Sourcing and Procurement
Maximising procurement excellence: The indispensable role of procurement consultants
Procurement consultants and chief procurement officers (CPOs) unlock value through strategic partnerships, risk management, and sustainability. Efficient procurement is not just about reducing the purchase cost but also supplier innovation and digitisation. Procurement consultants help you establish a foundation for growth and innovation with suppliers.
To emphasise the importance further, 82% of companies using digital solutions create direct business value through procurement data, and 69% prioritise cost reduction above all else through procurement management. This article lists the signs that indicate you need a procurement consultant, the benefits of procurement consulting services, and services you can benefit from.
Common signs you need a procurement consultant
The health of your current procurement process will indicate the need for a consultant, but it is important to know where to look for the signs. These points will help –
Inefficient procurement process
If you notice inflated costs and persistent delays and errors in service delivery from suppliers, these are the signs of an inefficient procurement process. A procurement consultant is an expert in identifying bottlenecks and non-performing suppliers and streamlining procurement through digital solutions. This brings better cost management and efficiency for a smooth and error-free procurement process.
Poor risk management
From vendor reliability to changes in the market, every procurement process has a risk exposure. You cannot avoid them, but are you managing them correctly? If not, this can have serious repercussions, such as cost overruns, supply chain disruptions, and unfulfilled commitments to the customer. Procurement consultants help you with proven tools and strategies to manage risk.
Misalignment between procurement process and organisational goals
If your business goal is to serve the B2B market, you may be extremely cost-conscious. If your suppliers only serve the B2C market, they may not align with your goals. A B2B focussed supplier will be happy to negotiate better prices for a higher volume of orders. Similarly, sustainability is an organisational goal wherein your values may not match. Situations like these can become roadblocks in your business growth.
Procurement consultants identify and clearly list the organisational goals and align them with procurement activities and suppliers for overall success.
Technology and integration challenges
Having a digital procurement solution is not enough. Are you sure you have the right solution that meets your organisational needs and integrates with other systems? Without the right domain knowledge, most businesses struggle with technology gaps and non-performing systems.
For example, your current procurement system may not provide spend analytics and integrate seamlessly with CRM and accounting systems. A procurement consultant helps you seamlessly navigate these challenges.
Benefits of having a procurement consultant
Procurement consultants bring the domain knowledge to optimise your supply chain, improve business performance, and implement innovation. Here is why you must have them onboard –
Industry expertise
With a professional consultant onboard, you can quickly isolate the areas of inefficiency and cure them using tailored solutions. With their fresh perspective, procurement consultants objectively analyse the current procurement process and notice inefficiencies your in-house team may have missed.
Procurement assessment knowledge
A professional procurement assessment looks at supplier quality, risk management, cost optimisation, sustainability, and market levers to draft a detailed strategy that aligns with your business goals.
Supplement your existing team
Procurement consultants supplement your existing team with managed services. They fill in the gap in your existing team without being a full-time employee. From on-ground support to digital transformation, procurement consultants add immense value.
Up-to-date industry knowledge
The procurement field is dynamic, and it is difficult for your team to keep up with the changes. A procurement consultant remains updated with the industry trends, compliance, legal requirements, technologies, and legislation to help you out proactively.
Services procurement consultants give
Procurement consultants start as practitioners and gain industry knowledge to help businesses of any size and domain. Here is a list of areas they specialise in –
- Procurement strategy
- Supplier relationship management
- Spend analytics
- Tender and request management
Curtail excessive maverick and tail spend as you scale up. This creates a foundation for other innovations and process improvements.
Procurement consultants help you create collaborative supplier relationships with a clear process to measure value, manage costs, and drive innovation.
Procurement consultants analyse the organisational spend and find opportunities to save through cost optimisation and supplier consolidation and reduction.
Setting up Requests for Proposals (RFPs) and managing strategic sourcing while keeping an eye on costs, jurisdiction, and compliance are complex tasks that procurement managers help you ace.
How can Infosys BPM help?
Procurement consultants at Infosys BPM bring specialist expertise and experience to transform the client’s business. They do so by procurement transformation and strategic development, capability assessment, consulting and training, technology assessment, and more.
Read more about procurement strategy services at Infosys BPM.
