Procurement Must Be Strategic or Die Procurement Must Be Strategic or Die – In a post, over on SM Steve Bagshaw asks us to contemplate what we call ourselves – a question which refuses to die. On the Purchasing Practice Linkedin group this same question is still receiving comments more than 12 months after posting. The answer really depends upon … Read More
What does procurement actually do?
In a previous posting on how to win executive support a reader comment highlighted the fact that many procurement professionals still struggle for support and greater recognition, which can – in his terms – damage your “procurement mojo”. So for those readers who still need to convince a sceptical organisation, here are some tips to help market procurement’s benefits to … Read More
Procurement: Win the support of senior management
All procurement professionals will have experienced the consequences of not having senior management support at some point in their career. The consequences can wreck promising careers and destroy confidence when things go wrong and you find yourself “on your own”. It is vital therefore buyers have strong organisational awareness and recognise the presence or absence of support for their function … Read More
Should UK government abandon the OJEU?
Catching up with a well-respected colleague who is trying to sell his services to the public sector, he bemoaned their insistence upon public sector and OJEU experience. Why would you insist on this experience – bring in more of the same – to bring about change? We both agreed this is the last thing you need if you want to … Read More
The five procurement hats:
When I was asked to write about procurement to attract graduates into the profession, I came up with the concept of the 5 hats of success: Hat 1: Entrepreneur Able to spot opportunities and manage risk to support the organisation’s growth plans. Hat 2: Change manager Able to define future state requirements and develop realistic plans on how to achieve … Read More