Here are some ways in which I think the web will change the way that purchasing departments operate:
- Sourcing software will be free! Software is increasingly free
and the enterprise is an obvious next step. What better place to
implement free ad-supported software than in the purchasing department?
- Prices will be lower! Web2.0 enables better flow of information,
better information = more perfect market, more perfect market = lower
prices. This is how you need to do your job.
- Buyers will be more pro-active! Instead of waiting for a
requirement and then finding a supplier, buyers will be lining up great
suppliers so that when the requirements appear they can be sourced
quickly and effectively.
- Innovation will increase! As buyers communicate more openly using tools like blogs
and twitter, then suppliers will spot where they can help more easily
and will be able to suggest innovations quickly and easily.
- Purchasing will be obsolete! At least as we know it today... As
the web connects the end user to the supplier more openly and more
efficiently, purchasing departments will have to ensure that they are
adding value as they will no longer be the gatekeeper to theoutside world.
All of this is happening now, in some places quicker than others, we need to keep up.