TECHNOLOGY
Most employees ‘ go rogue ’ not through any ill intent but because they don ’ t understand the procurement process , especially if they engage with it infrequently . Or it might be they see a better price elsewhere , and don ’ t know the hidden costs of going outside of standard procurement procedures .
Procurement managers need to communicate the value of sticking to the rules . Ways in which they can do so might include :
• Providing a forum for employees to recommend vendors and to give feedback .
• Offering ‘ lunch and learn ’ procurement training sessions .
• Recognising outstanding departmental or individual behaviour around procurement .
As well as clear communication there must also be transparency around spending . After all , how can you fix what you can ’ t see , with or without the help of software ?
This is where spend analysis comes in . By analysing historical spend data a company will discover how much maverick spend is costing it , as well the categories and departments where it ’ s most common .
Then there is accountability . While procurement processes are the responsibility of the procurement leadership team , spend management should be everyone ’ s responsibility . Every manager across an organisation should know exactly what ’ s being spent in their area , who ’ s spending it and what they ’ re spending it on .
So while P2P software is not a silver bullet for ending maverick spend , it is a useful tool in companies ’ efforts to make sure people remain within the procurement fold .
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