This obviously has a huge impact on the competence requirements for buyers as well as on employee development programmes.<\/p>\n
The challenge for many purchasing staff is to moving from the role of service provider to that of trusted advisor<\/strong> within the organisation. To earn trust you have to earn it, and this takes time and effort. The buyer must not only understand the needs of the stakeholders, but also understand the extent of the challenges facing the company.<\/p>\n Competences of a professional business advisor<\/strong> are measured by the ability to provide vision, ideas and innovative solutions. While knowledge of strategy and negotiation techniques and market knowledge will continue to be among the most important skills, the ability to generate competitive advantage and the ability to react quickly to market changes will become equally important.<\/p>\n Technological developments will also have a not inconsiderable impact on the work of merchants. The biggest changes will be in the areas of efficiency, risk, commercial relations, innovation and sustainabilty. The implementation of advanced technological solutions will certainly make it necessary for purchasing staff to develop the competence to proactively and intelligently use the available data.<\/p>\n The changes described above will also be a challenge for departments responsible for employee competence development and talent management. But about that in our next post.<\/p>\n\tDigitalisation of the purchasing area<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Change and employee development<\/strong><\/h3>\n