Are You Closer to Your Procurement Goals or Further Away?

Are you closer to the goals you set for this year or further away?

Most people set annual goals and if you are one of them, now may be a good time to check your progress.

Here are five that clients have shared with me:

  • Increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the procurement team
  • Meaningfully increase vendor loyalty
  • Eliminate maverick spend
  • Minimize manual methods
  • Enhance competitive advantages

In my opinion this list sounds more like ongoing goals than annual ones.

They are all good.

They also fail a couple of key tests.

They aren’t specific or measurable.

If you set a goal to lose 10 pounds by July 15 you should be able to clearly chart your course to accomplish it.

Let me share how I would change “minimize manual methods” to make it easier to gage your success.

I will use an example that was shared with me recently.

The CPO was asked by the CEO “What is the total value of contracts that will renew this year?”

It took his team more than three weeks to come up with the answer.

Plus, they had to make some educated guesses because some of the contract addendums couldn’t be readily found.

They also discovered that several contracts had automatically renewed without review.

Pain is a great motivator.

The CPO set the following goal for his team:

Key requirements detailing automated reminders, reporting capabilities, access etc. were created.

Now his team had a clear roadmap to follow.

The more specific you can be, the easier it is to determine how you are doing.

Being specific can be hard and no one is perfect including me.

So far this year I have had several successes and fallen short on some other goals.

By doing my evaluation now, I have a much greater chance to accomplish each goal for the year.

I find that if I create small measurable “mini goals”, I am much more likely to nail down the bigger goals.

The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, the next best time is today,

Set specific goals for the balance of the year and I guarantee your successes will start to multiply.

Ask better questions, make changes and 2019 will be your best year ever.

Action Step: If you are uncertain where to start the process of change, a procurement professional like myself can provide guidance and expertise to help your organization achieve the results you want.

If you want to go explore this topic in greater detail, please contact me. I invite you to request 30-minute discovery conversation. In my experience the next step will be apparent at the end of the call. I never assume that what I have to offer will be right for everyone, so don’t expect a sales pitch. You can reach me at 973-936-9672.

If you would like to know more ways to reduce costs without changing the way you do business, simply give me a call or send me an email with your contact information and the best time to reach you.

You Won’t Drift to Success©

Commit to taking the next step.

Until Next Time, I Wish You Great Success in Your Business and in Your Life

Mike Jeffries