Recently I commented on a LinkedIn discussion, “Presently I am looking to devise a simple classification structure for my supply base – something that will allow my suppliers/providers to know where they presently stand from an engagement/expectation perspective and that shows them what they can work towards…. Does anyone have examples of such structures that they can share?”
My reply (edited): Continue reading
A recent article in Procurement Leaders magazine, “Are e-auctions all they are cracked up to be?”, concludes “by taking the personal touch out of the bidding process, you’re losing the opportunity to leverage your face-to-face skills to get really [to] know a potential supplier.” The article seems to be founded on the premise that e-auctions (reverse auctions) might typically be run in circumstances where buyer-supplier relationships are important.
I have been a long-standing critic of indiscriminate use of procurement e-auctions. Reverse auctions do have an important place in the procurement toolkit but are often misused. So, what constitutes misuse? What can go wrong? And when is it appropriate to use reverse auctions? Continue reading
In a recent exchange on Twitter, I was asked if I had any writing on procurement in the context of projects, as there is very little coverage about this topic for Project Managers.
There are opposing arguments, on the one hand that procurement for projects is very different from other procurement, on the other hand, that the ideal approaches to procurement are very similar whether for projects or not, and that the approaches become different only as one makes compromises. Such compromises would arise as a consequence of differences in objectives for projects and ‘business as usual’ (BAU), and from constraints in the capability of the procurement resource. Compromises may also be forced by late involvement of appropriate procurement expertise. Continue reading
Few customer-supplier partnerships are equal. Buyers need to be wary of entering into dependent relationships where the supplier will gain a dominant position. This is the second part of a 2-part article which sets out to examine how and why Procurement might consider the supplier’s perspective when selecting suppliers. It is particularly relevant for strategic supplies, where value creation and value capture are key objectives. Continue reading
Few customer-supplier partnerships are equal. Buyers need to be wary of entering into dependent relationships where the supplier will gain a dominant position. This is the first part of a 2-part article which sets out to examine how and why Procurement might consider the supplier’s perspective when selecting suppliers. It is particularly relevant for strategic supplies, where value creation and value capture are key objectives. Continue reading