New research from Keele University has found that nearly 61 per cent of people have committed some kind of crime against their business, employer or government. Now, we might not be talking about crimes such as fraud that we talked about a few weeks ago, but one of the most "popular" crimes that people admitted [...]
I have to present a monthly purchasing report to management. What are the key areas they are likely to be looking for and what should it highlight? Advisers told us: • Report a few meaningful measures where there are clearly defined targets • A combination of financial graphs, plus high-level summaries of key activities • [...]
Writing in the Soapbox column this issue, Jane Gibbs, supply chain director at property firm Rok, states her intention to set up a networking group for female buyers and asks women in procurement what challenges they face."If you want to progress but feel like you can’t, what help do you need? Are you interested in [...]
Royal Mail are having a bad time of it at the moment. Not only is the threat of strike action hanging over them, but they are losing big contracts with big customers. As the spokesman for Royal Mail said himself, "The loss demonstrates that Royal Mail’s higher costs, are costing us business". But how much [...]
In SM’s sustainable procurement supplement, published in the latest issue of the magazine (June 21), buyers are advised their role could become superseded if they don’t tackle sustainability. Shaun McCarthy, director of Action Sustainability and chairman of the Commission for a Sustainable 2012, says: “By thinking about what you buy, how it’s sourced, who makes [...]
Searching for procurement news takes the team at SM all over the world to hear speakers and presenters talk about the profession. So it can be disappointing when you attend conferences to hear the same presentation rehashed for the third time, or speakers just attend to promote their products and services. But if we, as [...]
This issue our experts were posed with the question, “My company is about to merge with another. What should the procurement department do in preparation?” Here are the highlights of what they told us: • Assess the profile of spend across all categories. • Ensure your department’s profile and reputation are solid and decision makers [...]
In the next issue of Supply Management, out tomorrow – Special Issue on Women in Procurement Featured Articles What she wants – How do women succeed in the male-dominated procurement profession? Of the same value? – Is there equal pay between the sexes in procurement? Out of the shadows – Interview with Caroline Booth, CPO [...]
Whenever job losses are announced at a company, such as at Cadbury Schweppes today, "back office functions" are usually the first to find themselves on the chopping block, either to be cut or outsourced. But is procurement now high profile enough to avoid being included in the first swathe of losses? Many purchasers that I [...]
Five years ago we wrote an article on the benefit of procurement people getting involved at the design stage, to improve on giving customers what they want. Perhaps now we are seeing the fruition of this idea. As we write in the current issue of SM, First Group and LloydsTSB are both taking more customer [...]
