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Tuesday, June 30, 2009 at 09:37PM This graph from Thomson Financial points out that commodity volatility is still historically high. Procurement professionals should take this into account as they forecast budgets for 2010.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009 at 09:29PM I was recently forwarded an interesting newsletter from Decision Path Consulting. The article focused on identifying the “cost to serve” major customers.
From a sales perspective the article asked these questions, do you have customers who:
Does this sound like your company? If buyers and sellers work together they could identify the cost to serve and remove waste. Decision Path offered some advice on how to get this done:
Some or all of the data necessary to determine cost to serve - order lead times, order changes and when they occur, arrival time versus delivery appointment, returns by reason code, and so on - resides in your transactional systems. The challenge lies in transforming that raw data into the cost to serve each customer and, ultimately, into profitability by customer. Business Intelligence can contribute toward cost-to-serve and customer profitability in multiple ways:
- Integration of data from disparate internal systems and external sources
- History and trending - the pattern of exceptions and special requests - to provide context
- Holistic view of the customer across all products, all its distribution centers/stores, and all its divisions
- Comparison across customers and to cost-to-serve and profitability targets
Tuesday, June 23, 2009 at 09:27PM The IndustryWeek Best Plants Benchmarking Database (registration required) can show you how top manufacturers set themselves apart. Which tactics do they implement? How do they measure their performance?
The best plant metrics are provided for management practices, quality, employment practices, safety, customer focus, product innovation, supplier relations, technology investment, manufacturing operations & flexibility, maintenance, inventory management, environmental stewardship and competitiveness & market results. Comprehensive to say the least.
Here are a number of world class procurement metrics from the best plants benchmarking database:
The report is loaded with many other manufacturing benchmarks, be sure to check this out.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009 at 08:55PM Here are the latest links from the Purchasing Blogs shared items list:
from 2Sustain
from Purchasing Blogs
from Environmental Leader
Wednesday, June 17, 2009 at 08:31PM According to the AT Kearney’s assessment of procurement excellence, procurement leaders excel at sustainability and risk management. Companies are recognized for using the power of procurement to transform their organizations, processes and technologies, and to drive business results.
Here is how AT Kearney evaluated procurement risk management strategies:
Here are the links:
http://www.atkearney.pl/content/misc/wrapper.php/name/file_new-supply-realities_1232637728dfa2.pdf
http://www.atkearney.com/images/global/pdf/SCM090501watson_id.pdf
Wednesday, June 10, 2009 at 08:51PM From the Economist:
Raw material prices rose by nearly 20% in May, according to the S&P/Goldman Sachs Commodity Index, one of the biggest monthly increases on record. The surge has been widespread, with everything from copper to cotton moving higher. Meanwhile the Baltic Dry Index, an indicator of shipping activity, has risen more than six fold from its December low.
What could counteract these rising commodity prices? Some experts believe there is adequate inventory and more than plenty of production capacity to hold down prices.
Here is the link:
http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=13788599&fsrc=rss
Monday, June 8, 2009 at 06:44PM What would improving forecast error by 50% be worth? Better production planning, resource utilization and significant inventory reduction to name a few. Demand Sensing validates daily demand data from multiple sources in the supply chain, including point-of-sale data, customer warehouse and outlet inventory, and forecasts. Demand Sensing uses pattern recognition mathematics to decipher which information can be forecasted accurately.
Here is an example of a demand sensing initiative at P&G:
"In the current economic climate -- with ever increasing volatility in demand -- it is crucial to extend the supply chain visibility as close to our customers as possible," explains Mueller. In the near term, he is therefore now focusing on integrating customer demand data into Procter & Gamble's demand sensing application, which is expected to further improve forecast accuracy in order to achieve superior customer service. Speed today is of the essence," says Mueller. "Only those companies that can respond quickly to customer and consumer needs will stay ahead. At Procter & Gamble, one key focus area is on dramatically simplifying our operations. For technology professionals this is a major opportunity. We are well positioned to empower the company to turn external crisis into opportunity."
Wednesday, June 3, 2009 at 10:07PM Bing is Microsoft’s new and improved search engine. I gave it a test drive today using the search term Dow Chemical with great results.
On the left side of the page results links are provided with related searches about Dow such as MSDS, jobs and employment information. On the right are similar links for other companies Dow Corning, DuPont and BASF.
