Increasing The Scope of Purchasing

posted: > 10 days ago
Source: Charles' Purchasing Certification Blog

I hope that you have enjoyed the article 'How To Increase The Scope of Purchasing.'

Increasing the spend under the management of the purchasing department should be every purchasing executive's goal. Getting senior management to agree to such an expansion isn't always easy.

The points in the article give a great way to start the conversation. But you also have to be realistic about what will come next.

Yes, those points alone may get you exactly what you want. If you feel that the culture of your organization will permit this result, great.

But, in more politically-entrenched cultures, the best you can hope for is a request for more quantiable justification. And that's OK. That is a step further than you were. Just be prepared to respond accordingly.

Your response should be in the format, 'The purchasing department reduced the spend on category x from y dollars to z dollars. Therefore, we believe that we can reduce the spend on category a from b dollars to c dollars by applying the same expertise.'

And, don't forget...if you get the green light from management, the struggle isn't over. You still have to work some change management magic with your end users. The principle in an older article entitled 'The Purchasing Manifesto' may be just the trick you need in that regard.

To Your Career,
Charles Dominick, SPSM
President & Chief Procurement Officer
Next Level Purchasing, Inc.
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