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Aug23
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Here's the scenario: Your company sells a product that you decide you could get for a (much) lower price if you made it yourself in an overseas marketplace. You get together a team of people and assign tasks to determine the feasibility of dropping your current vendor and doing it on your own.
Fast forward to three months later. You are practically no farther along in the process than you were when you started and you are now overwhelmed by the hurdles and challenges involved and think that only "those companies" you read about in articles can make overseas sourcing/manufacturing work.
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Aug23
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There is something mystical, or at least mythical, about cutting ten percent of a budget. I remember when a gubernatorial candidate who had been a successful businessperson prior to entering politics consistently repeated during his campaign that any business person...
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Aug22
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Most people like blog entries and articles that have lists of tips that help you focus on the challenge at hand and its solution(s). I just read an article that has such tips, but also goes beyond them at the same time. If your company...
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I just wrote an entry about contract compliance and it made me think of something that has always given me pause about our industry. Let's talk about the concept of auditing contract prices. More specifically, let's discuss something I've seen that make...
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There are many articles written in Sourcing industry literature about making sure your vendors are in compliance with the contracts. Contract Management Software firms sell you (and probably reasonably so) on the fear of the monetary and other losses a company suffers from...
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I recently wrote a couple entries titled Using the Internet in Purchasing in which I mentioned reverse auctions. I received some great feedback from Alan Buxton of TradingPartners that I want to share. He wrote in to make me aware of an article he...
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Aug16
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I recently wrote an entry titled When Should Purchasing Get Involved which was about how often in the Sourcing process Buyers should be called in to assist. The same question can be asked about when Buyers should call in their...
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Here's a question sure to cause dread in the hearts of Buyers everywhere: Where's my stuff? Assuming that the end user has filled out all proper requisitions, the Purchasing Department has processed all the necessary paperwork in a timely fashion, and...
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By now, you have heard of AOL's (TWX) decision to give its software and service away for free. Why would AOL decide on such a thing. They think that free content and access will markedly increase page views on their sites...
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In part 1, I mentioned researching new vendors, researching more about an unfamiliar industry, and ordering through a vendor's online system. How else can you use the Internet to make life easier in your Purchasing Department? Blogs and...
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Aug15
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How long have you been online? Think back, when did you get your first AOL - now part of Time Warner Inc. (TWX) - account? Remember all those business mazgazine articles about the Internet was going to revolutionize the way all...
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Could you escape hearing about global sourcing these days even if you wanted to? (Of course, why would you want to?) From outsourcing to outright sourcing, it's all about India, China, and a few other international hot spots. Now we...
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Aug 9
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Procurement professionals everywhere know that Global Sourcing is a buzzword/concept in our business these days and has been for the last few years. We all know about leveraging worldwide spend for buying power in negotiations and finding international vendors that can service...
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I just read an interesting article titled Researching Potential Employers by Rose Curtis. It suggests that job seekers learn all they can about their potential supervisors by searching various ways online. The Internet has sure given brought forth a revolution in amateur...
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The question of when should Purchasing get involved reminds me of an old friend who worked in a dental office. Patients would ask her, "Which teeth should I floss?" She would answer, "Which teeth do you want to keep permanently?"...
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Buyers work hard negotiating terms on everything from actual price to return policies, to early payment discounts and a slew of other points as well. Inevitably, those Buyers move to another position in the company or leave the company and...
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Aug 8
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Continued from Buying Software- Part 1. Here is a quote from the beginning of an article about how to control the the software buying process. "Software and IT in general are like the wild west. It's every buyer for himself...
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I have mentioned some tips and observations in the past about purchasing software. I have to bring it up again since I read a great article in Purchasing about it. The first line in the e-mail summary was a classic. ...
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