A study from Cambridge University shows UK workers are less stressed thanks to the early adoption of computers, says Paul Snell
If you are stressed returning to work this morning after a glorious weekend, you can no longer blame your computer.
This week the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) sent out a message declaring “UK companies the biggest winners as Olympic Park ‘big build’ nears completion”.
With just over a year to go until the start of the London 2012 Games, the ODA announced it is coming to the end of its procurement after awarding more than 1,500 direct contracts worth more than £6 billion, 98 per cent of which have gone to UK-based companies.
It said these direct deals have resulted in tens of thousands of supply chain contracts spread across the UK. (more…)
A few months ago, Shaun McCarthy succinctly summed up the dilemma for fleet buyers over whether electric cars are a truly sustainable option for purchase.
This uncertainty and apathy has been borne out with news this morning that – even with grants of up to £5,000 to cut the cost – just 680 electric cars have been bought since the government launched a £400 million scheme to promote their use in January. It’s not exactly the ‘revolution’ heralded when the programme was launched. (more…)
I very much welcome the initiative by Bangor University’s School of Law, Dublin City University’s strategic procurement unit and the Irish Institute of Purchasing & Materials Management to address the issue of small indigenous suppliers (SIS) missing out on public sector contracts by educating buyers and suppliers.
For many large firms there are established controls and systems in place to ensure that best practice is followed on company spending. With so much invested in securing preferred supplier lists and discounts it makes sense to ensure the teams on the ground are using them fully. But there is evidence smaller businesses with fewer resources are missing out on the deals their larger competitors enjoy, often purely down to a lack of knowledge of their expenses and fewer systems in place. (more…)
If you’re feeling light-headed today you should consider reaching for a chocolate bar and enjoying a glass of red wine at lunch to give your brain a boost. (more…)
“Foul ref – don’t you know the rules?!” screams the crowd. His response is dismissive. A few minutes later the final whistle blows; the score is 2-20. Supporters, including princes and premiers, trudge home heads bowed, venting their anger on the airwaves. (more…)
They have something you need and while you can’t agree to pay the earth for their goods, your company’s offering is somehow incomplete without them.
So it was with iTunes, Apple’s digital music distribution service. Despite its commanding position in the market, it lacked one key product – The Beatles. Now that looks likely to change, as rumours are rife today that the remaining group members, and the widows of John Lennon and George Harrison, have agreed to put their music out there, online. (more…)
University purchasers must feel like they are teetering on the brink of a precipice. On Friday, Universities UK head Professor Steve Smith emailed all higher education institutions saying he had seen what was in the plans for universities in the Comprehensive Spending Review, to be made public this Wednesday.
The plans, he says, are to slash government funding by £4.2 billion, including £1 billion on research and £3.2 billion (or a whopping 79 per cent) off the teaching budget. State finance for just about all arts and humanities courses will fall away, in favour of the sciences, mathematics and some modern languages courses. (more…)
I’m lucky to have been both a procurer and a supplier at many levels of negotiation. And this has given me a good understanding of what makes both ‘sides’ tick. (more…)
![[Bloglines]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/bloglines.png)
![[del.icio.us]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/delicious.png)
![[Digg]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/digg.png)
![[Facebook]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/facebook.png)
![[Google]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/google.png)
![[LinkedIn]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/linkedin.png)
![[Twitter]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/twitter.png)