Risk mitigation strategies lie at the heart of corporate governance. What is the contribution to these mitigation strategies from the procurement and supply chain management function? It is rare to find robust methodologies in place that will, in a structured way, identify the potential risks that exists in contracts with third parties. A failure to manage the risks leaves the organisation vulnerable to reputational damage, disputes, threats to service performance and diminishing profit margins. (more…)
With the death toll for the Bangladesh clothing factory collapse having passed 1,100, this tragic incident has resulted in a level of public anger at not just the owner of the factory but the companies whose goods were produced there. This anger demonstrates many consumers expect organisations to be accepting a measure of responsibility for their supply chain that goes beyond just selecting a supplier and taking delivery of products. Furthermore, it is no longer seen as acceptable to place the blame at the door of local regulators and decry all responsibility for the manner in which your goods are produced.(more…)
Most organisations will have many projects on-going globally at any one time, but are fraud risks and, in particular, procurement fraud risks fully acknowledged?
Projects as a specific activity are huge buying exercises that require the procurement and management of products and services to design, build and implement products or services.
Because projects are often specialised activities, they generally require some form of additional advice and support in the form of consultancy or the use of other temporary staff such as contractors. (more…)
Risk is an ever-present consideration, regardless of the sector where procurement activity is taking place. Examples are safety-critical equipment on aircraft, traceability of pharmaceutical feedstock and business continuity plans for strategic suppliers.
How do you plan to buy a high-risk, high-value product or service? You may find the following helpful, while recognising it is not intended as a full statement of requirements for such a plan. (more…)
Some years ago, I was working for an organisation that had just won an enormous project. The project was highly complicated, hugely important strategically and required a large amount of skilled workers to deliver. As a member of the risk committee, I spent a great deal of time looking at potential issues, monitoring these, developing mitigating actions and generally trying to make sure everything stayed on track.
Then, one day, someone raised a very curious risk to the committee. A significant number of the team had entered a lottery syndicate and the risk that was presented was “what happens if they win the jackpot?”. (more…)
In these days of ever-increasing pressure to reduce operational costs, companies are placing greater reliance on external providers of systems and software, outsourcing services and facilities management.
But while offering a variety of benefits, this approach generates new and sometimes unexpected challenges, which can have an impact across the organisation. (more…)
While everyone at yesterday’s Office Depot Strategic Thinking Forum in London agreed procurement and facilities management professionals (to which the event was directed) have got a higher profile as a result of the recession, there was a concern that the focus on cuts means best practice and long-term strategy would be lost. (more…)
As supply chain management has become dependent on electronic systems it has simultaneously grown more vulnerable to attacks from external (or internal) sources. (more…)
It’s all over the news this morning about Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude making his jerry can comment – that to prepare for the oil tanker strike, people should store petrol at home (even though a jerry can holds 20 litres, which is above the limit of fuel that can be stored at home). Maude runs the risk of perhaps being too honest. He, like other ministers, needs to think carefully about the message being sent. (more…)
Risk mitigation strategies lie at the heart of corporate governance. What is the contribution to these mitigation strategies from the procurement and supply chain management function? It is rare to find robust methodologies in place that will, in a structured way, identify the potential risks that exists in contracts with third parties. A failure to manage the risks leaves the organisation vulnerable to reputational damage, disputes, threats to service performance and diminishing profit margins. (more…)![[Bloglines]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/bloglines.png)
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