Procurement success

Procurement has been traditionally poor at promoting a positive image of its function even though some passionate practitioners are out there waving the flag and highlighting pockets of excellence. It sometimes feels like the profession could benefit from a lesson in public relations. There’s no shortage of published articles and news about fraud, corruption and litigation involving purchasing people. So where is the good news?

 

The public sector is better at self-promotion

Last year, a ground-breaking project that will save millions of lives through the procurement of malaria-preventing mosquito nets was documented and even won an award. It was the world’s largest tender for the supply of nets, producing estimated savings of $140 million (£86.1 million).  The savings were achieved through ordering more nets of a standard size and simplifying processes to cut costs. The project will provide 190 million bed nets and protect 400 million at risk of malaria in 30 African and Asian countries. The lives of an estimated 1.3 million children will be saved.  So why are we not using this type of success story to tell the corporate world that we really can make a difference?

What little good news there is seems to come from successful collaboration initiatives between local government entities, educational institutions and colleges. Sharing of best practice is the main objective, as can be expected, but they also use this information to save time and money and then utilise the savings for the greater good of the community.

What about the private sector?

Private sector companies do not seem to share best practice and celebrate successes to the same extent. This is real pity. By showing leadership and their adoption of best practice companies can place themselves in the limelight and attract the best talent, becoming an employer of choice. One tip from The Source, an Australian procurement consultancy, says

“ensure that procurement is the department of choice by creating a compelling and business-relevant vision. Successfully marketing “brand procurement” to gain loyalty and increase understanding from your stakeholder base will set you apart from the majority of your peers.”  Sony Corporation is particularly good at this.

The Procurement Guru blog suggests that companies with world class ERP and e-procurement systems should share their knowledge and expertise publicly with their less sophisticated suppliers. By reaching out and offering such facilities as electronic invoicing they can save their suppliers time, money and stress and improve their cash flow. None of this can happen unless the big players are willing to share their success stories and case studies with others.  The benefits are more than just helping suppliers become more efficient, showcasing leadership and efficiency can also be good for business.

We can do better

We seem to rely on third party research organizations, industry bodies like CIPS and Procurement Leaders and the global consulting houses to sing the praises of the profession and publish the good news case studies. And they usually charge you for it too. More focus needs to be given to promoting the professional in the wider business community beyond industry journals and the many on-line procurement platforms.  If we don’t, we are just talking to ourselves.

This article was first published in Bespoke Bulletin in December 2015.