3 Historical Lessons Guiding Great Procurement Strategy
THIS ARTICLE WAS WRITTEN BY PROCUREHERE
| 8:30 AM
3 Historical Lessons Guiding Great Procurement Strategy
The benefits of e-procurement offer a powerful modern tool to improve our procurement operations, but the fundamental need for a great procurement strategy is timeless.
While the landscape of times gone by might look a great deal different to how it does today, effective procurement was still founded on key principles that resonate in our modern environment. Let’s explore some of the most iconic monuments to procurement and supply chain strategy in history, and see just how important the lessons we can learn still are today.
The Pyramids – record keeping matters
The Great Pyramid of Giza held the title of world’s tallest man-made structure for almost 4,000 years
Egypt’s magnificent pyramids stand out as some of the world’s greatest man-made wonders, towering tombs that reach as high as 140 metres from the sands below. Construction of these ambitious monuments dates back an awe-inspiring 5,000 years, and mark one of the most notable historical achievements of both construction, and ultimately procurement.
While the images of slaves toiling under the burning sun might be the popular image that comes to mind, the essential cog underpinning construction of the pyramids was a more specialist affair – Egypt’s scribes. The pyramids marked arguably the world’s first documented process, highlighting that remarkable engineering wasn’t the only thing that ensured their success. In truth, good record keeping, documented procurement processes and comprehensive supply chain management played an essential role in the construction of these iconic monuments.
What’s the lesson for procurement? Clear oversight and good record keeping is vital to an effective procurement strategy. The world’s greatest design could outline a glorious man-made wonder to rival the pyramids, but if you haven’t got the oversight to ensure appropriate procurement of materials, you won’t be building a tomb to last eternity any time soon.
The First Industrial Revolution – it’s essential to embrace innovation
The First Industrial Revolution began in 1760, and revolutionised industry over the next 80 years
It’s hard now to imagine a time when manufacturing was predominantly driven by a hands-on labour force. Automated processes and increasingly smart machines are a staple of the industry today.
The First Industrial Revolution marked the turning point in this wave of innovation, a somewhat murkily defined period which took place between around 1760 and 1840. The driving force behind these emerging industrial methods was the adoption of new technologies and machines which would replace or reduce manual workloads and radically improve the efficiency of manufacturing.
Some initial hesitation by business owners and, more prominently, protests driven by workers, made for a challenging process of adopting innovation. Those who were slow to adopt this new opportunity quickly found themselves falling behind in the market. While the period of transition wasn’t always smooth going, ultimately the First Industrial Revolution is cited as having improved real wages and social conditions. Meanwhile those who refused to innovate, simply couldn’t compete.
The lesson for procurement? Innovation and opportunity go hand in hand. New technologies aren’t here to replace how we work, they’re here to enhance the way in which we operate. Look at the benefits of e-procurement software like Procurehere, it might be focussed on improving efficiency in procurement, but it speaks of a wider revolution to build more efficient global industry through the power of connected opportunity and data-driven insight.
The Silk Road – shipping costs matter
The ancient Silk Road stretched 4,000 km from Rome to China
Talk of the Silk Road conjures up magnificent images of pioneering traders and exotic goods crossing the great continents. Indeed, the inspiring Silk Road is such as an iconic image still today that China’s great One Belt, One Road initiative is styled on this ancient success.
This ancient trading highway stretched over 4,000 kilometres, from the triumph of Rome in the west to the bustling heart of China. The route itself was actually a series of interconnected roads and trails, designed to bring only the most luxurious goods the length of these great continents. It not only revealed the raw power of human desire for goods, but the lengths that we go to meet our demands.
The lesson for procurement? The Silk Road represents one of the world’s most iconic ancient supply chains. The very name itself highlights the crucial element that ensured this highway of goods was able to become a success – the transport of luxury products.
Journeys the length of this ancient road could take months or years, meaning only the most expensive goods with the highest commercial value would be transported. In today’s modern global marketplace, our land, our oceans, even our skies, are packed with billions of tonnes of trade goods traversing the globe each day. While the opportunities and links may have improved, our supply chains are just as reliant on competitive pricing as they were in the days of the Silk Road. That means understanding and planning for the sometimes volatile cost of transport is a vital consideration in your procurement strategy.
Here are other related articles you may be interested in
If you continue to browse and use this website, you are agreeing to comply with and be bound by the following terms
and conditions of use, which together with our privacy policy govern Procurehere’s relationship with you in relation to
this website. If you disagree with any part of these terms and conditions, please do not use our website.
