Speech at the Chartered Institute of Purchasing Branch Event - May 2008
Date – May 2008
Location – Leeds, UK
Speaker – Tom Woodham
Risk Management in Procurement
Procurement has a central role to play in risk management in today’s organisation. Tom Woodham started by giving an overview of the types of risks that the procurement organisation can be expected to encounter, together with methods for assessment, analysis and mitigation. He demonstrated that whilst most organisations concentrate on managing current ‘issues or crises’, investing time in true risk management stops future risks turning into crises.
Tom showed how risk can be assessed and analysed when selecting suppliers. This included the level of information that should inform the contracting decision and the level of due diligence required. He used examples to show how different types of supplier needed different levels of assessment, especially highlighting some of the more current issues that need to be considered when outsourcing, off-shoring or sourcing from low cost counties.
Tom then talked about managing risk in the existing supply base. This included ways of identifying risks which may exist in your business and which strategies are appropriate for mitigating them. This event also included an interactive question and answer session, allowing the delegates to discuss their challenges and experiences.
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