Procurement transformation means realigning resources used for procurement processes and ensuring that they yield better results and margins. In retail procurement, there are several opportunities to improve spend management, and transformation solutions and strategies can realise significant savings for retailers.
If you are new to the world of procurement, here are some sourcing tactics that you should be aware of. Knowing these strategies will help to make you more attractive to prospective employers.
Spend aggregation
Retailers often have stores across many geographies, leading to overlapping supply bases. These can be a nightmare for the purchasing team as they need to deal with larger data sets. But, aggregating these spends can help to maximise buying power and ensure higher savings and improved efficiency.
As a procurement professional, it is important to understand your suppliers’ strengths and their offerings. Test different combinations to come up with an e-sourcing strategy that saves your organisation money as well as optimises sourcing. Not knowing your supplier’s strength and reach can make spend aggregation futile, as you are not ready to explore hybrid sourcing options.
Share business requirements with suppliers
In the retail industry, the distribution network is continually evolving and consumer demand can vary without warning. You can prepare yourself for fluctuating supply chain influences by sharing your requirements with the supplier. This way, the supplier will be able to offer creative suggestions to ensure that you can meet your consumers’ demands without problems.
It is necessary to collect and analyse price and non-price data to make an informed sourcing decision. It will enable your retail business to meet the needs of consumers, ensuring revenue generation and profitability.
Use technology for improved efficiency and innovation
Retail procurement can deliver significant savings in cycle times if the right technologies are used for sourcing. Technology can help in analysing and number crunching, something that many procurement professionals do by using spreadsheets. It will minimise errors and ensure that professionals have more time for strategic thinking.
You will reduce sourcing time, as well as the time you use to analyse data. There is no need to cause a delay in the procurement cycle as you can create different scenarios in minutes.
If you are keen to become a sought-after procurement professional in the retail industry, you should be well-versed in these strategies.
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