Can the old dogs really learn new tricks?

It’s a good question. In fact, a question so well posed on the Procurement Leaders Blog that I did a gulp and a step back when I read the post.

Here’s the question: “…is the average procurement team happier when simply negotiating price?”

This question is asked under the auspices of the hypothesis: “… most middle-manager level procurement people are, at heart, negotiators, and lack the strategic ability to take their function to the next level.”

David Rae, author of the post, claims that due to the economy, there is a drive to focus once again on cost cutting. This has made most old school Procurement managers happy, because negotiating cost is what they know best. It’s easy. The path most traveled.

However, driving for costs at the exclusion of everything else is ultimately short sighted.

I would argue one cannot lose the focus on cost, but Mr. Rae is right, in this new world with a shaky economy, beating down suppliers for every penny just isn’t going to work. We’re all struggling. There needs to be a more holistic view of the supplier base and how we can continue to work to achieve both of our goals.

In the end, The Company and our suppliers, we need each other.

At my own company, we’re focusing on reduction in the supply base along with deeply researching the solvency factors of the suppliers we do use. This is especially so for the top tier suppliers who are mission critical to what we do.

But saying that procurement managers tend to fall back on what they know best, “the good old days of hitting suppliers over the head with a big stick” touched a nerve within me. Yes, I might be guilty of that too. I have an organization I need to help navigate these stormy seas. What is my focus?

Excuse me while I go take a look in the mirror.