Author Archives: Mireia Brancos - Iasta
Have you ever considered that Thanksgiving might be the perfect time of the year to think about how to get valued suppliers more involved in helping your business succeed? Setting up an awards program that recognizes your supplier’s accomplishments, business improvements and future initiatives is an excellent way to show your gratitude. Supplier award programs help solidify your relationship, drive motivation and make the supplier feel like they are a critical contributor to your team. One of our clients, a … More
Which came first: the chicken or the egg? From Wikipedia, “To ancient philosophers, the question about the first chicken or egg also evoked the questions of how life and the universe in general began. Cultural references to the chicken and egg intend to point out the futility of identifying the first case of a circular cause and consequence.” For me, this question is so procurement. You might think the last thing I would consider when I am talking to my … More
Per the Associated Press, starting July 22nd, China imposed a government plan to reduce Beijing’s air pollution in preparation for the Olympics. Their program sought to take 1.65 million cars off the roads. The two-month operation has banned cars with odd-numbered license plates one day, even-numbered plates the next. In addition to the ambitious traffic plan, chemical plants, power stations and foundries have been ordered to cut emissions by 30% and some 300,000 heavily polluting vehicles like aging trucks have … More
Today, in my current role as a vendor to Purchasing organizations, I am in the unique capacity to also see the positive effects that Total Cost Management can have on vendor-customer relationships. Although I clearly understand and expect cost to be a key critical factor of my discussions with customers, it is those customers who look beyond cost to the overall impact that a vendor can have in their organizations that truly make my job really exciting. These customers expect … More
Having had the unique opportunity to have both worked within a large purchasing organization, as well as in a sales capacity (as a vendor), I found that Stephen Guth’s article on CIO: Price Doesn’t Really Matter really struck a chord with me. In this article, Mr. Guth discusses the need for Purchasing organizations to transform themselves beyond an organization that focuses only on lowest possible cost to an organization that focuses instead on value, “value for $“ or Total Cost … More
