CIPS Qualifications training and the Procurement Academy

CIPS are tentatively looking to restart the examination process in July, and then September.  Obviously there are a lot of hoops to jump through before then, but it means students can at least think about studying with purpose.  We do recognise that it is tricky (if useful) to study when you do not know when you will be tested - there is always the worry that you will forget everything.

So, we have started running our CIPS qualification training programmes using Zoom.  It seems to be working OK so far, but not so brilliantly that we won't go back to meeting face to face when we can.  I am working with a L4 group and an L5 group, nominally out of Leeds.  I have adapted to running half day sessions rather than full day sessions, so it takes 2 sessions to cover what we might have done in a single day.  We have other tutors who are still following the full day model - so you have a choice.

We are looking at when the exams are scheduled, and will be looking to support students with additional revision sessions for courses that were postponed in March (it is easy to forget...).  And one advantage of being online is that we can record each session and make them for delegates who would like to review them at leisure.

So, if you do have time on your hands and want to get something out of this lockdown, and are thinking that this is the year you finally tackle CIPS - then check out the Procurement Academy.  We will be delighted if you can join us.

The Procurement Academy - Leeds

I have started delivering the new CIPS syllabus for The Procurement Academy in Leeds.
Nice venue - the Novotel.
Some of the delegates are funded by the Apprenticeship levy, so we have a great mix of new and experienced practitioners.

They have a range of courses running in the North and Midlands (and its not me training at all of them - so you can pick the venue and tutor to suit).

Some cohorts starting now, but others after the summer.  So have a look if you want to get CIPS qualifications on the new syllabus.

Preparing Perfect Tenders - Leeds, 4th November 2015

Been on holiday, and so not much notice for this one.http://www.passprocurement.co.uk/topics/preparing-perfect-tenders/

Ideal for me because it is just around the corner in Leeds.  And about one of my favourite topic - how to win tenders.

Bit late but still room for any latecomers.

HS2

This is not a blog with particularly much thought behind it (are any of them you may well ask), but I am in favour of High Speed 2.
It will make little to no difference to my working life, as even if it arrives on time I should be on track for retirement (pardon the pun).

That this is a the first major investment in new train lines north of London for nearly a century shows how little we as a country have responded to the changes in behaviour and interconnectedness over that time.  I rarely work within walking distance of my house (apart from when I am working from my office),  and the motorways are increasingly full at all times of day and in all weathers.  So we use the trains. 

2 and a bit hours to London is not bad but 1 and a bit hours is better.  I find it difficult to grasp that people value their own time so little that they dont want to save 2 hours on the round trip.  Obviously they are made of hardier stuff than me, and are never resort to thinking "Oh its too much trouble", as I do.

Are there better things to spend the money on?  Possibly.  That is a choice and decision that a lot of people have opinions about - mostly of the "spend it on this thing I know about" variety.  In fact HS2 may be one of those things.  Meanwhile Thameslink and CrossRail will cost about the same and are hardly on people's radar.

Should we protect the countryside?  Oh please.  We are not as a nation rich enough that we can afford to have a perfectly landscaped environment everywhere.  No nation is.  So again there are choices, and sometimes perfectly nice places will need to have train lines, wind turbines or electricity pilons (or all 3) in order that the country as a whole benefits.  And a damaged view is not the same as a broken leg - take pictures and photoshop them if you must.

Then there are the usual "it will never work" voices, that I hoped would have been at least slowed down by the Olympics.

Personally I think the Birmingham -Manchester line should go on at full speed to Glasgow.  That would do wonders for both Scotland and places on the way such as Carlisle and Preston.
Will it really benefit the North?  There are arguments both ways, but I think it is better to have improved infrastructure than not.

In the meantime it will create employment and economic impact, and at the end of it we will be able to travel that much more easily and quickly. 

In short, I'm in favour.

