Monthly Archives: October 2014

The story of two people, a double-dip recession and one opportunity

Wednesday, October 29th, 2014

From a certain little town near London, two people forged careers in procurement through the double-dip recession and beyond, to the present day as we near 2015. Both of them had enjoyed the same educational opportunities, and so far as anyone could judge, their prospects for success were equal but found themselves with very different outcomes.. One […]

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How to get your contract risks under control!

Monday, October 27th, 2014

The English Courts are full, everyday, of Buyers and Sellers who screwed up a contract. Don’t join that club. This one day highly interactive practical workshop “How to get your contract risks under control!” will give you the tools and techniques to get your contract risks under control. This is guidance and solutions-driven, not a […]

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Skilful questioning, careful listening

Tuesday, October 14th, 2014

The skilled negotiator will be aware of the impact of good questions in a negotiation. For example building relationships, learning, avoiding misunderstanding, mitigating emotion (health warning! tone, body language and wording needs to be considered carefully – actually true for the other examples as well) – and most importantly persuading the other party to your […]

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What is Procurement Expertise?

Friday, October 10th, 2014

Procurement expertise includes the ability to: Manage Supplier risk Optimise spending (value for money) Increase Supplier value Improve Supplier communications Optimise Supplier portfolio Improve Supplier performance Comply with governance requirements More importantly, the work is underpinned by the critical need to inspire trust in the organisation’s leadership team that the Procurement Leaders have the requisite knowledge, […]

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An open letter to Tesco

Thursday, October 9th, 2014

Hello Tesco You reported recently that you have agreed an early start for your new Finance Director following the £250m “error” in the accounts. Sir Richard Broadbent, your Chairman, in an effort to explain the financial difficulties, said recently: “Things are always unnoticed until they are noticed,” Some of the problems appear to lay in your treatment of the […]

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