Procurement

Will the UK save £1.6bn on procurement after Brexit?

Posted: 05/05/2017 - 19:59

In its campaign against the UK's continued membership of the European Union, 'Vote Leave' claimed that EU procurement rules, which govern the purchase of goods and services by public sector bodies, cost UK taxpayers £1.6bn a year. It also claimed that 1.9 million days a year are lost to red tape delays.

Is it likely or possible that the UK can save this money and time cost by changing the public procurement rules after Brexit?

Current system

Is procurement the key to unlocking innovation within organisations?

Posted: 04/22/2017 - 02:10

Depending on your business sector, the department you work in or your job function, innovation means different things to different people. Procurement professionals may view innovation as a long-term strategy, given the tremendous potential for delivering efficiencies and cost savings over time, while other business functions may see it differently. Their interest might be focused on enhancing performance and processes, delivering slicker workflows or increased speed to market.

How retailers can drive sustainable savings through strategic sourcing

Posted: 04/11/2017 - 23:42

Growing economic uncertainty has seen many businesses look to procurement for a means to increase savings and ultimately drive growth. This is especially true in the retail industry where common issues include mounting costs, struggling suppliers, increased competition and expanding supply chains. On top of this, savings must be achieved without affecting the quality of the end product or customer experience.

The 'mid-market reality check': what are the real procurement priorities for UK medium-sized businesses in 2017?

Posted: 03/07/2017 - 08:03

There always seems to be plenty of commentary around what’s driving innovation and growth in both large enterprises and startups. By comparison, the mid-market seems slightly neglected; this seems an oversight given the crucial role it plays in the UK economy. Although this market segment represents just 1% of UK firms, medium-sized businesses are increasing revenues by an average of 6.7% each year and the mid-market is expected to boost the economy by 18% over the next five years.

Outsourcing realities: What business executives need to know

Posted: 03/07/2017 - 07:26

Congratulations! It’s been three years since you decided to outsource accounts payable. Or, accounts receivable, or customer care, or payroll, or HR, or procurement, or any one of a dozen business process functions typically outsourced, in part or in full. You’ve finally stabilised operations, established consistent market standard processes, addressed the fears from the field, started realising those projected savings, and convinced IT that it is possible to improve response time without creating a horrific security breach.

OPINION: Design thinking should be life-centric…

Posted: 02/28/2017 - 08:20

As the drone flew over the factory in North Carolina and captured pictures and videos both inside and outside the factory, little did the company whose factory was being photographed realise that their practices would be questioned. Here is a factory that processes pig meat. The way the factory is designed is to optimise the number of pigs and the weight of these in order to get maximum production out of it. So, what is wrong with all this?

Contracting for emerging technologies: change with the changes

Posted: 02/21/2017 - 05:15

Emerging technology services have revolutionised the sourcing industry. These disruptive technologies like autonomics, interface technologies, big data analytics and other computing technologies have permitted smaller companies to successfully challenge established incumbent businesses. Specifically, as incumbents focus on improving their products and services for their most demanding (and usually most profitable) customers, they may exceed the needs of some segments and ignore the needs of others.

Sustainable procurement: a necessity for businesses of the future

Posted: 02/18/2017 - 02:02

As regulations and consumer pressures shift and organisations are increasingly exposed to risk – reputational and beyond – the procurement industry faces a critical juncture. This dynamic has created a business environment where sustainable procurement programs are no longer just nice to have, but an integral organisational function that is responsible for protecting and improving brand reputation, driving revenue and mitigating business risk.

Avoiding the black hole of marketing procurement

Posted: 02/14/2017 - 06:51

John Wanamaker once commented, “I know half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don't know which half.” Likely this is often said of marketing as a whole - and in fairness, applies to other business functions as well. Have you struggled with this conundrum when considering your sourcing options for marketing spend? Proper mechanisms to track performance, ROI, and effectiveness need to be in place to ensure that the money spent is adding value and not being spent because you have always done it that way.

Q&A: Raleen Gagnon, ManpowerGroup Solutions

Posted: 01/20/2017 - 03:19

Outsource got together with Raleen at last October's SIG Summit in Carlsbad, California, to hear about some of the key developments in the global labour market - and how procurement departments need to refine their approach to procuring people...


Outsource: Raleen, let’s begin with an introduction… Can you tell our readers what you do at ManpowerGroup?

Seven is a lucky number, but procurement success takes more than luck

Posted: 01/06/2017 - 20:59

It’s clear that procurement has evolved over the past several years. And it continues to evolve. Digitisation has helped take it from what was viewed as a back office function to a key differentiator and value driver. But why have some procurement organisations soared with the change while others lag behind?

What do winners know that others don’t? What makes some procurement organisations more efficient or effective, more successful, more innovative, more on top of their game?

Think differently

Life Lessons: Gautam Singh

Posted: 01/06/2017 - 20:57

Gautam Singh is the co-founder and CEO of The Smart Cube, a global analytics company. A first-generation immigrant who worked and built his way up to become the head of a respected international organisation, he's full of Life Lessons - and keen to share them with our readers in the next instalment of this series: over to you, Gautam...


What has been the single most significant development to impact your profession or area of business during your career, and why?

IT outsourcing is being transformed, but do the outsourcers understand?

Posted: 12/07/2016 - 00:28

The Register likes to put the boot in when they comment on IT stories, so it was no surprise to see a recent feature about Fujitsu in which The Register summarised that Fujitsu needs to "get a move on" if they are going to transform their business to meet the expectations of customers today.

Q&A: John Sculley

Posted: 10/20/2016 - 11:37

Outsource was lucky enough to catch up with John at the SIG Summit in Carlsbad, California, and to get treated to some remarkable insight from one of the sharpest minds in business…


Outsource: John, thank you so much for joining us today. It’s genuinely an honour. We have polled a few people for the opening question to this interview and the most popular query is this: what’s the one thing in your career that you’re most proud of?

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