Top 10 Skills for Procurement Consultants!
Do you have what it takes to be a procurement consultant? Or simply, are you looking for information on what a procurement consultant is and what they do?
Look no further! At Hudson Procure, we can provide you with all the answers…including our services.
Let’s start at the beginning…
What are procurement consultants?
A procurement consultant is an expert in the purchasing process. They are the buyer’s best ally — providing advice, conducting supplier market research, and analysing your costs and overall strategic/operational processes. They can manage the end-to-end procurement process on a buyer’s behalf or offer expertise at any stage needed.
At Hudson Procure, we provide all of these services and more! Contact us here for more info!
Top 10 Skills You Need!
Here at Hudson Procure, these top ten skills are the most valued by our clients and will lead to your success as a procurement consultant!
Want to know if you have what it takes? Keep reading to find out!
10. Technology
Modern procurement relies on technology! This is why it is vital to have some knowledge of the main technology used in procurement processes. At Hudson Procure, we are currently developing software such as Procure SMART — innovative, world-leading technology that maximises AI and VR, ensuring a transparent procurement process.
We also support buyers on Hudson Post — We created 11 sector-specific tendering portals for buyers to post their specification for free!
9. Organisation
Strong organisational skills are key to being a procurement consultant. When you work with many clients, it is vital to provide the best possible experience of your services to each. Therefore, managing your project and relationship with the client, by maintaining open communications, and keeping them informed and calm when risks occur, is all part of good organisation and time management.
8. Team Player
At Hudson Procure, our procurement consultants work closely to deliver the best for our clients. Depending on the size of the project, our consultants may work on multiple projects together — providing different elements such as supplier market research, cost analysis and more. This means that you must have excellent teamwork skills!
7. Strong written communication
As a procurement consultant, you will be preparing several documents for the client and often liaising with them across email (though, phone and web conferences are also used). You will likely produce reports and presentations, create purchase orders, research potential suppliers and much more. So, strong written communication skills are key!
6. Strong verbal communication
As a procurement consultant, you will need to have excellent verbal communication skills. This is because you will spend a great deal of time speaking to clients, negotiating on their behalf and maintaining good supplier relationships. You will likely negotiate prices and terms of contracts, update the client on your progress and produce presentations.
5. Risk management
The path to procurement never runs smoothly and you should always plan for when your processes do not go to plan. Things like poor supply chain management and unreliable suppliers can be detrimental to your procurement plan. However, by identifying and analysing these potential risks early, you can avoid them. Or at least have a backup plan when it happens!
It is always a good idea to produce a procurement risk management assessment!
4. Results driven
To be a successful procurement consultant, you must be results driven and determined to provide the best possible service for your clients. This includes going the extra mile and building relationships with your clients. You may work with them multiple times on new projects!
3. Negotiation
The ability to negotiate well is a key skill of any expert procurement consultant. You will likely need to negotiate prices with suppliers and the terms of contracts to get the best deal for your client. This means taking into consideration your client’s strategic advancement as a company and their current costs (both of which should be analysed early on in the procurement process!).
2. Research
The ability to conduct thorough research on your client’s market, competitors and its potential suppliers is key to providing valuable procurement consultancy. Think of research as your foundation before producing and evaluating the procurement processes!
1. Analytical
The ability to conduct thorough strategic and operational analyses on the client’s behalf is vital to producing valuable procurement consultancy. Research and analysis go hand-in-hand as the foundation for establishing procurement processes. This can include the tracking and analysis of the company’s spending, analysing the effectiveness of order and delivery processes (including inventory) and much more!
Why apply to Hudson Procure?
So, you’ve read through our top 10 skills for procurement consultants and think you have what it takes? Here’s why you should choose us!
At Hudson Procure, we pride ourselves on our expert status as procurement consultants. We have over 20 years of procurement experience, over 30 countries in which we have helped our clients and 20 sectors we have worked in.
No two days are the same as a procurement consultant. You will get the opportunity to utilise a range of your skills, help clients from all sectors and work as part of a team which values you as an individual and as part of our Hudson family!
Hear from our Procurement Director, Daniel Gibson:
“At Hudson, I’ve had the opportunity to encourage the growth and expansion of our Procurement Division. I’ve appreciated providing a range of Procurement Services for Hudson’s clients. I enjoy the culture at Hudson, and I’m invested in growing the division further.” – Daniel Gibson, Procurement Director.
Interested in applying to be one of our procurement consultants? Drop us a message here!
How can Hudson Procure help your organisation?
Procure Consult
With Procure Consult, we offer support with tender management and ad-hoc procurement consultancy. Our expert team will manage the end-to-end procurement process or offer assistance with any stage, as and when required.
Procure Health Check
With Procure Health Check, we’ll conduct a full review of the strategic and operational procurement processes within your organisation. We’ll identify the areas that need improvement and help you drive greater value from the procurement process.
Procure Analyse
The purpose of Procure Analyse is to conduct a high-level analysis of your spending activity. We’ll help you understand your current purchasing behaviour and highlight areas that can deliver greater value. Procure Analyse is also offered as part of Procure Health Check or as a standalone service.
Procure Outsourcing
With Procure Outsourcing, we deliver a range of procurement solutions on an outsourced basis, completely bespoke to you. This can range from delivering multiple tender projects as a package to delivering the full procurement function of your organisation.
Procure Post
Are you trying to find a supplier for your project? Post your tendering opportunity onto any of our 11 sector-specific portals for FREE with Procure Post!
Housed by our sister company, Hudson Discover, our portals host thousands of tendering opportunities for organisations of all sizes. For an additional cost, we’ll even help you identify your requirements and find the most suitable suppliers for your business.
Get in touch for a consultation and find out how we can help your business drive better value from procurement.
