The Hot Button of Procurement

Are you ready for the change?

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There always are issues with supply chain. The hot ones that we hear a lot about are risk management (and it always will be), talent management and offshoring/near-shoring/reshoring. But there’s a fourth that’s evolving so rapidly that today’s version might be unrecognizable in a decade or less: Procurement.

Earlier this month, we presented a webinar called “The Changing World of Procurement.” If you haven’t heard it yet, do yourself a favor and visit our website to give it a listen. It’ll be worth an hour of your time.

As I said in my introduction to the webinar, organizations must identify all of their business entities, buying habits, cost information, benchmarking and more to obtain more real-time data in a predictive form. If not, they face knowledge loss as experienced procurement officers leave the business (talent management), customer loss, being viewed as a less favorable supplier, less financial investment from shareholders, reduced market share and a non-sustainable business model.

This issue of Supply & Demand Chain Executive features a couple of stories that deal with procurement. The first, our cover story, “The CPO’s Challenge: Making Sure the Right People, Processes and Technology are in Place,” begins on Page 8. In it, Dave Bowen, CEO of MarketMaker4, says more often than not, companies don’t even know overspending is happening, let alone how much. He advises putting a roadmap into place that will enable you to invest in the right talent, tap specialized tools to achieve maximum results and take an integrated approach so procurement can achieve its goals and prove its value within the wider business.

 

On Page 12, we narrow the procurement focus to one of the most complex verticals: healthcare. Hospital systems have the same general issues as most businesses, but they have unique regulatory and compliance requirements that add a higher level of complexity to their supply chains. Beyond traditional buyer-seller transactions, hospitals require solutions that help manage relationships, respond to regulatory obligations, and thrive in the marketplace. Gary Johnson, CMO of Vendormate recommends adopting a holistic, procurement cycle management process and tells how to go about it.

We’re not done with healthcare. Pharmaceutical companies have begun to realize that having a true end-to-end supply chain is of vital importance.  “Start at the doctor’s office, the hospital, Walgreen’s and CVS to understand consumption,” says Robert Martichenko, CEO of LeanCor, in our story that begins on Page 15. “What are their needs and what does pharma need to do to meet them? You need the proper lead time to have the freshest product in the hands of your customers.”

Later in that same story, Brian Daleiden, VP marketing of TraceLink, tells us about the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA), new legislation that will establish, for the first time, the foundation of a national requirement for tracking and tracing of drug products across the supply chain from pharmaceutical manufacturer to pharmacy dispenser. The end-to-end supply chain.

Finally, I’m pleased to announce the latest member of our Editorial Advisory Board—Lora Cecere. I’m sure Lora, the founder and CEO of research firm Supply Chain Insights, is familiar to all of you. I’m looking forward to her advice, guidance and experience as we strive to provide solutions for all of your supply chain pain.

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