourcing, salt, fleet and heavy vehicles
  • Exploring the potential increase in use of DPS
  • What suppliers need to know to get on frameworks and work effectively within them
  • Reverse Q&A: what do local authorities and suppliers need from Scotland Excel in the future?

Speakers