Building on Tradition: Markos Poulios on Procurement Excellence and Innovation at FHL Group
With more than two decades of experience in procurement and supply chain management, Markos Poulios, Group Procurement Director at FHL Group, has played a key role in shaping one of Greece’s leading marble producers into a modern, technology-driven enterprise. Since joining FHL in 2019, he has led the centralisation of procurement across the group’s diverse portfolio, spanning quarries, processing plants, and international operations, while navigating global disruptions, driving sustainability, and embracing digital transformation. In this interview, Markos reflects on the milestones that have defined his career, the balance between tradition and innovation in the marble industry, and his belief that people remain the cornerstone of procurement success.
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Career Journey and Procurement Vision: You have led procurement at FHL for over three years, overseeing supply chain integration across the group. Could you share key experiences, both strategic and operational, that shaped your approach to centralised procurement and automation in the marble industry?
I have led procurement at FHL since 2019 and, since 2022, have been overseeing procurement for the entire group in a newly created position. FHL Group operates two marble processing factories, ten active marble quarries in Greece and abroad, a transportation company, production facilities for mortar and paints, as well as an elderly care facility. The group is also expanding into organic agriculture and solar energy.
Without a doubt, the opportunity to establish a new procurement department for the group was a milestone for me. It allowed me to shape the procurement strategy for one of the marble industry’s key players.
Another milestone, which had a profound impact on me and I believe on most supply chain professionals, was the COVID-19 pandemic and everything that followed, including the war in Ukraine. The disruption that began in 2020, and which we are still dealing with in many ways, marked a pivotal point in my career. It made clear, even to the most indifferent observer, the importance of having robust supply chains and the necessity of changing outdated practices. In many ways, the Greek market has not always been at the forefront of modern business practices, but the challenges of the past five years have pushed many previously reluctant players to adapt.
Harnessing Purchasing Power Across the Group: FHL has integrated supply chain and procurement functions across multiple subsidiaries. How have you leveraged the group’s collective purchasing power to improve efficiency, cost control, and procurement resilience across quarries and processing units?
Naturally, this was the main reason for creating a unified procurement department. With many overlapping suppliers, it soon became evident that by centralising our procurement operations, we could achieve significant advantages for the group.
I must admit that, at first, management was less than enthusiastic about changing processes that had been in place for decades. I can understand that, those very methods helped take the company from its beginnings to becoming one of the most significant players in the market. However, once the advantages were clearly presented and the returns became evident, it was not difficult to gain support.
Optimising Vertical Integration: FHL operates quarries and processing facilities across Greece and subsidiaries in other countries. How do you harmonise procurement policies and maintain consistency in quality, compliance, and delivery across such a diverse global footprint?
Our headquarters are in Drama, in northern Greece, one of the most significant marble-producing regions in the world. Our quarries and other facilities are spread across northern Greece, Bulgaria, and North Macedonia. Even though, to an outside observer, these three countries may seem similar due to their geographic proximity, the reality is quite different.
What we have achieved, however, is getting our people to speak a common “language.” We have integrated most procurement functions, which are managed centrally, while still allowing room for autonomous decision-making where it makes sense. We always aim to remain flexible and continuously adjust our procedures and policies to better suit the situation at hand.
Naturally, our profitability is non-negotiable, but there can often be more than one way to achieve the same outcome. We are always open to adapting. If I had to summarise our approach, it would be adaptability and listening to our people.
Balancing Cost, Quality and Heritage: FHL is renowned for high-quality white marbles such as Thassos, Prinos, and Volakas. How do you uphold this heritage and exacting quality standards in vendor sourcing, while balancing sustainability and cost pressures?
White marble is a natural product with a long and storied history, one that people have used in their most precious and cherished construction projects since time immemorial. As custodians of this tradition of white Greek marble, we strive daily not only to honour this heritage but to continually improve upon it.
FHL has invested significant resources in high technology and, together with our partners across the supply chain, we can proudly say that our products remain at the forefront of quality and timeless design. We select our partners very carefully to ensure they share our values of quality and customer service, allowing us to consistently offer the best to our clients.
Another key criterion is that our suppliers possess complementary capabilities. This allows us to leverage both our extensive experience in marble and our suppliers’ strengths in their respective sectors. One such example is our long-term partnership with Fantini, producers of highly advanced quarrying machinery. Through this collaboration, we have not only been able to extract the finest quality marble but also increase quarry output, significantly reducing waste and electricity consumption per ton of product.
Navigating Supply Chain Disruption: Global markets for marble and granite have experienced volatility, with fluctuating demand and logistic challenges. How have you structured procurement to absorb price shocks, supply chain disruptions, and fluctuations in raw material availability?
Ever since I started my career in procurement and supply chain management more than 20 years ago, my philosophy has been to always expect the unexpected. I am fortunate to have built a great team at FHL that shares this mindset and is willing to take things a step further.
By applying a dual strategy of maintaining long-term partnerships with reliable suppliers while also remaining open to new opportunities, we have successfully avoided stock-outs, even during the most severe disruptions of the past five years.
