Today’s post is written by Heather Powell, Manager of the COE Department & Project Manager at SafeSourcing Inc.

Pride – Being too self-satisfied; quality or state of being proud – inordinate self-esteem.

• Pride is thinking you’re better than you are.  Better at what doesn’t matter.  It’s not just misguided overconfidence.  It’s thinking you’re better than God and thus that you’re invincible.  This isn’t bad in small things like your jump shot.  It is bad when you cannot accept your limitations and live within them.

In e-procurement pride can be defined as- thinking that loyalty means something.

Sadly, the opposite often applies with complacency setting in with suppliers where contracts have been in place for many years. If your contract with your supplier is really delivering good value, then they won’t have any concerns about you ‘testing the market’ as this will surely prove it. Benchmarking longstanding contracts is a ‘no lose’ strategy for customers as it will either prove value, result in your supplier ‘sharpening their pencil’ or enable you to change to a supplier that is offering better value.

How to avoid this:

• Make it standard practice to regularly benchmark all of your suppliers, even those who you are happy with. It ensures that your suppliers are always ‘on their toes’ with respect to your pricing and service as they know that at any time you are likely to test the market.

 Will you recognize any of these sins in your business practices today?

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.

Today’s post is written by Heather Powell, Manager of the COE Department & Project Manager at SafeSourcing Inc.

6. Wrath – Vindictive anger; angry revenge.

 a. Wrath is wanting to hurt someone.  It is not anger, which is normal and is really frustration and rebellion at being powerless.  Wrath is  wanting to cause pain, and being motivated by this to actually cause pain.  A little bit, especially when driving, is okay.  Carrying a weapon and firing at both the stupid and insane people driving near you isn’t okay.

In e-procurement wrath can be defined as- not reading the small print.

In defense of the customer, this is most likely due to the enormous time constraints placed on them. However, that matters not if something goes wrong costing the customer money. What an expensive mistake it can be not reading the small print on contracts. Many customers have been left with debt for what they had believed to be ‘free’ services, shipping, and/or goods.

How to avoid this:

Never, ever, sign a contract without reading the small print. Ever. (Have we made the point)?! It really is that simple. If you’re not sure about some of the clauses, ask the supplier for a full explanation and keep asking until you are 100% comfortable you understand what you are signing. If you’re still not happy, engage a third party expert to review documentation for you. A small fee here might prevent bigger costs, and time consuming problems, later on down the line.
Do you recognize Wrath as a sign of sins in your business practices today? Stay tuned tomorrow for the 7th and final sin in e-procurement: Pride 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.

Today’s post is written by Heather Powell, Manager of the COE Department & Project Manager at SafeSourcing Inc.

5. Sloth – Being too slow or lazy at doing something.
     a. Laziness is giving in to the desire to do nothing.  Being lazy can mean avoiding doing something else; whatever the hard thing is that you want to avoid doing.   Taking laziness too far is avoidance of undesirable tasks (including thinking hard).  We grow by doing challenging things.

 
In e-procurement sloth can be defined as- not having a contracts register/database meaning renewal dates are missed.

This results in missed opportunities to renegotiate contract terms and influence renewal pricing. This is especially prevalent in the area of utilities but also impacts photocopiers, maintenance contracts and additional services. In many cases you need to be giving notice on contracts 1, 3 or even 6 months in advance.

• How to avoid this:
• 1.  Keep a contract register with all relevant dates. SafeSourcing offers a SafeContract™ for their customers who need to record, store, and track contracts.
•  2. Make sure you include those categories where others are in charge of renewal too as if the individuals move on, or happen to be off sick when a renewal is due it can very easily fall down the cracks and get missed. It also enables you to engage with colleagues throughout the renewal process to ensure they’re getting ‘best value’ on the customer’s behalf.

Do you recognize Sloth as a sign of sins in your business practices today? Stay tuned tomorrow for the 6th sin in e-procurement: Wrath 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.

Today’s post is written by Heather Powell, Manager of the COE Department & Project Manager at SafeSourcing Inc.

Envy – Jealousy; wanting to have what someone has.

• Envy is wishing you had an emotion. Example:  I see someone waterskiing, and I am envious of the gleeful feeling that person has.  YOU   CANNOT ENVY AN OBJECT.  Envy is of the people who use the object.  I am not envious of a Corvette; I am envious of a person who owns a Corvette because I would like the emotions of glee, power, and speed that come with driving it.

In e-procurement envy can be defined as- inadequate implementation processes.

Unfortunately, this is a very common sin and means that all the hard work up to this point can be wasted.  Once a new or renewal contract has been signed you never want to say, “now the hard work begins”. It’s imperative that you implement the new processes/systems/logistics as quickly as possible in order not to lose momentum from the negotiation phase. Too many times we see the customer not realizing the potential benefits from a deal because they get side-tracked during the implementation phase and things aren’t set up properly. Photocopiers that never have their full functionality used or IT used to assess who’s doing what, stationery being ordered from the old suppliers because staff haven’t been consulted or trained on the new system for the new supplier. The list goes on.