The term ‘Procurehere’ or ‘us’ or ‘we’ refers to the owner of the website whose registered office is Unit C-21-02, 3 Two
Square, No. 2, Jalan 19/1, 46300 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia. The term ‘you’ refers to the user or viewer of our
website.
The use of this website is subject to the following terms of use:
The content of the pages of this website is for your general information and use only. It is subject to change without notice.
Neither we nor any third parties provide any warranty or guarantee as to the accuracy, timeliness, performance, completeness or suitability of the information and materials found or offered on this website for any particular purpose. You acknowledge that such information and materials may contain inaccuracies or errors and we expressly exclude liability for any such inaccuracies or errors to the fullest extent permitted by law.
Your use of any information or materials on this website is entirely at your own risk, for which we shall not be liable. It shall be your own responsibility to ensure that any products, services or information available through this website meet your specific requirements.
This website contains material which is owned by or licensed to us. This material includes, but is not limited to, the design, layout, look, appearance and graphics. Reproduction is prohibited other than inaccordance with the copyright notice, which forms part of these terms and conditions.
All trademarks reproduced in this website which are not the property of, or licensed to, the operator are acknowledged on the website.
Unauthorised use of this website may give rise to a claim for damages and/or be a criminal offence.
From time to time this website may also include links to other websites. These links are provided for your convenience to provide further information. They do not signify that we endorse the website(s). We have no responsibility for the content of the linked website(s).
Your use of this website and any dispute arising out of such use of the website is subject to the laws of Malaysia, and laws of other relevant jurisdictions.
Privacy Policy
This website privacy policy describes how Procurehere protects and makes use of the information you give the company when you use this website. If you are asked to provide information when using this website, it will only be used in the ways described in this privacy policy.
We gather and use certain information about individuals in order to provide products and services and to enable certain functions on this website. We also collect information to better understand how visitors use this website and to present timely, relevant information to them.
What data do we gather?
We may collect the following information:
Contact information including email address.
Demographic information, such as name, address and preferences.
Website usage data.
Other information relevant to client enquiries.
How we use this data
Collecting this data helps us understand what you are looking for from our company, enabling us to deliver improved products and services.
Specifically, we may use data:
For our own internal records.
To improve the services we provide.
To contact you in response to a specific enquiry.
To customise the website for you.
To contact you about services we think might be relevant to you.
To contact you via email, telephone or mail for market research reasons.
Our use of cookies
A cookie is a small file placed on your computer’s hard drive. It enables our website to identify your computer as you view different pages on our website. Cookies allow websites and applications to store your preferences in order to present content, options or functions that are specific to you. They also enable us to see information like how many people use the website and what pages they tend to visit.
How we use cookies
We may use cookies to:
Analyse our web traffic using an analytics package.
Identify whether you are signed in to our website.
Test and improve the website experience.
Store information about your preferences.
To recognise when you return to our website.
Cookies do not provide us with access to your computer or any information about you, other than that which you choose to share with us.
Controlling your cookies
You can use your web browser’s cookie settings to determine how our website uses cookies. If you do not want our website to store cookies on your computer or device, you should set your web browser to refuse cookies. However, please note that doing this may affect how our website functions. Some pages and services may become unavailable to you.
Unless you have changed your browser to refuse cookies, our website will issue cookies when you visit it.
Controlling your information
When you fill in a form or provide your details on our website, you may see tick boxes allowing you to:
Opt-in to receive marketing communications from us by email, telephone, text message or post.
Opt-in to receive marketing communications from our third-party partners by email, telephone, text message or post.
We will never lease, distribute or sell your personal information to third parties unless we have your permission or the law requires us to. Any personal information we hold about you is stored and processed under our data protection policy, in line with the Personal Data Protection Act 2010.
Security
We will always hold your information securely. To prevent unauthorised disclosure or access to your information, we have implemented strong physical and electronic security safeguards.
We also follow stringent procedures to ensure we work with all personal data in line with the Personal Data Protection Act 2010, and all other relevant legislation.
Links from our site
Our website may contain links to other websites. Please note that we have no control of websites outside the Procurehere domain. If you provide information to a website to which we link, we are not responsible for its protection and privacy. Always be wary when submitting data to websites. Read the site’s data protection and privacy policies fully.