Our long-term partnerships allow us to structure contracts and purchases strategically, securing better pricing and ensuring continuity of essential supplies. At the same time, we remain open to working with new partners who bring innovation and efficiency, helping us continuously improve both our bottom line and the customer experience.
Additionally, my team and I maintain constant communication with our markets. This enables us not only to respond quickly to disruptions but, in many cases, to anticipate them. Through our ongoing dialogue with the market and strong relationships across our supply chain, we have managed to shield FHL from much of the inflation that has affected global markets over the past three years, delivering tangible benefits for both our customers and our financial performance.
Sustainability and Ethical Procurement: With large-scale quarrying and international exports, environmental and social responsibility are increasingly critical. How is FHL embedding sustainability, such as resource efficiency, environmental protection, or worker safety, into procurement decisions?
First and foremost, the safety of our colleagues is a top priority for everyone at FHL. We not only strictly adhere to all local regulations regarding workplace safety, but we also strive daily for continuous improvement. Every request for safety equipment is treated as an immediate priority. We work closely with both internal and external stakeholders to enhance safety standards, anticipate new regulations, and implement new policies and technologies to make our operations safer each day. Working in a quarry carries inherent risks, but with the right tools, policies, and attitudes, those risks can be effectively mitigated.
Sustainability is equally central to our strategy. We work with a natural product, and we respect not only the material itself but also the planet that provides it. FHL was the first company in Greece to pioneer technologies and techniques that significantly increase the recoverability of high-quality marble from the same quarried material. This means lower emissions, less environmental disruption, and reduced waste.
Moreover, we reuse a significant percentage of this waste to produce new products that would otherwise require additional quarrying. Our philosophy of “doing more with less” is not only an environmentally responsible approach but also lies at the heart of our operational efficiency and long-term success.
Technology and Data in Procurement: Longstanding operations and scale offer vast insight potential. Are there specific digital tools or data-driven approaches you have introduced, for example, demand forecasting, spend analytics, or supplier intelligence, that have transformed procurement effectiveness?
We are preparing to make significant changes in the way we work. We are currently setting up a new ERP system that will enable us to use data more effectively to gain insights into our markets, helping us adapt and anticipate developments with greater accuracy.
Even with the limited tools we currently use, we have already discovered that we can handle change and challenges far better than we once thought possible. The availability of more data, combined with improved ways to manage and interpret it, has allowed us to make better predictions and successfully navigate the turbulence of the past five years.
Our new ERP system will build on this foundation and, with the help of AI, will take us to a level we could not have imagined until recently. While there is plenty of hype surrounding AI, its ability to analyse data and provide meaningful insights is unmatched. We plan to harness this primarily in areas such as forecasting and spend analytics, where it can deliver real and measurable impact.
Leading and Empowering Your Team: You manage a team of six assistants and coordinate complex procurement efforts. How do you maintain team cohesion, morale, and performance in a demanding, operations-intensive environment while fostering long-term capability development?
Although technology, and AI in particular, has become the talk of the town lately, and with good reason, I remain steadfast in my belief that people are the absolutely essential cog in the machine. People can work with technology, but technology cannot work without people.
I place great emphasis on my team’s continuous development and training, always stretching our training budgets as far as possible. However, that is only the foundation. What truly makes the difference is the strong rapport we have built within our team. I am fortunate to work with fantastic colleagues who do an exceptional job under demanding circumstances, often with fewer resources than they deserve, yet still find time to share a laugh and support one another.
Working from different locations can be challenging, but we make a conscious effort to stay connected on a personal level. We care about each other’s lives outside of work and step in to help whenever needed, whether that means covering for a colleague, arranging flexible schedules, or working from home.
Future Trends and Advice: As global demand for marble continues across architectural and decorative applications, what trends, whether technological, market-driven, or logistical, do you see shaping the future of procurement in natural stone? What advice would you offer young procurement professionals looking to excel in capital-intensive, production-driven industries?
I’d have to start with automation and AI, you can’t pick up a stone these days without finding AI underneath it. We are beginning to see significant levels of automation entering the quarrying process, with new machines gradually coming to market that offer remote and automated control. This brings increased productivity and safety, but also new challenges for procurement. Maintenance will become more complex and potentially more expensive, and issues such as spare-part compatibility will only grow in importance.
If I were 25 years younger, with the knowledge and experience I have now, I would focus on becoming much more technologically savvy.
However, perhaps because of this rising automation, the human factor has also become more important than ever, not in terms of labour, but in empathy, intelligence, and the timeless ability to build genuine relationships. Yes, automation is transforming the landscape, but the procurement professional who can pick up the phone and say, “Hey Joe, can you help me with something?” will always make the difference between being good and being great.
In Association with:
Fantini SpA designs and manufactures precision industrial machinery, including stone-cutting systems, automation solutions and advanced mechanical equipment. With a century-long heritage, technical expertise and global collaborations in research and industry, we deliver tailored, high-quality solutions with engineering excellence, innovation and dependable after-sales support.