How to avoid this:

1.  Have a proper implementation plan in place.

2. Ensure that during the entire e-procurement process those involved in the area being reviewed are included. Invite them to comment on, or even assist in the development of, the Request for Proposal. Let them be the subject matter experts. 

3. Ensure they are consulted on the choice of supplier.

4. Most definitely get them introduced to the new supplier as early as possible once a decision to change has been made. The more they feel a part of the process and decisions made the more likely they are to embrace it and implement it in full. This ensures the customer gains maximum benefit from the savings identified in the e-procurement process.

Do you recognize Envy as a sign of sins in your business practices today? Stay tuned tomorrow for the 5th sin in e-procurement: Sloth 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.

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.

Today?s post is written by Heather Powell, Manager of the COE Department & Project Manager at SafeSourcing Inc.

??2. Gluttony – Similar to greed, but gluttony is the action of taking too much of something in.

???? a.?Gluttony is excessive consumption of something.? This usually relates to eating too much, but broadly speaking it?s any time you use more?? than is your right to.? This is not greed (desire for power over others).? This is the mistreatment of your own body and the absorption of constantly doing something.? It?s possible to be a glutton in the use of video games or social media; you?re using the entertainment as brain candy.

In e-procurement gluttony can be defined as- comparing apples with oranges.

This is probably the single most difficult aspect of e- procurement. To make a decision about offers on the table it is imperative you are comparing like with like. This ?sin? encompasses a number of the others i.e. not reading the small print, not having a detailed brief and confusing low cost with value for money. All of this will lead to you making an ill-informed decision.

How to avoid this:

??1. If your current supplier is providing a service which you feel may need to be changed, ensure that prospective suppliers provide two quotes ? one like-for-like and one based on an enhanced specification.
??2. Draw up a robust RFP (Request for Proposal) document asking for all sections to be completed as detailed but then having an additional section for the supplier?s own suggestions about how to improve the current offering.
??3. It?s also helpful to add a weighting to the responses in a RFP i.e. 10% of the marks for product specification, 10% for financial strength, 20% for customer service and so on. This ensures every supplier is benchmarked in the same way.

Do you recognize Gluttony as a sign of sins in your business practices today? Stay tuned tomorrow for the 3rd sin in e-procurement: Lust 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.

Today’s post is written by Heather Powell, Manager of the COE Department & Project Manager at SafeSourcing Inc.

1. Greed – Wanting too much of something.
     a. Greed is wishing you had more power over the people around you.  This comes from having money or valuable objects.   (Note: wanting   the power of respect is a sin of pride, not of greed.)  Greed is wanting the power to force someone to do what we want.  Money is the universal solvent; enough of it can make anyone do anything.  Wisdom is knowing what your price is.  Greed, the obsession with power, can drive out all positive forces in your life, even if you think your objective is a just one.

2. In e-procurement greed can be defined as- confusing low cost with value for money.

An area to be wary of is maintenance contracts. The headline cost of an annual maintenance contract may look very attractive but delve in to the details of labor and parts costs and you may discover that the low price will work out as anything but.

Likewise, we all know that poor service often negates the benefit of low cost.

Think too about items such as desk top printers. The printer itself may look like good value for money but what about the ink cartridges? These days you might be better off looking at a MFD (Multi- Functional Device) with toner included as a more cost effective option.

How to avoid this:

• Look into the details of ALL of the potential costs of a contract including those aspects that might initially be a little ‘hidden’.
• Ensure when benchmarking goods you don’t just use a select basket, do the whole lot. With regard to the service element, always take  references on potential suppliers to check they’ll be able to deliver. There is nothing worse than choosing a new supplier based on a good price only to discover you have to waste hours of your valuable time because their service is not up-to-scratch.

Do you recognize Greed as a sign of sin in your business practices today? Stay tuned tomorrow for the 2nd sin in e-procurement: Gluttony 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.

Today’s post is written by Heather Powell, Manager of the COE Department & Project Manager at SafeSourcing Inc.

This series of blogs will focus on the 7 deadly sins of e-procurement and how to overcome them, but first what are the original 7 deadly sins and why do they correspond with life and business as we know it?

 Seven things that are the worst things to do:

1. Greed – Wanting too much of something.
2. Gluttony – Similar to greed, but gluttony is the action of taking too much of something in.
3. Lust – The need to fulfill unspiritual desires; to have an intense desire or need. 
4. Envy – Jealousy; wanting to have what someone has.
5. Sloth – Being too slow or lazy at doing something.
6. Wrath – Vindictive anger; angry revenge.
7. Pride – Being too self-satisfied; quality or state of being proud – inordinate self-esteem.
Will you recognize any of these sins in your business practices today? Stay tuned on how to realize each and avoid them.

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.