8 April 2015

Public sector e-tender portal and central supplier database set to go live

Leave a Comment / e-Procurement, Procurement Strategy, Supply Chain Management SCM, Tender Management / Editor

Government is introducing an electronic tender portal for public sector contracts to improve the supply chain. President Jacob Zuma said the portal system would be phased in from April, however, it this has been pushed to May. Government is taking action to improve the performance of its supply chain management system to “prevent fruitless […]

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Purchasing cards can work in government

Leave a Comment / Procurement Cards, Public Sector Procurement, Technology / Editor

Government’s renewed vigour in fighting wasteful expenditure, highlighted in Minister Nene’s budget speech, has received more limelight recently as commentators have discussed government’s plans around its centralised supplier database and eTender systems. A well-implemented purchasing card (P-Card) programme can help achieve government’s objective of utilising public funds more efficiently because it can reduce costs,

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20 checks to evaluate proposals and bid documents

Leave a Comment / Sourcing Strategy, Supplier Selection, Tender Management / Editor

What does a compliant proposal look like? Proposals can contain a lot of information and are the basis on which procurement decisions are made. Therefore, you must evaluate them carefully for compliance with your requirements. The following checklist, from Next Level Purchasing, can simplify your proposal evaluations and ensure that a supplier is worthy

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Professional ethics – a key to effective procurement and supply

Leave a Comment / Education, Enterprise Development, Professional Development / Editor

A code of ethics helps to clarify a profession’s values, provides a point of reference for decision making and can be used as a framework for discipline. Most codes of ethics are principle-based, providing guiding principles on which professional judgement and decisions should be based, rather than prescribing a rigid system of rules, says

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CPO website to make government SCM more accessible

Leave a Comment / Public Sector Procurement, Supplier Directories, Supplier Selection, Tender Management / Editor

The Office of the Chief Procurement Officer (OCPO) has launched a website to assist government officials and personnel of state-owned enterprises to create tenders, and to provide guidance to suppliers bidding for tenders. The website forms part of the OCPO’s objective of minimising procurement-related corruption in government while, at the same time, making government’s

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Taking the sting out of procurement’s performance review

Leave a Comment / Education, Professional Development / Editor

Speaking to SmartProcurement, Tech-Pro has come up with a guideline on how to prepare for your performance review and minimise shocks or surprises. This is by no means a definitive rule book, rather it is a blueprint of some steps one can follow to get the most out of the performance review process. The

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Why are small suppliers not being paid? Tips to keep their businesses intact

Leave a Comment / Enterprise Development, Supplier Partnerships / Editor

South African businesses were not immune to the global financial crisis. The slow economic growth of 2013/2014 is predicted to continue into 2015 and beyond. Real disposable income of South African consumers is declining, partly owed to their high levels of indebtedness and the banking sector’s stricter lending practices, says the Industrial Development Corporation.

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How do supply chains perform against change management elements?

Leave a Comment / Education, Procurement Strategy, Supplier Management, Supply Chain Management SCM / Editor

In a recent survey, 36% of respondents confirmed that there is a controlled process to manage change in their supply chains. The remaining 64% said their companies react to change either when required to respond to market needs or when they see little or no development potential in their supply chains. The results of

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Survey – managing change top business objective in supply chains

Leave a Comment / Procurement Strategy, Professional Development, Supplier Management, Supply Chain Management SCM / Editor

A total of 89% of respondents ranked ‘identifying and managing change’ as their top business objective in this year’s Barloworld Logistics Supplychainforesight 2015 survey on key strategic business objectives over the next 5 to10 years. ‘Growth and expansion into new markets’ was ranked the second highest business objective, and is a continuing theme from last

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Manufacturing sector struggles to gain momentum as load shedding bites

Leave a Comment / PMI, Supplier Management / Editor

The purchasing managers index (PMI), which measures activity in SA’s manufacturing sector, improved marginally in March, but remained at levels that suggest output was weak and that SA’s manufacturing sector is struggling to gain momentum. The index rose to 47.9 in March from 47.6 in February. A below-50 reading suggests manufacturing activity is contracting.

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