Lust.....
Today’s post is written by Heather Powell, Manager of the COE Department & Project Manager at SafeSourcing Inc.
3. Lust – The need to fulfill unspiritual desires; to have an intense desire or need.
a. Lust is blind to consequences.
In e-procurement lust can be defined as- not having a clear specification of what you want before engaging with potential suppliers.
Trust us when we say that if you don’t know what you want before approaching suppliers you’ll be faced with a number of problems in the e-procurement process.
First, the suppliers themselves have the ability to add in additional features, functionality, upgrades etc. Not only will this then confuse as to the best options but you will end up with an inability to compare like-with-like (see Gluttony yesterday’s blog). It’s actually unhelpful for the suppliers too as an inadequate specification brief makes it hard for them to understand your true requirements.
How to avoid this:
• Before you start any negotiations for a product or service ensure you have a detailed specification of what you are looking for. This helps both you and the potential suppliers. If it’s a cleaning service, have a floor plan and specification document. If it’s a requirement for photocopiers, have details of the functionality you require, how you wish to finance it, what additional features you require.
• From your own perspective you can note which requirements are the ‘need to haves’ and which are the ‘nice to haves’. The specification document is just that and it can be changed once you have chosen your preferred supplier.
Do you recognize Lust as a sign of sins in your business practices today? Stay tuned tomorrow for the 4rd sin in e-procurement: Envy and how to realize and avoid it.
For more information on how SafeSourcing can assist you in exploring your procurement solutions for your business or on our “Risk Free” trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service Representative. We have an entire customer services team waiting to assist you today.
We look forward to your comments.
