How to avoid fuelling a procurement resource crisis – My Top 10 tips

We all know the crisis at the petrol pumps has been caused by a mix of a supply chain capacity shortage and emotional buying. As a result, we are all paying over the odds for petrol (that is if we can get any – especially in London). I see parallels in the professional services procurement world.

Procurement colleagues are forever reacting to demand and dealing with crisis after crisis.  When was the last time you heard anyone in procurement say, “I’m not busy!”

As demand grows in a post-pandemic environment, I’m seeing more clients talk about the urgent need for resource. In turn, contractor rates are increasing, and procurement consultancies are busier than ever. Add in a general shortage of time and resource, together with stakeholder pressure what you get is rushed procurement. Which then results in missed opportunities such as value for money, compliance and ERG benefits. We are seeing Statements of Work which lack detail and (because of this) risk project failure, and I’ve not even mentioned the IR35 risks all over the place

So here’s my top 10 ten tips which you can implement now to avert a future crisis:

1. Invest in a relationship with a specialised (Professional Services) on-demand procurement resource partner
2. Create an activity catalogue split into units of work
3. Get access to a pre-qualified service provider marketplace
4. Start using a Statement of Work platform which can manage the entire source to pay process
5. Work with stakeholders to make them better buyers
6. Move to a budget based, fixed price, milestone driven model – move away from day rates
7. Collaborate with professional services procurement peers – share specifications, benchmark data and general best practice
8. Develop 12-month procurement activity plans
9. Have a strategic solution to manage your tail spend – its bigger than you think and takes up a disproportionate amount of your time
10. Stop and breath once in a while – allow yourself to think intuitively

You won’t be surprised to know that at Constellia, through membership of the Consultancy Procurement Council, our Consultancy MSP and on-demand solution, we can help with pretty much all of the above. And for number 10, I can share some tips and techniques for mindfulness.

Wouldn’t it be good to change the rhetoric from “I’m (too) busy” to “I’m in control and making a difference”?

Want to continue the conversation?