Sourcing & Procurement

Too often, supply chain and procurement leaders are not well-prepared for complex negotiations with key suppliers. So what does it take to get ready for even the toughest adversaries? Here are seven techniques that top supply management negotiators put into action—techniques that prove effective even when the deck is stacked against them.

IBM Emptoris Strategic Supply Management solutions help companies maximize savings, drive improved supplier performance and mitigate risk.

The report looks at what separates outperformers from the rank-and-file organizations that fall short. And, finally, the report provides a roadmap that CPOs can follow that will enable them to begin emulating the practices of outperformers to positively impact the competitive position of their organizations.

GT Nexus Cloud Tools enables you to manage that change and support the complex network of data which form the backbone of your supply chain. Once you are on the platform with GT Nexus, you may be receiving data from suppliers, carriers, third party logistics providers, agents and banks.

At the end of 2012, GSCS had delivered significant cost savings to Weathermatic, including reducing Weathermatic’s costs by 24% within the first three weeks of engagement, and radically improved supply chain processes.

Due to its simultaneously disgusting and entertaining nature the 2013 meat adulteration scandal, or horse meat incident remains in the news even months after beginning. You might not be in the food industry yourself, but the scandal points out how vulnerable a supply chain with low upstream visibility can be.

TOMS Shoes has selected GT Nexus to provide the cloud supply chain technology platform to support global sourcing and import operations at the rapidly growing footwear and eye wear company.

Want to improve your outsourcing efforts? This article unpacks the lessons of five “Big Thinkers” in the world of economics and shares how their insights can help improve your outsourcing.

E2open today announced the availability of E2 Planning & Response version 11.2, which includes improved “what-if” scenario and simulation capabilities, network planning visualization and analytics, and certified SAP adapters.

Cost management has taken on increasing importance in all aspects of the business. And in no part of the business is it any more critical than in procurement and sourcing activities. In this article, professor Wendy Tate of the University of Tennessee explains the principles and techniques that enable effective cost management as part of an overall strategic sourcing approach.

In her book, Vested Outsourcing: Five Rules That Will Transform Outsourcing, Kate Vitasek talks about three case studies, with P&G, McDonalds and Microsoft, and their successful supplier relationships. A common theme was the shift away from a traditional customer-supplier relationship to a highly collaborative relationship aimed at developing a win-win solution.

According to a new survey by Consero Group, an international consultancy based in Bethesda, Md, over 50 percent of Chief Procurement Officers said their company pursues short-term savings from suppliers that undermine long-term value.

This survey, presented in partnership with Vantage Partners, LLC, was developed in connection with an invitation-only event hosted by Consero Group LLC in January 2013 for a group of Fortune 1000 Chief Procurement Officers.

Procurement leaders face new pressures in 2013 as companies focus on profitable growth and balance local agility with global scale in their value chains, according to new Procurement Key Issues Research from The Hackett Group.

The concept of demand management includes demand sensing, demand shaping, demand translation, and demand orchestration throughout the value network.

Of all the Hackett Key Issues Studies conducted in the last five years, the 2013 edition shows the greatest year over- last change in priorities for both performance and capability-related issues. As companies adapt their operating models to the globalized business environment, business support functions are impacted in many ways.

Brick & mortar retailers in the grocery, mass and specialty categories have weathered tumultuous years with decreasing sales and increasing pressure from online peers. While e-commerce is not a fading trend, there exists widespread opportunity for improved performance of retail supply chains which will help brick & mortars compete in the new retail landscape.

The availability of downstream data has never been higher, but the efforts to use it are stalled. The answer lies in rethinking processes end-to-end to use the data. The answers fly in the face of traditional thinking and will require active stewardship by manufacturing leaders that understand why it is important to drive outside-in processes.

The organizations and authors have teamed on this white paper to drive clarity around outsourcing business models and to help procurement, outsourcing professionals and commercial managers understand and use the appropriate sourcing business model to maximize their desired outcomes.

What happens when a world-class company discovers one of its key functions is less than world class? For software giant Microsoft, the answer is simple. They fixed it. In 2006, Microsoft embarked on a complete reengineering of its major global finance processes and operations.