Developing Purchasing Policies, Processes and SLAs

Developing purchasing policies, processes and SLAs is an important task for any organization that wants to ensure the quality, efficiency, and effectiveness of its procurement activities. Some of the steps involved in this task are:

• Define the objectives and scope of the purchasing function, such as the types of goods and services to be procured, the expected outcomes, and the performance indicators.
• Establish the roles and responsibilities of the purchasing staff, such as the procurement manager, the procurement officers, and the procurement assistants.
• Develop the purchasing policies and procedures, such as the sourcing methods, the evaluation criteria, the approval levels, the contract management, and the ethical standards.
• Develop the service level agreements (SLAs) with the internal and external stakeholders, such as the suppliers, the customers, and the end-users. SLAs are contracts that specify the expectations and obligations of both parties, such as the quality, quantity, timeliness, and cost of the goods and services delivered.
• Monitor and evaluate the purchasing performance, such as the compliance with the policies and procedures, the achievement of the SLAs, and the satisfaction of the stakeholders.