Services Procurement is a critical driver of innovation, efficiency, and expertise in modern Organisations. It focuses on getting external help where you may not have the knowledge, expertise or capacity in-house.  The Services delivered could be focused on revenue, efficiency, innovation, risk or support.

The industry talks about including Services Procurement into an External Workforce Program, which I agree with, “if it is done correctly”. The reason for this inclusion is that the delivery is primarily driven by people performing the work. Visibility is essential for security, access control, bench-marking, and risk management etc.

In some Organisations, each subcategory has their own agenda based upon stakeholder’s requirements and desires. Sometimes, this may seem conflicting to an External Workforce Program, trying to align on planning, process, templates, controls and management.

Where some may see a challenge, this is where I see the opportunity. Here are my top Five suggestions on how an External Workforce Program can show value and Empower a Services Procurement Category:

5.      Actively listen and build a true understanding of their Subcategory.

Many times, I have seen solutions proposed, without understanding the Procurement Category, their challenges or the landscape of the Subcategory. If you can identify their pain points, it is then easier to highlight the areas of opportunity, for example process automation 😉.

4. Inclusion doesn’t mean Category Ownership changes.

External Workforce Programs need to clearly communicate to Procurement and their Stakeholders, that they are there to help not only enable Services Categories. Provide support by guiding the business through the right processes, leveraging enablement tools and automation to drive efficiencies. The Strategic sourcing decisions still sits with each Services Category and their direct stakeholders.

3. Support the Sales conversation.

Don’t underestimate the change management activities, politics and internal Sales effort required to communicate, build trust and get the buy in from business stakeholders. The sales conversation extends beyond internal stakeholders—your Suppliers need to be convinced too. Be in the room, supporting the conversation. Be ready with all the benefits, highlight the executive sponsorship and focus on business case and efficiencies that will come from the change.

2.      Category Strategy.

Having an approved Services Procurement Category Strategy sets the direction and ensures:

a.      Business alignment

b.      Category rules

c.      Clear engagement guidelines

d.      Exception process

Having this in place at a subcategory level really helps to translate the Category requirements into an External Workforce Program. If you have a Vendor Management System (VMS), these requirements can then be reflected into the system.

And the Number 1 way an External Workforce Program can show value:

1.      Empower Procurement.

I have seen situations where Procurement has limited tools and resources, with a high expectation to do a lot with not much. Help them look good, and empower them through providing:

a.      Visibility into their Categories through strong Business Intelligence

b.      Cross category insights (Supplier, rate bench-marking, performance)

c.      Industry insights and statistics (what’s everyone else doing?)

d.      Bring efficiency and take away operation burden

e.      Keep showing them why Workforce Management is so important

By embracing External Workforce Management, Organisations can transform Procurement into a strategic powerhouse—driving efficiency, innovation, and long-term business success.

Detlef Schultz: “we have to change from what we did in the past to what we need to do in the future”