Without a doubt, challenges abound when managing or implementing projects. Two years ago, United States procurement service provider, DeltaBid, conducted a survey of 500 procurement professionals to identify what they considered the biggest obstacles they faced on a daily basis. The results outlined below, are the ten biggest procurement challenges, and the accompanying infographic summarises the entire survey exercise.
10. Managing the RFx process
Regardless of whether it is a Request for Proposal, Request for Quotation, Request for Expressions of Interest, etc., managing those processes can be a challenge. Procedures ought to be clear, fair and rigorously implemented, and so can be a tremendous undertaking to the procurement team, and the associated support resources.
9. Time/Delays
More often than not, projects are being implemented with a sense of urgency – the outputs are urgently needed. It rarely happens that a project’s outputs are secured well in advance of when they might actually be required. It therefore means that in the majority of situations, there is the added pressure to deliver the outputs consistent with the timelines agreed. Hence, when, for example, actual lead times, or the time required to source certain materials, end up being considerably more than that anticipated or scheduled, it can thwart the entire project.
8. Recruiting, retaining, and training talent
As we noted in our recent article, QBS, QCBS, LCS: What are they, and how are they different?, procurement is a specialist field, and having knowledgeable and experienced personnel on the team is crucial. It thus means there is need to pay particular attention to securing and retaining that talent, and providing the requisite support in relation to skills upgrade and continuing professional development. However, due to the specialist nature of the area, there is a growing demand for such talent, with firms finding it difficult to retain such staff on a long-term basis.
7. Finding the right tools
For particularly large projects that have several components and moving parts, it is essential to have tools that can help the team manage projects more efficiently and effectively. However, finding the right tools – the best for team and/or for the project – can be challenge. Further, the wrong tools can further complicate, and even undermine, what might already be challenging situations.
6. Risk mitigation
As outlined in our article, 5 tips for managing risk in projects, projects are fraught with all types of risks, which need to be managed for successful completion of a project. Some of the risks the DeltaBid survey respondents identified included, “managing sole supplier contracts, reducing maverick spend, and dealing with compliance issues”.
5. Managing stakeholders
Across a project there tends to be diverse interests that need to be managed. Some interests have a direct impact on the project, whilst others would be indirect. However, even among those that have a direct impact, some might be more important than others, or have different influences on the project. It thus means that it can be a challenge to coordinate and manage the various stakeholders (and their interests) that contribute to a successful and well-executed project.
4. Accurate data
On big projects, or for a team that is managing multiple projects, it is crucial to have access to accurate data to ensure timely and well-informed decisions. Data becomes even more important when it has to be communicated to others, particularly senior management, or others who do not have intimate knowledge about a particular project, but may nonetheless have tremendous influence with respect to its execution.
3. Reducing costs and achieving savings
It is a frequently desired goal to have a project completed on time and under budget. For the latter, it means trying to reduce costs and/or finding ways to realise some savings. However, there are a host of reasons why most projects never achieve this, including being under budgeted in the first place, and the increased prices for goods and services, when the project finally get executed. However, such circumstances may result in the parts of the project being minimised or even omitted, to try to keep the overall project within the budget allocated. Hence vigilance with respect to project budget and spend can be a stressful part of managing a project.
2. Strategy selection
Increasingly, procurement is moving from just being an operational function to one that has strategic value to organisations. However, understanding that strategic value, and figuring out how it can be implemented, especially when it may need to be coordinated across multiple locations, or across very distinct functional units or categories of business, can be a distinct challenge.
1. Supplier-related issues
Finally, the greatest challenge procurement professionals indicated were matters related to suppliers – from identifying the best suppliers, and ensuring that a stable supply of quality materials can be maintained, to monitoring supplier performance. Along that spectrum, suppliers also need to be continually monitored to ensure that they deliver what they say they will deliver, within the timelines and to the quality agreed.
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Even as the Guyana government slammed the People’s Progressive Party’s (PPP) filing of private criminal charges of misconduct in public office against two government ministers as an effort to distract the public from its record of corruption, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo said more charges would be filed against other ministers.
“The charges that were filed today against the current and former Minister of Public Health is the PPP’s cowardly attempt to draw public attention away from its own sordid record of corruption while in office,” Minister of State, Joseph Harmon said in a statement.
