Procurement

For Procurement Leaders, True Business Transformation Starts At Home

Posted: 09/11/2020 - 05:26
Author: Gregor Stühler
To be effective, digital transformation must begin with open, honest, and scrupulous self-reflection of your digital readiness by running a maturity assessment of business processes.

Technology has advanced significantly since the days when procurement leaders were only managing RFIs and RFPs among their “little black book” of trusted suppliers. Today, big data and artificial intelligence now offer an expansive view of an entire supplier market and unprecedented access to vast wells of verified data. This advancement has opened the door to a new approach that can completely transform the strength of procurement decisions and enable procurement teams to impact a company’s bottom line in new and sometimes unexpected ways.

Tail spend goes beyond the typical 80/20 rule

Posted: 08/24/2020 - 05:27
Author: Tarek Alaruri
When you think tail spend, don’t just think of the typical 80/20 rule.

Having a sound tail spend management strategy has never been more important than it is today. It’s a key differentiator – and competitive advantage – in a down economy in which cash is king and cutting costs is a high priority. Procurement teams can no longer rely on direct materials for savings—those costs have been negotiated to death.

How Procurement Can Enable Insurance Companies to Deliver Value to Claims Management

Posted: 08/22/2020 - 02:36
Author: Tunir Chatterjee
Procurement’s key metric is vendors’ value contribution, not cost.

At U.S. insurance companies, policyholders’ claims represent 70% to 75% of the total cost. This makes complete sense, of course, since policyholder benefits are the sole reason why anyone buys insurance products and services.

The problem is, at insurance companies, procurement is limited to supporting indirect spend — real estate, marketing, finance, etc. — which accounts for less than 10% of the organization’s total costs and severely limits our ability to provide substantive value.

Managing Marketing Procurement Through a Kraljic Lens

Posted: 08/10/2020 - 23:38
Author: Sarah Scudder
Kraljic’s model classifies purchased products and services along two dimensions: profit impact and supply risk.

In a landmark 1983 article in the Harvard Business Review, Peter Kraljic introduced a purchasing portfolio model using a 2 x 2 matrix. The Kraljic model was based on the premise that purchased products and services can vary significantly in terms of importance and risk.  Based on this, procurement professionals should use different sourcing and supplier management strategies depending on the importance and risk profile of each purchase.

Training and Developing Procurement Professionals

Posted: 07/22/2020 - 03:30
Author: Samantha Hoy
Invest in a training program that suits the unique needs of procurement.

Training a company’s team members is a foundational step in running a company, but it is often forgotten when busy times hit. This is a big mistake. Putting the time and effort into designing a training program that suits the unique needs of procurement will drive more effective results in less time. Employees will be better equipped to manage the various situations and surprises that sourcing across numerous categories brings about.

Rethinking the Future for Resilient Sourcing and Beyond

Posted: 06/29/2020 - 23:52
Author: Atul Vashistha
Future of Resilient Sourcing

While the COVID-19 pandemic is far from over, enterprises are looking beyond the current crisis with the hope of pandemic-proofing their supply chains and operations to build resiliency. But that view is too limited to build true resiliency. The next global business disruption crisis might be a pandemic, but it might also be something entirely different or so novel it's never been considered. Today's resilient enterprises need to embrace a mindset shift to view risk through a much wider lens.

Procurement’s Calling is to Protect the Business in Times of Crisis

Posted: 06/19/2020 - 05:22
Author: Michael Roesch
Procurement crisis

The coronavirus outbreak is having a profound impact on every business’ supply chain. The U.S. manufacturing PMI indicated the worst contraction in production, new orders, and employment since the 2008 recession. Nearly 75% of companies report supply chain disruptions in March, a number most expect to rise further.

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