With each search result you can mouse over for a summary of the website. This is a great time saver to pre-screen a website without going to the web page. There are also search links for news, images, maps and shopping. I like how the images are all the same size. The shopping link provides a list of products from the Amazon marketplace. Category links are listed on the left hand to help filter results.
Overall, Bling results were very pertinent, great summaries and well organized. Definitely worth a try.
Saturday, May 30, 2009 at 02:48PM Be sure to check out Sourcing Reload from Booz & Company. Originally published in 2008 but now available as a PDF download (requires registration). This is jam packed full of up to date purchasing best practices for organizations of all sizes.
Sourcing Reloaded: Targeting Procurement’s New Strategic Agenda, is packed with insights and prescriptive advice that senior leaders and purchasing executives can use to navigate today’s most vexing sourcing problems. Its main theme: how to balance traditional sourcing strategies with the new, collaborative approaches needed to drive sourcing’s effectiveness and help it attain its full potential in the face of the demands of globalization, resilience, sustainability, complexity, and customization.
Here is the link: http://www.strategy-business.com/sourcingreader
Thursday, May 7, 2009 at 09:06PM Trade Jim News » ISM Presentation: "Spend Analysis - The Window ...
Kirit Pandit, Author and Spend Analysis Expert With Emptoris, Inc., to Co-Present With Director of Strategic Sourcing From Cardinal Health on Spend Analysis Strategies at Annual ISM Conference ... ...tradejim.com
PRESSEMITTEILUNGEN - Outsourcing can be valuable, when applied ...
Buyers must embrace a well-thought through strategic sourcing approach that considers the current situation (in terms of principles, current capabilities, risk profile and business drivers) and market competence, first and foremost. ... ...www.blogspan.net
Sourcing Innovation: An Enterprise Software Buying Guide, Part II ...
Even if it's SaaS, IT is still going to have to support the system one way or another. If it's on-premise, IT will likely be responsible for the installation, maintenance and upgrades. If it's hosted ASP, IT will need to manage the ... ...blog.sourcinginnovation.com
SmartProcurement.co.za - FREE on-line newsletter for purchasing ...
Strategic sourcing activities such as eRFx and online auctions. Improved electronic connections to a company's supply base offer the company an opportunity to reduce procurement operating costs by utilising more automated processes ... ...www.smartprocurement.co.za
Wednesday, April 15, 2009 at 09:56PM from SpendMatters
from Purchasing News
from Purchasing News
from Purchasing News
from Environmental Leader
Tuesday, March 24, 2009 at 08:04PM Less than 2 weeks ago I reported that China was an expert at timing the energy buy. China completed some amazing deals at a time when there was a significant glut of oil.
Now China is timing the copper buy. According to the Financial Times, a secretive Chinese state organization has been stockpiling copper that has triggered an impressive rally of almost 35 per cent in the price of metal this year (…although maybe buying copper is a better investment than U.S. Treasuries).
Traders believe China is rebuilding its strategic stocks because the current price is less than half last year’s record $8,940 a ton and also to support its struggling local copper smelters and avoid job losses.
Many countries have a competitive advantage due to rich natural resources. These resources enable a higher margin than competitors. Maybe China is the first country to demonstrate a competitive advantage in consortium buying and global procurement?
Thursday, March 19, 2009 at 08:29PM A free sticky note sorting application from two Microsoft employees. Having been in many brainstorming sessions, with hundreds of ideas on sticky notes, this app will come in handy.
The inventors, Julie and Sumit, were looking for an easier way to capture, sift through, and organize hundreds of research observations traditionally done on physical sticky notes in an affinity diagramming exercise with researchers from around the world.
Here is the link: http://www.officelabs.com/projects/stickysorter/Pages/default.aspx
Tuesday, March 17, 2009 at 09:57PM A new beta version of Purchasing Toolpak is available for download. A special offer for the first 10 blog readers that try Purchasing Toolpak 2009 beta. Just download, install and give Purchasing Toolpak 2009 a try. Send your comments to toolpak2009@buyeranalytics.com and tell us what you think (good or bad). You’ll receive a free license when the final version is released.
Purchasing Toolpak 2009 features include:
Here is a screenshot:
DaveM
Thursday, March 12, 2009 at 06:26PM An exclusive Washington Times article provides insights into China's new energy supply deals. In February, China secured oil supply deals totaling $41 billion with Russia, Brazil and Venezuela. Here are some highlights of these deals...