Strategic Sourcing

Jan 14, 2015

What is the return on ERP implementation? Results from our research

As organizations seek to drive supply chain integration across global business units and markets, billions of dollars have been invested in massive systems known as enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. ERP… 

Dec 23, 2014

Do You Know How Much Your Company is Spending? A Spend Analytics Checklist

The leading IT magazine, CIO Review,  today published a special issue on supply chain transformation, and included an article I wrote on spend management as a core capability. Rather than striving… 

Oct 31, 2014

"The Procurement Value Proposition": Guest Post by Gerard Chick Part 1

I was recently interviewed by Jon Hansen on Blog Talk Radio, discussing my new book “The Procurement Value Proposition” co-authored with Gerard Chick.  In the interview, I discuss some of… 

Sep 6, 2014

Supplier Financial Health: Don't Wait for the Worst, Reach out and Talk!

Supply management research has established the axiom that firms are no longer operating independently, but indeed are part of an extended global network that is subject to high degrees of… 

Aug 27, 2014

SCRC Student Project Lineup Off to a Great Start…

NC State kicked off classes last week, and as usual our incoming group of MBA students were lined up with projects as part of their entry class into supply chain management,… 

Aug 4, 2014

Understanding Your Sourcing Footprint is the Key to Procurement Analytics

Direct conversations through on-site engagement with different lines of business is the most direct and effective means of understanding how sourcing processes are occurring today, as well as understanding how… 

Jul 15, 2014

Don't Forget Tier 2 Suppliers When Deploying SRM!

Several companies I’ve interviewed recently have been sharing how to structure or “tier” their supply base, based on impact on tier 2 suppliers or commodities.  As companies continue to outsource,… 

Jul 9, 2014

Procurement Comes of Age in Financial Services and Insurance

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal points to the increasing pressure being felt by financial services, as well as insurance companies. The article goes on to point out… 

Jun 29, 2014

Structuring Relationships With Suppliers Who Are Also Customers

As organizations go about building supplier relationships using segmentation approaches, several of the companies I’ve met with are also thinking about how to structure such relationships when their supplier also… 

May 21, 2014

Healthcare Has Fallen Down and Can't Get Up: Get Your Own Spend Cube!

In today’s environment, hospitals continue to outsource their sourcing capabilities to a national or regional group of Group Purchasing Organizations (GPO’s), who claim to obtain leveraged savings for groups of…