View from others about Procurement/Purchasing function?
Discussion
Although the idea of procurement as a business function is 10 years or so old, it does seem that it hasn’t been incorporated into the fabric of businesses as fuller as I would have expected.
The evidence is that it can make a much bigger impact on the profitability of a company then trying to increase sales. But simplistically to achieve this it does impose restrictions on where to buy which creates tension within a company.
What I am looking for is everyone’s HONEST opinions on their experiences of procurement within their company.
For me this is a fact finding mission, so I can understand the struggles people are having which are impacting on the effectively of procurement.
The evidence is that it can make a much bigger impact on the profitability of a company then trying to increase sales. But simplistically to achieve this it does impose restrictions on where to buy which creates tension within a company.
What I am looking for is everyone’s HONEST opinions on their experiences of procurement within their company.
For me this is a fact finding mission, so I can understand the struggles people are having which are impacting on the effectively of procurement.
caz_manc said:
Although the idea of procurement as a business function is 10 years or so old, it does seem that it hasn’t been incorporated into the fabric of businesses as fuller as I would have expected.
It's a lot older than that. And surely if you are saying "it" has not been integrated, that is situation and company and/ or group specific? There are plenty of companies who have full integration (eg category management implementations), and plenty with central procurement functions (just look at BP), and plenty with models that suit themselves and their niche specifics.caz_manc said:
The evidence is that it can make a much bigger impact on the profitability of a company then trying to increase sales. But simplistically to achieve this it does impose restrictions on where to buy which creates tension within a company.
What ARE you talking about? Again this is situation-specific. "Improvements" in procurement (ie buying centrally and in bulk/ competing tenders etc) are hardly new, and can quite obviously increase profitability, but that's not to say it's a silver bullet and applicable to every situation. But you suggest that doing so can cause problems and "tension" within a company, the effectiveness of procurement is not a company's problem... caz_manc said:
What I am looking for is everyone’s HONEST opinions on their experiences of procurement within their company.
For me this is a fact finding mission, so I can understand the struggles people are having which are impacting on the effectively of procurement.
Then you need to make sure you get a decent cross reference of company sizes/ industries, and making statements that suggest the answers you would like on a forum like PH is not likely to help!!For me this is a fact finding mission, so I can understand the struggles people are having which are impacting on the effectively of procurement.
I’m a Global Sourcing Manager at a large global bank (not sure I should name the firm here), and I would say that our Procurement function is well integrated in to the wider business.
The classic tensions still exist ‘why are they forcing us to buy from X, I know Y will do me a better deal’. But this is nothing more than a lack of understanding and communication.
The classic tensions still exist ‘why are they forcing us to buy from X, I know Y will do me a better deal’. But this is nothing more than a lack of understanding and communication.
Jonathan27 said:
I’m a Global Sourcing Manager at a large global bank (not sure I should name the firm here), and I would say that our Procurement function is well integrated in to the wider business.
The classic tensions still exist ‘why are they forcing us to buy from X, I know Y will do me a better deal’. But this is nothing more than a lack of understanding and communication.
Thank you that is what I am looking for.The classic tensions still exist ‘why are they forcing us to buy from X, I know Y will do me a better deal’. But this is nothing more than a lack of understanding and communication.
I am trying to keep this as generic as possible so that I do get honest feedback. Some companies will be fully integrated and some still have admin staff placing orders. Either way I would like to know how people view procurement and how they are or are not having problems because of the policies’ implemented.
I work for one of the big 4 oil and gas service companies and the whole of Supply Chain (proc, materials and logistics) is deeply integrated; after the technology and equipment it is probably the most important function in a global business such as ours. I don't work in Supply Chain directly but do support it through my own job; being an American company at the core there is a huge range of policies and procedures (as well as sanctions and restrictions) that you have to deal with, but the whole company has to deal with them.
I can imagine it varies from company to company and industry to industry. It is a vital part of the O&G industry hence why I think it wouldn't be unreasonable to assume that a lot of the top-end companies in that industry deeply rely on their Supply Chain function.
I can imagine it varies from company to company and industry to industry. It is a vital part of the O&G industry hence why I think it wouldn't be unreasonable to assume that a lot of the top-end companies in that industry deeply rely on their Supply Chain function.
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