Читать книгу Supply Chain Management For Dummies - Daniel Stanton - Страница 36

Purchasing (or procurement) is the function that buys the materials and services that a company uses to produce its own products and services. The basic goal of the purchasing function is to get the stuff that the company needs at the lowest cost possible; the purchasing department is always looking for ways to get a better deal from suppliers. Some of the most common cost-reduction strategies for a purchasing manager are

 Negotiating with a supplier to reduce the supplier’s profit margin

 Buying in larger quantities to get a volume discount

 Switching to a supplier that charges less for the same product

 Switching to a lower-quality product that’s less expensive

On the surface, any of these four options looks like a simple, effective way to reduce costs and therefore increase profitability, but each can have negative long-term effects. Driving a supplier’s profit margin too low, for example, could make it hard for them to pay their bills — or even force them out of business. Although you’d save money in the short term, having to find a new supplier in the future could cost you a lot more, increasing your total cost. Many purchasing decisions can also have direct effects on the costs of other functions within your company. Sourcing lower-quality raw materials might lead to higher inspection and testing expenses, for example.

Your total costs include all the investments and expenses that are required to deliver a product or service to your customer.