Supply Excellence — What Not to Do In Amsterdam…And How to Launch a Supply Management Improvement Initiative

What Not to Do In Amsterdam…And How to Launch a Supply Management Improvement Initiative

May 6th, 2006 · by Tim Minahan · 1 Comment · best practices, sourcing, supply management

I am embarrassed to report that my Amsterdam visit lacked anything remotely Dutch. Overruled by my mates – including my London-native guide – my party dined at an Argentinean steakhouse, socialized at a faux-Irish pub, and reluctantly shared a late-night pizza, due to the insatiable appetite (and somewhat maniacal ravings) of the tallest member of our group. Rick Steves would be appalled!

However, I am pleased to say that the highlight of my visit was discussing supply management strategies with regional executives, particularly Challako van Gerrevink, a Corporate Procurement Affairs executive at Friesland Foods, a multinational provider of dairy products, fruit drinks, and indgredients.

Like many companies, continued pressures to reduce costs and improve performance prompted Friesland to embark on a supply management improvement initiative. A key part of this effort would be adopting new supply management technologies to replace and enhance existing manual processes and information management methods. Friesland’s automation roadmap included planned investments in spending analysis, e-sourcing, e-procurement, and collaboration management tools. The challenge was where to begin?

Challako said e-sourcing rose to the top of the e-Sourcing list because it was comparatively easy and fast to implement and could return the quickest and most sizeable results of all the solution areas. “e-Sourcing is faster and less complex to implement than e-procurement,” said Challako. “It also provides the most tangible and impressive savings.”

Challako says his team has begun to leverage results from initial e-sourcing events to demonstrate value and gain support for the broader supply management initiative.

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