Taking initiative
27 September 2007 | Steve Bagshaw
A reader has asked SM:
I want to undertake some investigative work with other non-competitive businesses to find out what initiatives leading procurement functions are focussing on.
Do you have any advice on how best to approach businesses for this purpose?
– Procurement manager, Berkshire
Can you offer any advice based on your experience?
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This is an interesting thought. I work for 3M based in Bracknell in Berkshire and could probably put the reader in touch with key people in our procurement and purchasing organisation to help/ explore in this initiative.
In my role, I would want to ask some questions in return. As a business we work through distribution and find it difficult to understand how procurement (as a key decision maker with our end customers)as a function gain information on what new product/ service innovations are available in the market place that could help their organisations….and what issues/ pain points are there that they would like to see solved to meet specific needs in their businesses. I would be keen to develop an understanding of this in return…..the offer is open!
I work for a University Purchasing Consortium, and am based in Reading, Berkshire. If the procurement manager named their business/employer, that would be astart in finding out if such organisations would respond!
Depending on the depth the person posing the question wants to go into, what I would feel is acceptable to say to this unknown (?) organisation, and how quickly I could respond, I would suggest he simply devises a short survey and call local organisation in his area to check for any interested respondees.
A pre-arranged phone conversation or public meeting, with an agenda of key points in advance, would probably get a favourable response from people wishing to share tips and perhaps unite for a focus group. Wouldn’t the local CIPS branch be able to assist?