Today’s post is by Steven Belvin, Account Manager at SafeSourcing

Teamwork – The process of working collaboratively with a group of people in order to achieve a goal. Teamwork is often a crucial part of a business, as it is often necessary for colleagues to work well together, trying their best in any circumstance. Teamwork means that people will try to cooperate, using their individual skills and providing constructive feedback, despite any personal conflict between individuals.

I believe the New England Patriots displayed the perfect example of how teamwork should be carried out and an example of how far it can take you if done properly. The now 5-time Super Bowl champions had the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history. Great news for New England fans, however, how did they do it? That answer is easy, teamwork. They were a team that was down by more than 21 points by half time. However, their determination, desire, and of course teamwork brought them back to win the game in overtime. It was amazing to watch the Patriots firing away on all cylinders and looking like a well-oiled machine.  Do you have a Super bowl team?

It is truly a great thing when you have a team that can function like a well-oiled machine. Everyone knows their part and others can pick up the slack when someone is behind. Teamwork is truly a great thing. This is why at SafeSourcing we consider ourselves a team. We strive to always be on the same page and to also provide our customer with the best market value. Our expert knowledge of the market and suppliers helps us find you the best person for the job/supplies needed for your company. Once we get word of an event it is like watching a 4X100m track race, each member of the team completing a step until we reach the finish line. Every handoff is as smooth as possible and we all move as fast and precise as possible; again, like a well-oiled machine, all to bring you the best total market value and the potential to provide you with at least with 10X ROI.

For more information on how SafeSourcing can assist your team with this process 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.

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“What Is Teamwork?” BusinessDictionary.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Feb. 2017.

Today’s post is our SafeSourcing Archives.

During my “spare time” when I am away from the office, I attend night and weekend classes to achieve a higher education at a local university. Every semester, the Professors have the students introduce themselves to the class. We are asked to explain ‘simple’ insights into our lives outside of our academic careers.

1. “Who are you?”
2.  “Where are you from?”
3. “Do you work? If so, where? What do you do?”

All of the questions seem harmless. You have the typical responses from traditional students for questions 1-3, but very few pause on the third question, I am one of them. The last question, “what do you do?” always gives me pause. I pause whenever I am asked this question whether in academia or not.

This semester, I was asked these questions by my Microeconomics Professor. My response was, “Yes, I work for a company in Arizona called SafeSourcing. We are a third party e-Procurement company.”

After I spoke, I was met with many confused looks, and I realized why after I said it. No one knows what procurement or e-procurement is. Procurement is rarely taught in higher education, unless you are a Supply Chain Management Major, and in the private sector it is brought up if you work within a company sect for it, however in the government sector it is common language.

The common individual or fellow student has no idea what Procurement means.

As I was looking through my textbook for Microeconomics, I realized that “Procurement” is not listed anywhere within the book. Why?

Procurement is, in my opinion, the step child in the Economic world. I say that because sometimes, even people who are familiar with purchasing have no idea what Procurement is. They do not know that is the purchasing of goods and services. Every single time a bar code is swiped at the grocery store, the buyer is procuring it. Individuals that participate within the economy typically assume that the items that line the store shelves just get there. It doesn’t matter how, or at what cost, until they reach the check-out line.

Procurement is the awareness around supply chain management and demand curves, and reducing costs where it is possible, so that extra cost never hits the consumer.  Procurement happens where people aren’t looking, at every single point in the economy where money is spent.

Oh, and to educate those who still do not know the definition, defined by BusinessDictionary.com:

The act of obtaining or buying goods and services. The process includes preparation and processing of a demand as well as the end receipt and approval of payment. It often involves:

(1) Purchase planning
(2) Standards determination
(3) Specifications development
(4) Supplier research and selection
(5) Value analysis
(6) Financing
(7) Price negotiation
(8) Making the purchase
(9) Supply contract administration
(10) Inventory control and stores
(11) Disposals and other related functions

The process of procurement is often part of a company’s strategy because the ability to purchase certain materials will determine if operations will continue. A business will not be able to survive if its price of procurement is more than the profit it makes on selling the actual product.
For more information on how we can help you with your procurement needs 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.

Today’s post is by Dave Wenig, Regional Sales Manager at SafeSourcing.

