In the first instance, the commodity group ‘professional services’ nowadays encompasses an extremely broad range of technical and specialised services ranging from consultants (e.g. accounting and tax) to architectural, business communications, legal, medical, and so on. Secondly, because of the ever increasing complexity of the global economy and the processes of government, the need for […]
Part 7 of a ten-part series that examines key operational aspects of the so-called “Purchase to Pay” value chain by Independent Contributor, Peter Alkema – Head: Purchase to Pay at ABSA Paper, paper, paper – still remains one of the most pervasive raw materials of the modern day office, which has still not been eradicated
World Class Operational Procurement: Three-way matching vs. two-way matching Read More »
“Unfortunately it is a fact that organisations are exposed to certain financial and other employee-related risks, many of which occur within the procurement area. Risks to be seriously considered are ‘white-collar’ fraud, IT integrity and identity theft, workplace violence and unethical conduct in all its forms”, Elaine Porteous, Branch Manager – Interim and Executive Search
Hiring some new talent? Check them out properly first… Read More »
In last month’s SmartProcurement Newsletter, we reported on the keynote address by internationally acclaimed scenario planner and popular motivational speaker, Clem Sunter, on the topic of “The China Game”. His address was delivered at the 2nd annual SmartProcurement Strategic Sourcing Conference that was held at the Irene Country Lodge in Centurion, Pretoria. This leg of
What are the South African scenarios in the current climate of economic turmoil? Read More »
Part 6 of a ten-part series that examines key operational aspects of the so-called “Purchase to Pay” value chain by Independent Contributor, Peter Alkema – Head: Purchase to Pay at ABSA In Part 5 of this article series we looked in detail at the Purchase Order (PO), which is a standard output document used in
World Class Operational Procurement: Electronic, XML & Other POs Read More »
Some of the trauma associated with the current global crisis has been due to the speed with which the markets have changed. Twelve weeks ago Platinum was trading at $2,300 an ounce, today it is at $840 – a drop of almost two thirds. With the precipitous decline in global stock markets organisational management are
Cost reductions needed NOW! Read More »
Following on research resulting from the Strategic Sourcing Conference held in October 2008, SmartProcurement will be hosting an in-depth conference on Private and Public Sector Tendering. Tenders are a fundamental mechanism by which procurement departments achieve their strategic sourcing objectives, and by which they contribute on a massive scale – in both the private and
Tendering Conference and Technical workshop in May 2009 launched Read More »
Before any informed decision can be made regarding an organisation’s hardware and equipment specifications, a Managed Print Solutions (MPS) provider will need to clearly understand and analyse the following: The exact user and business requirements across the entire organisation / print estate (where, what, when, why, internal / external usage, colour / mono, etc.); Specific
In our previous article entitled “What does your supplier really think of you?” we introduced Supplier Opinion Surveys to you and discussed the various types of surveys and questions that can be developed to assist you as a procurement professional in understanding the true relationship with your supplier, and to determine those areas which need
Supplier opinion surveys: Practical how to’s and key benefits Read More »
One of the key strategies in Strategic Cost Management is the option of sourcing your ‘direct’ or even ‘indirect’ commodities from Low Cost Countries (LCC’s). This would be done due to various factors, but primarily because LCC’s are sometimes in substantially more price competitive positions than organisations at home. Several countries are now classified as
Overcoming business barriers with China and gaining savings Read More »
