CAREER TURNS
CAREER TURNS focuses on issues of professional development and change within the procurement field - or is it the purchasing field?
ISM membership for sales: What's in it for you?
As many people may have heard, the Institute for Supply Management is voting to allow salespeople into the organization. I ask the question to the salespeople that want to join our organization, what’s in it for you?In our local ISM-Dallas affiliate, we continue to strive to find ways to show benefits to people in the purchasing profession as to why they should belong to the local affiliate ...... Read More
Comments (6)Can purchasing professionals keep up the multitasking?
Whoever said the more things change, the more they stay the same probably wasn’t a purchasing professional. With so much change, it seems the core part our job is disappearing.In the old days, you, the buyer, got to the office, sat down at your desk and you started ordering “stuff.” You got right into the buying process. In those days, you typed the purchase orders, making fou ...... Read More
Comments (2)Tax tips for trade shows and business travel
While preparing for our ISM-Dallas affiliate and the Southwest Forum trade show, I started thinking about how much harder it is to get suppliers to attend? Of course, with the rising cost of travel and higher demands on most businesses, attending a show can get costly. Especially if you travel by plane, car rentals, hotel bills and meals can add up quickly. That’s why I found this article ...... Read More
Comments (0)The value of customer service representatives in the buyer-supplier relationship
This can’t be! According to this article Purchasing’s September issue, results of distributor survey conducted by Industrial Distribution Magazine show just 10% of survey respondents say customer service relationships are the major reasons for doing business with a distributor. According to the survey, the following areas are more important to purchasing professionals in selecting a ...... Read More
Comments (5)True leaders come with true hearts
A friend of mine told me that the heart of a leader must be a caring one. Without this heart, his leadership will be without purpose. In today’s world, perhaps we are afraid to show our emotions in the work place. Some people might take offense if you show your feelings of caring. As purchasing professionals, we should learn to accept a thank you. Accept it at the full value. Do not di ...... Read More
Comments (0)Is multitasking impacting your supplier relationships?
We as buyers spend most of our days being pulled in many directions, often at the same time. There’s meetings, there’s tactical responsibilities, there’s general work “stuff” to be done and there’s fewer folks to do it in most procurement organizations these days. We have to multitask to get through the day and get everything done.Most buyers I know may be ...... Read More
Comments (1)Pareto's 80/20 rule is as relevant today as it was in 1897
How long has it been since most companies stopped ranking customers? The more a customer buys the higher their rank would be. Customers at the top of the list merit better pricing, faster delivery, stock on hand for your requirements and whatever is necessary to maintain the account and make you know you are a valued customer.A company can likely never reach a 100% service level. Inventory would b ...... Read More
Comments (0)Do you guide, or do you order?
If you are a good communicator, people will look up to you, seek your opinion, seek your in-put and you will be asked to lead as well. The skill of communication and leadership work hand in hand. Belonging to a professional organization can be a training ground to becoming a better speaker and leader.In most organizations, you work your way up. I look back on my days in the Institute for Supply ...... Read More
Comments (0)How do you forecast?
A few years ago, a friend of mine that was the purchasing and inventory control manager of a manufacturing plant ran out of a critical item. The plant manager came barreling down the aisle (one of those open work environments) shouting, “Why are we out of this?” My manager looked at the plant manager and stated, “Because we used it all up.”Well, I thought I would have a ...... Read More
Comments (2)Mexican trucking issue: It's in my backyard
The issue of allowing Mexican trucks into the U.S. is one I have a particular interest in since I live in Texas-so this debate is literally happening in my backyard. Did you know we are talking about a 2,100 mile U.S.-Mexico border area? Texas has more than half the U.S. border with Mexico.In a recent polled reported by Purchasing.com, Survey: Americans oppose Mexican trucking program, two-thirds ...... Read More
Comments (2)An alarming start to the day
My alarm went off this morning. It is a Sunday. Why in the world did I turn the alarm on? It is a habit, five days a week for 50 weeks = equals 250 days you set the alarm per year.What is alarming is that I have worked for the same company 27 years, which means I set the alarm 6,750 times. We are not even considering the Saturday mornings you have to get up early, even for pleasure, and the Sunday ...... Read More
Comments (0)The real risk of doing nothing
I just ran across a book I had read sometime back and was flipping through the pages. The book is “QBQ” The Question Behind the Question by John G. Miller.Chapter Twenty- Nine is “The Risk of Doing Nothing.” So many times it is easier and safer to just do nothing. This is what John G. Miller writes in his book: A senior leader of a financial institution told me, ȁ ...... Read More
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