I like teamwork. I also enjoy collaboration or any other terms roughly representing the concept of a group working together toward some objective. Teamwork is quite helpful in achieving an organization’s goals. It allows for individuals to showcase their strengths and groups to produce more/better/faster than they could by working alone. Plus, there’s no shortage of inspirational quotes from which you can draw… inspiration!

“Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results.” – Andrew Carnegie

So, beyond quotes, how does an organization make teamwork work

Like many organizations, you probably find that your teams rely heavily on email while collaborating on projects. Document versions are sent and received almost constantly throughout the day. This often creates too many moving parts and too many opportunities for human error. Is each team member reviewing the correct version? Did I forget to copy a team member on that email? Were we both editing the document at the same time? Where is that file?

“T.E.A.M. Together Everyone Achieves More” – Unknown

We’ve all been through some version of the struggle created by collaborating with a team and passing around documents. Fortunately, organizations are now able to easily put in place solutions that reduce these types of common teamwork difficulties. Document Management solutions are available that ensure that documents are centrally stored, protected, and have editing and version control that prevent and protect against human error.

When a member of my team saves a new version of a project document, I have immediate access to the most current version. When I am making edits, my teammates cannot also until I have finished. I can search through tens of thousands of documents to quickly find exactly what I’m looking for.

Document Management is a viable answer for the challenges I’ve outlines and many more as well. At SafeSourcing, our solution is called SafeDocument™ and it empowers our own team, as well as our customers’ teams, and will do the same for yours. After all, it’s what makes our teamwork work.

“Teamwork makes the dream work” – John C. Maxwell

Dave Wenig is a Regional Sales Manager at SafeSourcing and is a devoted champion of saving money. Dave or any member of the experienced team at SafeSourcing would be happy to discuss how SafeSourcing can help you at any point in the Source to Pay lifecycle. For more information, please contact a SafeSourcing representative.

We look forward to your comments.

Today?s post is?from our?SafeSourcing archives

As the final film installment of The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien, is released, an interesting quote from the previous movie series, The Lord of the Rings, comes to mind.? ?It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.?? The question becomes, how do you keep your feet?? How do you avoid getting swept off??? In today?s blog we are going to look at a few of the ways companies ?lose their feet.?

Don?t focus on the path behind ? Taking a journey, like life, is all about moving forward.? The path may not always be straight and clear but the process is about moving forward and this is almost impossible to do when you are focused on where you just came from.? Focusing on the mistakes or the past successes for too long will get you off track to where you are going next.?? In every day terms this translates into running the next project as successfully as possible without bringing too much of the past into the picture.? Be careful not to assume that a successful strategy on the last project will work on this one, or that a strategy that didn?t work as else well on a project 3 months ago won?t work better for the one you have coming up next month.? As with any journey, there will be plenty of time to stop and reflect on your progress and the things learned, and there should be for projects as well.? Semi-annual reviews and project post-mortem review sessions are helpful activities; they just shouldn?t be th
e focus as the next project begins.

Don?t look down, look ahead?. ? When I walk I tend to look down a lot near my feet.? This had led me to find some really cool things (like money) that other people miss, but more often than not, it prevents me from seeing things up ahead of me that would allow me to deal with them before they occur.? Approaching the sourcing process is very similar.? If you focus only on what is going on now you will make decisions based on facts that can and will change and lock those decisions into contracts you must be accountable for.? Looking ahead may uncover an upcoming environmental change that would speak to a shorter deal with a supplier now, with the intention of renegotiating in 9 months when that change comes and puts the company in a better position to negotiate.?? Keeping a view of what?s ahead can save you from making costly mistakes that will last the life of an agreement.

?but not too far ahead ? What can sometimes happen when you start looking ahead, however, is that it goes too far.? When companies spend so much time worrying about what?s down the road, they can ignore the current climate of their organization.? In these cases they frequently find that they never even get to that spot up ahead they are worrying about because the current situation demanded them to leave the current path and go someplace else.? Sometimes this ?someplace else? is out of business.? Balancing the view of what?s coming without losing touch with what is going on today is critical and the companies that do it well can achieve great results that bring extra value to their organization.

For more information on how SafeSourcing can help you with your projects and these sourcing strategy discussions, 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.