I’ve spent enough time in procurement to know how we love our buzzwords. “Procurement excellence” is thrown around so much these days that I can’t help but wonder – what are we really talking about?
Moving Past the Buzzwords
Let’s be honest – procurement excellence has become one of those terms that means everything and nothing at the same time. We use it to describe everything from saving a few dollars to completely transforming supplier relationships. But here’s the thing: real impact in procurement isn’t about chasing some perfect model of excellence. It’s about something much more straightforward – actually helping our organization succeed.
Trust: The Currency of Procurement
Here’s what I’ve noticed: the best procurement teams aren’t necessarily the ones with the fanciest tools or the biggest savings numbers. They’re the ones that other departments actually want to work with. Simple as that.
Think about it – when was the last time a business unit was excited to work with procurement because of our “excellent” processes? Probably never. But they do get excited when we:
- Take the time to understand what keeps them up at night
- Focus on what actually matters to their team
- Make their lives easier, not harder