Brexit - An Opportunity

An opportunity for procurement to take the lead 

As 29th March 2019 approaches, businesses are defining and deploying their “Brexit Strategy”. A key element of this approach is to develop a supply structure that is able meet both the challenges and opportunities Brexit presents.

In this context, Brexit presents a real opportunity for procurement to increase its profile and enhance its reputation as a truly strategic function. As procurement has evolved from an administrative function to a strategic function and arguably a source of competitive advantage. This is an opportunity for procurement to take the lead in shaping and developing supply chain strategies that can deliver innovation and sustainable value.

For most businesses, the risk of supply chain disruption is substantial, and would require the industry knowledge, expertise and support of procurement to develop effective risk mitigation strategies. Supply chain configuration will be a strategy most businesses will explore and adopt in order to shorten their supply chain and limit their exposure to disruption. Procurement will have to identify the right supply partners, as a significant proportion of businesses now view switching sources of supply as an effective solution to supply chain disruption and risks. Securing a credible and robust supply network could prove to be a strategic advantage.

The challenge for procurement is to achieve these objectives at lowest total cost for its enterprise. With this challenge comes an opportunity for procurement to demonstrate its value and presents itself as a facilitator of innovation by acting as a strategic interface between internal and external resources.

By Daniel Usifoh