If you’re a purchasing leader, you know the rhythm by now. Each year, the savings drumbeat begins earlier than we’d like. Over the past few years, many of us have been consumed by negotiating tariffs, battling inflation, and managing supply disruptions. Those fights were necessary….
Buyers are under constant pressure to evaluate supplier quotes, justify cost increases, and negotiate effectively. Too often, suppliers provide incomplete information or push back on requests for detail, leaving buyers with little leverage. Chat-based AI (like ChatGPT) can help. By using well-structured prompts, buyers can…
Tariffs. Inflation. Supplier price pressure. In times like these, it’s easy to feel boxed in. But not all buyers are stuck. In fact, some are thriving. We recently wrapped up another round of the Cost Management Certification (CMC) program, where buyers from various industries tackled real-world cost…
Here’s how the best teams avoid inflated supplier pricing — and how yours can too. Tariffs may be out of your control — but your response to them isn’t. Over the past two decades, working with hundreds of procurement teams, one pattern has become clear: Companies that…
The 2025 tariff wars are bringing a new level of turmoil for manufacturing purchasing teams. Quick reaction plans fall into two areas that should be addressed in parallel: 1. Actions to mitigate increased costs Understand the impacts from changes to tariff policies in all countries…
Too many buyers rely on ERP system exports to create RFQs for indirect categories like MRO, freight, and corrugated packaging. But ERP data rarely includes the information suppliers need to quote accurately. If suppliers have to spend extra time researching details or making assumptions, you’ll…
New tariffs – both recent changes by the U.S. administration and retaliatory tariffs from affected countries – are accelerating the need for purchasing teams to drive cost savings. While taking actions to mitigate the impact of ever-shifting trade and tariff policies is a priority, manufacturing…
Strategic sourcing is a great tool for delivering savings when there are many suppliers and consolidation makes sense. The goal of strategic sourcing is to transform the supply base for a category or commodity to better align with organization needs and expectations. Done, right, strategic sourcing…
I recently met with purchasing teams who attended APD’s Indirect Purchasing Certification course, and they consistently point to two take-away tools that they believe will give them immediate ROI – category cost tables and the stakeholder interview guide. In this article, we’ll provide an overview…
Delivering cost savings continues to be a focus for procurement organizations for 2025. Learn three different approaches manufacturing companies have proven to be successful, and the differences between them. Category Management can deliver the biggest cost savings but is a long-term effort best suited for…