Ever feel like not having the right people on board is like a cruise on the Titanic? Well, it’s not a bad analogy when you consider the Procurement Iceberg.
Like other typical organisational roles such as Accounting and Marketing, there are the parts of the role that you see and parts that you don’t see. The risk in any of these types of roles is assuming the parts that you see are all that there is.
It is a financial reality that many small to medium-size businesses do not have the resources to hire procurement professionals. that does not mean that the ‘under the waterline’ functions of the role are not important and will not need to be done by someone.
For example:
Supplier Relationship Management.
Many business owners think that taking a sales rep for an occasional coffee is all that there is to it.
Ask yourself, how important is your relationship to your supplier. If you urgently needed some critical component at the same time as your competitor and your supplier only had one left, are you the first in line? Or do your critical suppliers only hear from you when you are complaining about a late delivery or bullying them into lower prices?
Where you can’t afford a professional to do these hidden tasks for you, at least take the time to learn what they mean and what they would look like if a professional was doing them for you.
M. Hamilton
Copyright 2026 Procure Horizon
