Procurement has always been important, but with so many changes and uncertainties in the markets, procurement has become one of the main focus of business leaders. That is without mentioning customer demands and the need for more sustainable supply chains. So how can businesses feel confident in their sourcing strategy? How can you keep your company ahead of all the procurement challenges?
Well, we are proud to say that Builder Nation has found a good answer.
It begins by sitting down and having a conversation with the people who know the ins and outs of procurement
Procurement professionals working in the hardware industry
That’s right, starting from now we’ll be launching a special edition, focused only on learning more about procurement, the good and the bad, we’ll cover everything that matters for you and your company.
The first guest
Rahul Dhond is the current head of supply chain at Regent, if you look at his profile, you’ll see names of really big companies like Nissan and SpaceX. Rahul has 14 years of experience in manufacturing, supply chain management, and quality assurance, the industries he has worked for include: automotive, aerospace, and climate technology. He got his start at Nissan, where he played a key role in launching the Altima and Pathfinder, working closely with suppliers in Mexico.
His passion and obvious talent led him to SpaceX, where he focused on supplier quality and development, helping to shape new product introduction (NPI) processes for the company.
Capability and availability
For Rahul, two key factors make procurement work as it should: Capability and availability. The problem comes when bureaucracy stops companies from reaching the products they need at the time they need them. So if he were to choose one main challenge for procurement, it would be the time and effort that’s wasted in gathering and presenting large quantities of documentation.
Start-up vs large companies
Is procurement the same for every company? Yes, in theory, the practices are the same but as Rahul pointed out, there’s a critical difference in the way procurement is handled in business with a start-up culture and large companies, in the case of start-ups, you have that undeniable agility that can help you to move forward and find alternative solutions if something doesn’t go according to the plan. There’s also the ability to build closer relationships with suppliers. Larger companies, on the other hand, have a reputation for being more strict and overwhelmed by their processes.
It’s all about a good network
For Regent, the biggest challenge was to determine not only how to choose the right suppliers but also how to build a positive relationship that worked both ways. Working with a team of engineers that had a good network of potential suppliers and vendors was quite helpful, but above that, Rahul said that it was very important to search for suppliers that had already worked with similar companies or projects so at least you can feel more confident about their performance in your industry. Maintaining communication open at all times is also fundamental.
Trust in data science
Problems happen all the time, and disasters like the Covid-19 pandemic can also occur at any point, so if you want to protect your business and supply chain activities, sit down for a moment and review in what ways historical data and analysis can help you to be as prepared as possible. For example, you could know that at certain difficult periods, some suppliers respond better than others. Wouldn’t that be helpful?
Diversify your solutions
We asked Rahul, what piece of advice he would give to businesses that are starting out and want to have a more efficient procurement process. His answer?
Diversify your solutions, and by solutions, he meant suppliers.
The worst thing a company can do is to tie the totality of their operations to a single supplier because then if something goes wrong, you would be trapped by delays and disruptions in your supply chain. So, try to develop a solid supply chain strategy that considers the what-if scenarios and provides you with strong alternatives.
