SUPPLY CHAIN as to what the true value of procurement can and will be going forward .”
As is often the case , a function is defined by its people and processes . Hughes has already worked extensively on the people element , one that can easily be overlooked in the search for greater efficiencies but running alongside this is the process and technology side of procurement .
“ To put it simply , it ’ s about providing my team with better tools in order to be more effective and efficient ,” says Hughes . “ That in turn feeds into the wider goal of making procurement more valued by the organization and more effective in how we can deliver results and savings .” Hughes has already started implementing a new digital procurement suite of tools from Zycus that includes spend analytics as well as e-sourcing , procureto-pay ( P2P ) and contract management , that will all be fully integrated when they go live before the end of 2018 .
If a procurement function is defined on an internal level by the people and the process , then the role it plays externally is equally as important . After all , what use is a procurement function without a network of suppliers ?
This notion is only magnified in the nonprofit sector , as Hughes himself admits that in some instances organizations are sometimes “ married ” to their incumbent suppliers . “ Why change when stakeholders are happy with the service they are receiving and the price they are paying ,” says Hughes .
“ So , one of my challenges was to convince people that we should look at the marketplace again and determine whether these suppliers are in fact competitive with other options available to us . Often they are not .”
Hughes stresses that this was not a process of replacing vendors but rather re-evaluating those supplier relationships in order to identify opportunities for better or more cost-effective service .
The ultimate message , for Hughes , is one of greater collaboration moving forward .
“ We aren ’ t here to disrupt existing processes or relationships ,” he says . “ We are here to extract as much value as possible and ensure
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