PROCUREMENT REENGINEERING

Upper management is finally coming to the realization that the traditional procurement process is cost prohibitive and highly ineffective in itself. In particular shop and plant commodities such as Maintenance, Repair and Operating supplies (MRO) tend to absorb most the purchasing resources. Consequently business leaders and business process experts consider this area "virgin territory."

The development of exciting new processes for Procurement can help elevate the often-battered purchasing profession, to new levels. In reengineering the procurement process, purchasing professionals finally have an opportunity to rid themselves of the often nagging reams of paper and non-value-adding bureaucratic activities and controls.

In elevating the heretofore multifunctional procurement process into a continuous closed-looped process purchasing can now help direct the migration of transactions to suppliers performing as business partners through a process called Integrated Supply. Once reengineered, purchasing professionals can learn to be exactly the "professionals" and now aspire the control over up-scale types of purchases such as: utilities, insurance, leasing and outsourcing.

Among the many benefits of reengineering; the focus on adding value and the dramatic reduction in total procurement cost should have a profound impact on almost any organization.

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