More courses for 2012

I am pleased to announce that we shall be delivering some extra courses in 2012 for our training provider partners.
These are;
Delivering Compliant Evaluation Processes for BIP Solutions - Manchester 20th March 2012, and Leeds 10th April 2012
International Trade and Shipping, for EuroMaTech in Amsterdam, 7-11 May 2012
Supply Chain and Inventory Management for EuroMaTech in Istanbul, 16-20 July 2012, and
Purchasing Negotiations Workshop for EuroMaTech in Dubai, 4th to 8th November 2012.

Booking is through the relevant partner organisation.  I shall be happy to direct you to them if you wish.

Hope to see you on one or more of these events.   The course on compliant evaluation processes is I think very useful for anyone involved in UK Public procurement.  I have been involved in a number of procurement processes that would have benefited from thinking about evaluation in more depth earlier in the tender process.

Government becomes an office landlord

The government has just announced a scheme where empty office space in public sector properties will be leased to small businesses.   The aim is to encourage entrepreneurship, and strengthen the small business sector whilst helping to generate income from public properties that will otherwise sit idle.  These are laudable aims, but I have strong reservations about the scheme in practice.

Firstly, the government is setting itself up in competition to private sector commercial landlords.  I don’t know about in London, but in much of the country there is no shortage of commercial space available at low rents and flexible about the size and duration of the lease.  It may be a big problem in London, but it is not in Leeds where the scheme was launched, or Bradford where I am based.  In fact there is a problem of too much space chasing too few tenants.  The government offering their surplus space, whilst a reasonable commercial proposition, is likely to end up undercutting the commercial offer (by offering better facilities, infrastructure. decor etc. for the same price) which in the end may lead to a lessening of total space available and in the short term may drive some commercial spaces out of business.

Enough sympathy for the landlords (sorry Ben and Helen, who provide my office space).  The bigger worry to me is that the government is sending a message that start-up businesses need formal office space.  Some do – but they can probably look after themselves.  Obviously manufacturing tends to need dedicated premises, which is one reason it is so hard to start successfully.  Service industries, including retail these days, often do not need their own office until they are large enough to pay for them at commercial rates.  New businesses are often better setting up from the kitchen table or garage until the cash flow is strong enough.  I was based at home for nearly 10 years.  People starting off in business are sometimes seduced by the glamour of setting up, when what they need is to strip out anything that does not generate cash.  A website is a much better investment than an atrium.

Feel free to disagree.

Basics of Business - Ethics part 1

It was widely reported in Yorkshire that a senior manager at Leeds City Council was also the owner of an events management organisation that had won contracts from Leeds City Council.
The manager involved had declared their interest, and took no part in awarding the contracts to her business. However it still ended up as front page news and a leading item on the regional television news- see here.

This highlights an important element of business ethics - it is not enough to be clear of influence, you have to be seen to be clear of any possible influence. Of course in other countries, Italy comes to mind as their Prime Minister goes to trial today, things are different. However it is a good rule for all people involved in business, particularly those in procurement roles, to consider how their decisions would look if published on the front page of a newspaper.

Perfectly legitimate and legal activities can be viewed as potentially corrupt, and that corrodes confidence in both the individual and the public sector as a whole.

It may well be the case in this situation that no influence was brought to bear on the decision making process - which may well have been a tender. One of the major reasons for running a tender process is because they are seen as more ethically "clean" than negotiated routes, and are harder for people to influence. The price we pay for that is that they are not always the route to best value.

In the middle east I have met course delegates who run businesses that supply their employer. In many cases they are able to demonstrate that this is beneficial for both sides, and that they are able to demonstrate both improved quality and lower prices.
However the question will always linger - who are you really working for?

Supply The National SME Engagement Programme - Workshop

I shall be delivering 2 seminars on Wednessday 3rd March 2010 on behalf of BiP Solutions. These will cover Effective Tender Writing, and Understanding Pre-Qualification Questionnaires.

The venue is the Stuart Hotel, 119 London Road, Derby. Details are here. The cost is £75+VAT per delegate for each event.

I shall be presenting the same two seminars at the Jury's Inn in Leeds on 24th March 2010. Same price, details are here.