A brief overview of what is purchasing culture and why we need to manage our spend.
Table of Contents
What is Purchasing Culture?
Recently the company WeWork has been in the news. Because of a leaked document suggesting their purchasing has gotten out of hand (read here). Purchasing Culture or Spend Culture as its also known as is defined as how a company spends its money. and how it acquires goods or services.
History of Purchasing Culture
Purchasing Culture, became a topic of conversation during the 1980s. Because government departments spend started to escalate out of control. Companies who had government contracts started over charging for very basic goods. For example, a company who had a U.S defence contract charged the U.S Government $638 for a toilet seat. (Read more here). This issue is common with the government organisations. They are repeatedly overcharged for goods and services (read here to find out more).
Purchasing in Europe & Procurement in the U.S
In a previous article, I discussed what the different terms of purchasing and procurement mean. However, I Would like to reiterate through research I have conducted myself, using google. That the terms Procurement seems to be a U.S orientated term. On the other hand, Purchasing seems to be a European term. Larger companies may have a whole team dedicated to the acquiring of goods or services. In the States, you may have a VP of Procurement and then above him a CPO. In the U.K however, the top job in procurement is known as a Director of Purchasing. These positions are to manage companies procurement, and their spend culture. Their main focus is to stop a company’s cost escalating out of control.
Procurement Is About Instilling a ‘Cost Conscious Culture’
Source Supply Chain Management Daily Read Article Here.
Why You need to Manage & Control Your Spend
But you don’t have to have a whole department and team in order to manage your companies spend. If you are a small to medium size business you can use purchase order software, such as Zahara. It’s a solution where it can provide greater control over your finances. Giving you a greater peace of mind. However, it is important to invest time in developing a “cost-conscious culture”. This will mean you will get the most out of using our solution. If you are an enterprise class business Zahara could be the perfect addition to your existing accounts setup. As it has an integration tool with the most popular accounts systems on the market. We currently integrate with Quickbooks, Sage 50, Sage 200 & Xero. We are currently developing a native integration with Xero, which will then increase the usefulness and functionality of Zahara.
Managing Spending is an Important Part of any Business. Let Zahara help you do it. Take a Trial Today & Book in for a Demo with our Team to Find out More.