However, Jagdeo recalled that his party had long spoken about private charges, and his party was now merely using government’s standard of misconduct in public office by way of three counts connected to the sale of three large tracts of land of more than GY$900 million by former Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh and former Head of the National Industrial, Commercial and Investments Limited (NICIL).
Reiterating that Singh and Brassington had acted on his Cabinet’s approval, Jagdeo put the David Granger-led administration on public notice that more charges would be laid against political functionaries. ‘This is not the end so we are not stopping at these charges. There are several others who would be charged,” he said.
And the Minister of State also said more charges would be laid against former functionaries of the Jagdeo and Donald Ramotar-led People’s Progressive Party Civic administrations. “The PPP is aware that more charges are soon to be filed against high public officials who served under the Jagdeo and Ramotar administrations. These charges are a result of months of intense investigation by Commissions of Inquiries and evidence gathered by the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) of the Guyana Police Force,” said Harmon.
The State Minister said Guyanese would “not be swayed by the legal shenanigans of the PPP, which, in effect, make a mockery of the legal system.” “This Government will continue to take the necessary steps to ensure that those who held public office and engaged in malfeasance while in office are brought to justice.”
With the Special Organised Crime Unit of the Guyana Police Force having already arrested and questioned Jagdeo and several other former government ministers about the sale of housing lands at Goedverwagting-Sparendaam (Pradoville2), the former Guyanese leader said he was not worried about being charged in connection with those transactions. “I don’t care! They will do what they have to do. I made it clear: you go ahead and you throw the worst at us because that is the expectation. They have approached this politically from the beginning,” said Jadgeo who enjoys immunity from legal action for acts carried out as president.
Now that summons have been issued for Minister of Public Health Volda Lawrence and former Minister of Public Health Dr. George Norton to appear in court on April 24, 2018 to answer the private criminal charges, the Minister of State said he was confident that they would win their cases.
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Projects financed by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) present significant business opportunities for the Region’s private sector. However, limited understanding of the procurement processes at CDB and the IDB pose challenges for the business community, and result in low or unsuccessful participation.
On Monday April 30, CDB and IDB co-hosted a procurement seminar aimed at developing the capacity of the Barbados private sector to take advantage of opportunities available through projects financed by both institutions.
Speaking at the opening of the event, entitled “Business Opportunities in Barbados – Procurement for CDB- and IDB-Financed Projects”, CDB’s Director of Projects, Daniel Best, said that the Barbados business community has played a crucial role in providing procurement for CDB projects.
“In terms of the monetary value of contracts awarded on CDB- financed projects, Barbados has been the third-largest recipient over the past seven years. It is also important to note that the local private sector has supported the successful implementation of CDB projects not just in Barbados but also across the Region,” said Best.
Francisco Javier Urra, Chief of Operations at the IDB Barbados Country Office, emphasized the transparency of the procurement policies and procedures of multilateral financial institutions such as the IDB and CDB.
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An internal audit into the operations at the National Insurance Board (NIB) has uncovered a scam involving the payout of close to $3 million in maternity benefits.
Four workers from the Insurance Operations Department at NIB offices in north Trinidad have been sent home with full pay pending the outcome of the investigations.
According to a source at the NIB, who agreed to speak on condition of anonymity, in mid last year, a woman visited the office of the executive director Niala Persad-Poliah, situated at NIB’s head office at Queen’s Park East, Port-of-Spain, and reported that she discovered approximately $30,000 in her bank account. The woman in her report stated that upon an inquiry with her bank on the origin of the hefty sum of money, she was told that it was her maternity benefit that was paid by the NIB.
However, the woman said she was never pregnant and therefore never applied for such benefit.
On the heels of her report, an internal auditor was mandated to carry out an audit of maternity benefit payments after it was brought to the attention of the audit committee of the Board and to the Board of Directors.
Almost one year later “no action has been taken,” according to NIB sources.
Employees claimed that one executive member is being “wrongly targeted” while those who are allegedly part of the scam “remain on the job.” Employees are now calling on Persad-Poliah “to give the public answers.”
In an immediate response, Persad-Poliah told the Sunday Guardian that whilst this was an ongoing investigation and the NIB could not directly comment, “the NIB takes a zero-tolerance approach to fraud.”
