Why do you need Joined-up e-Procurement?

e-Procurement has to be in place in every local authority by 2005. That doesn't sound too hard, does it?

In itself, e-procurement is just a set of systems and online tools that can be combined in a number of ways to enable local authorities to achieve better, lower cost procurement.

But it seems to be more difficult than that. Why?

Well, what have you got today?

• Costly bureaucracy – cumbersome paper-based requisition, approvals, invoice-matching processes still prevail in most councils. The sourcing to payment cycle involves lots of paper and costly manual processes.
• Departmental ‘tribalism' – in most councils procurement is devolved, so departments control their own budgets and manage their own spending. Local decision-making is seen as essential - appropriate for some service delivery-related spend but not for everything; centrally agreed contracts with preferred suppliers tend not to be used.

The result? Little useful management information, commitment accounting or control of spending until it's too late. So a change is needed.

Okay, so what should it look like?

• Everyone using an electronic ordering system which provides the management information to enable smarter buying decisions; faster processes for buyers, no paper to slow things down; achievement of cost and efficiency benefit targets.

• The authority able to use its spending ‘clout' to get better prices - devolved ordering replacing devolved contracting; agreement on where decision-making does need to remain with local managers to manage risk eg social services.

• More informed and targetted use of local suppliers and links to community plan targets eg to involve more BME-owned businesses.

How are you going to achieve this?

Experience shows that simply imposing control from the centre does not work - it challenges the ability of the front line officer to make service delivery decisions and that is rightly regarded as a priority.

Departments are the experts in their own domain and will resist losing control of their spending.

So conflict is inevitable, isn't it?

Well, no. We can help you achieve the benefits of e-procurement and avoid the pitfalls, One-Step-at-a-Time

What is One-Step-at-a-Time?