Inside Supply Management Magazine

Procuring a Preview: October issue

October 08, 2018

Check your inboxes and mailboxes soon for the October issue of Inside Supply Management®, published by Institute for Supply Management® (ISM®).

In this issue:

In an era of unprecedented tariffs, the supply management profession is dealing with uncertainties — and preparing for harsh realities. Author Dan Zeiger explores this situation in “Tools for a Trade War,” October’s cover article. “I’ve been in the business for 40 years,” says Timothy R. Fiore, CPSM, C.P.M., Chair of the Institute for Supply Management® (ISM®) Manufacturing Business Survey Committee. “I can’t recall in any of my experience a trade situation that has been as widespread, as deep and as intransigent as this.” The article includes a timeline that charts both U.S. and retaliatory tariffs, plus comments from purchasing and supply chain executives.

Through technology use, data analysis and other measures, facilities management has taken on a crucial role in a company’s goal to reduce costs and improve the workplace. In “Building a Strategic Operation,” author Sue Doerfler writes about how facilities management has moved from an expense or overhead unit of the organization to a strategic one. The article includes a case study of a US$23.6 million university infrastructure project designed to increase sustainability while creating campus improvements.

In “Driving Strategy through Market Analysis,” Chris Sower, CPSM, C.P.M., writes about how data-driven decision-making enables the supply management function to be a strategic differentiator for organizations. To illustrate the value of collecting and analyzing the right data, he uses an example of an oil and gas company’s preparations to contract international offshore drilling services.

Plus, don’t miss our columns and departments that detail supply management trends, issues and more.

“Working with Veteran-Owned Businesses” is the focus of the October Competencies column. Authors John Perez, CPSM, CPSD, and Matt Howson discuss this rapidly evolving segment of supplier diversity and ways companies can support veteran-owned businesses.

On the Perspectives pages, Nicholas Ammaturo answers the question, “Why Isn’t Procurement Just About Savings?” He also talks about the most helpful career advice he’s received and the biggest professional challenge he’s overcome.

While the effort to mine data pertaining to rogue spend can be exhausting, there are cost benefits that can be achieved, Zeiger writes in the Insights column, “Rogue Spend Curtailment Presents Opportunities.” Rogue spend is also called maverick or unmanaged spend, and it can be hard to spot in data.

Most organizations have reams of numbers and information at their disposal — but without a shared understanding between shareholders, the value is limited, writers Raghu T. Santanam, Ph.D., and Michael Goul, Ph.D., say in the Research column, “Data Architecture: A Blueprint for Procurement Analytics.” The two discuss developing a procurement analytics roadmap as a strategic approach to data architecture.

Finally, check out our usual array of critical information, including the latest ISM® Report On Business®, international news on the Markets pages and the JIT and Point2Point departments.