She said NIB has a robust Fraud Control Framework and “all allegations are thoroughly investigated utilising best practice methods, experience and expertise; a combination of well-trained in-house investigators, external consultants and the T&T Police Service Fraud Squad.”
Persad-Poliah said she was “unaware of such an allegation” that an executive member was being targeted. She said the NIB has an efficient and effective grievance policy that “provides employees with a mechanism to expeditiously resolve issues of concern.”
The maternity scam is said to be just one of other scams that have been allegedly discovered at NIB.
Last year, in the corporate communications department it was discovered that rooms were being “illegally” rented out for private functions, including weddings.
A member of the public who had paid money to host a wedding at a room at NIB’s head office reported the “illegal rental arrangement” to the office of the executive director.
“A worker resigned in the midst of this fiasco,” the NIB source said.
That worker, the source added, was also fingered in another scam. It was discovered that the worker was allegedly caught tampering and inflating bids submitted for the purchase of hot cross buns to ensure a family member received the baking contract.
“The billion-dollar enterprises usually give staff complementary hot cross buns in celebration of Easter. The distribution of the sweet delicacy is in keeping with NIB decision to show respect of all religious holidays. Snacks are also distributed to staff during Divali, Eid, and Christmas,” the source said.
With respect to that particular worker, Persad-Poliah confirmed that the individual is no longer with the NIB.
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During an SLP press conference earlier today, 1st Deputy Political Leader, Alva Baptiste made the following statement regarding the Hewanorra airport redevelopment matter:
“I start by making reference to a government press release issued and voiced by Ms Nancy Charles, on Tuesday 24 April, where she stated categorically and I quote:
“The Government of Saint Lucia has NOT Signed any Agreement with Mr. Sean Matthew for the Redevelopment of Hewanorra International Airport! This is just another case of FAKE NEWS, LIES and Deceit of the St. Lucia Labour Party hoping to frustrate and delay the progress of the country”
The Press Release then went on to accuse the SLP of trying to tarnish Mr. Matthew’s reputation and followed with several paragraphs detailing Mr. Matthew’s biography. The question which immediately arose was why a government press release would fabricate such a lie about the Labour Party and then go to such lengths to promote the qualifications of an individual, if they were not contemplating an engagement with him. Or was that a case of “pwen duvant” (take in front)? In other words, take a pre-emptive strike on the opposition to disguise an actual action which was being contemplated?
The Labour Party immediately released a response to this blatant lie and challenged the Government and Nancy Charles to provide proof of any statement made by the Labour Party in respect of a contract to Sean Matthew.
The Labour Party reiterates, here, that as of April 24, 2018 it had made no statement in respect of an alleged contract issued to Sean Matthew or any entity associated with him.
We were aware, as would most St. Lucians, that reference was made by a local Talk-show host, on his program days earlier, to a recently registered company by the name of Executive Consulting and Management Services Ltd. (ECMS) of which Mr. Matthew was a director and that the company was allegedly the recipient of a contract to provide consultancy services in respect of the Hewanorra International Airport Redevelopment Project.
Since those statements were made, a number of documents have emerged in the public domain pointing to negotiations of a contract between the previously named ECMS and the Saint Lucia Air and Seaports Authority (SLASPA) in respect of the Hewanorra Airport Redevelopment Project. Further, the documents suggest that the contract sum, under consideration is in the region of US$1.35 million to US$1.53 million or EC$3.66 million to EC$4.15 million in addition to expenses.
The Saint Lucia Labour Party has on several occasions stated its concerns about the current government’s departure from a Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement for the airport redevelopment, which would insulate the country from the huge debt estimated in the region of US$150 million ($407 million), and at the same time avoid the negative impact that a loan of that magnitude would have on the country’s debt to GDP ratio. It is also important to restate here that the process was being managed by the IFC, a reputable World Bank agency. This was always intended to ensure that such a huge undertaking by the country would be conducted under the strictest transparent processes.
In his contribution to the recently completed budget debate, Leader of the Opposition, Hon Philip J. Pierre, revealed that the current government was also offered assistance with the financing and management of the Airport project, by the government of Canada. The offer from the Canadian Government required no government guarantee and also included construction of the North – South link road. This was also refused.
The question is why? If there is a good explanation the government has the responsibility to share it with the citizens of the country.
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