In any business, procurement plays a significant role in helping organisations achieve their objectives and drive costs down. Even though some organisations may have mature supply chain and procurement processes in their business lifecycles, the strategic value of this important function can often be overlooked. Therefore, when dealing with effective procurement strategies the following key points should be given careful thought:
* Are you certain you are getting the most out of every rand spent?
* Does your procurement function support your business strategy?
* What is your percentage of direct spend in relation to your indirect spend?
* What percentage of your total spend is managed through contracts?
* At what level does your procurement function operate, at boardroom level or still as an add-on service?
* Do your Supply Chain and Procure-To-Pay processes and policies ensure the risk-free delivery of the business value expected?
On this note, Gen2 Enterprise Software, in partnership with ITWeb, is conducting an online Supply Chain and Procurement Survey during August to gauge and understand the current procurement landscape in South Africa and to gather information about the needs of organisations to improve their procurement processes.
"The main objectives of this survey are to better understand the readiness of South African organisations to leverage integrated electronic procure-to-pay systems and technology to bring greater automation to their businesses and align the supply chain and procurement function with their strategic objectives," says Diederik Jordaan, MD of Gen2 Enterprise Software.
Jordaan points out not so long ago, the procurement function was considered to be an add-on service where business decided which suppliers were core to the organisation and little more was expected of procurement than to battle some cost reductions out of the contract and then hand the relationship back to the business to manage.
"Most procurement functions have not moved forward quickly enough to address supply chain ef?ciency as some organisations may have expected. According to research, many procurement functions still struggle to raise their game beyond simple tactical activity and (re)negotiating low cost contracts, to a broader and more strategic role within the wider business," he adds.
Organisations are increasingly looking to the procurement function to engage their business in strategic conversations about how supply chain can optimise their operations to deliver the greatest returns.
Jordaan comments further: "The supply chain and procurement function has however been slow to evolve. There is still not enough focus on ongoing supplier relationship management, involvement in demand management, and often a dangerous lack of preparation, mitigation, and action around supply chain risk."
Click here to complete the survey and you can win a Dell Venue "7 Tablet.
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