Project Planning

• Corporate procurement process
• Other project procurement processes

1. Identify Procurement processes that may exist in the organisation and in other projects.
2. Select a process.
3. Modify the process if necessary to suit the project.
4. Prepare a process document for forward planning.
5. Gain approval from the Sponsor for the process.

• Approved Procurement Process

When you do get to the point of of deciding on the solution that best fits your needs, there will be a process to go through to complete the purchase. Rather than get to that point and find there were activities that you could have completed prior to the point of purchase, and these will now delay the overall project, you should investigate the situation early in the project.

Look at how procurement has been handled in other projects. If you can find a comparable project and they have a process, use that process. You may need to check it compiles with the current corporate purchasing controls.

You should understand:

• Who will make the decision to invest in the package?
• Who needs to sign off the purchase?
• What contractual checks and reviews needs to take place? Who? How long?
• Are there any pro forma requirements for the contract?
• What level of detail is required in a business case for sign off?
• Who authorises payment (as opposed to authority to purchase)?
• How long will payment take to process?
• Are there any IP issues with a purchase. For example there are restrictions on some US organisations selling certain technologies to some countries.
• What is the process to authorise a purchase and how long does it take
• How many quotes need to be received
• Are there preferred suppliers
• What terms and conditions need to be applied
• What are the requirements for setting up the vendor as a supplier

Of all areas in a project, you will probably find that purchasing is one of the most clearly documented processes. You do however have to be familiar with the process. It is often useful to have a conversation with the Purchasing Manager or Contracts Manager to find out what they may require from the project, and alert them to what you may require from them.

When the situation is understood, detail the findings in a document that can be used for forward planning when you get to the purchase point. It will also enable you to manage the expectations of the vendors.