Procurement Manager - Key Challenges

We all have visited a hotel or a restaurant at least once in our lifetime. A good eating joint or a good place to stay is like a gateway to new 'wow' life. It can refresh our senses like no other thing.

First thing that comes to my mind when I think of a hotel is all the grandeur, and spic and span.

But wait a minute..!!!

How did all this come at one single place in just the right proportion.

Look at that carpet handcrafted from Kashmir, or that chandelier, as if hanging right from heaven, or at that special Italian marble adorning the floor. Splendid, isn't it?

Hospitality is the best a country has to offer to its guest. And India has seriously done a great job in pampering her guests. After all, our traditions teach us Atithi Devo Bhava (Guest is God).

India is like a growing child, and is strongly making her demands. As per stats, Indian food service industry alone will reach US$ 78 billion by 2018.

A major portion of this food services demand is made by hospitality industry. And its duty of the procurement manager to meet them.

Procurement Manager is like a silent guardian, caped crusader (you know where these lines are coming from! Huge Batman Fan I am) whose job is to make sure, behind the scene right strings are pulled to get best possible product for his/her hotel.

One single decision of a procurement manager has the potential of making or breaking reputation of a hotel.

Procurement in a nutshell means: Sourcing Right Thing at The Right Time for The Right People.

Procurement guys have to face number of challenges to deliver quality services to the customers.

Lets look at some of these challenges:

• Knowing all major suppliers Pan India, inside out. This may include their strengths, weaknesses, behavior ... everything.
• Procurement manager can’t always wait for different departments to come up with their exact requirements. They need to stay ahead of the curve by keeping track of consumption rate and past purchase cycle.
• Procurement largely involves people management skills. If a supplier counts you among his friends, it’s quite likely he will cut out a deal specially for you.
• Many of the suppliers in India run business in a traditional family centric environment. Its responsibility of procurement manager to understand dynamics of all suppliers involved
• Managers need to approach the potential vendors in the market and guide them in order to get the desired qualities of goods from them.
• Getting delivery of goods on time and balancing the demand and supply curve during the peak period is also one among the major challenge faced by the procurement managers. Procurement manager needs to forecast demand well in advance to meet them in peak hours.
• In spite of being in a contract with suppliers,  managers have to keep a close watch on all the last minute requirements in order to avoid stock out situations.
• A good manager needs to be well versed in all upcoming technologies in his / her line of work.

Congratulations for overcoming all the challenges and giving us an experience we can cherish.

Keep up the Good Work! All the Best.