Canberra Public Sector Procurement Forum

May 17-18 sees the launch of “The Public Sector Procurement Forum” in Canberra - an event geared to the specific day-to-day needs of the public sector procurement practitioner. This event is endorsed by the Australian Procurement & Construction Council (APCC) and will effectively form an introduction to the “Building Bridges” event run by South Australian Government Contract Services Division on 10 August 2006, also endorsed by the APCC.

Fourteen speakers will present on topics such as global versus local sourcing, centralisation versus decentralisation of public procurement, the role of technology in procurement, and implementing reform of procurement in the public sector.

Delegates at the Public Sector Procurement Forum will hear from Colin Lyne, former Managing Director of The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS), who will offer cutting-edge insights into the OGC public procurement model. Lyne has extensive private and public sector experience and his most recent work for the Department for Constitutional Affairs (UK) involved ensuring that procurement plays its part in cutting public spending. Lyne’s latest role included OGC investment board responsibility for implementing strategies to achieve the UK government’s savings target of ₤7 billion.

Jane Montgomery, Executive Director, the Australian Procurement and Construction Council (APCC), will discuss the economics of the tendering process from a local perspective – “does it add cost without value?”

The Rt. Hon Helen Liddell will share her experiences and international knowledge of the public sector at the Conference. Mrs Liddell has held several Ministerial posts in the UK including Treasury and Energy. An economist by training, Mrs Liddell’s strong background in the financial sector included her role as Economic Secretary to the Treasury (1997-1998). Mrs Liddell was appointed British High Commissioner to Australia in 2005.

This event is endorsed by the Australian Procurement & Construction Council (APCC) and will effectively form an introduction to the “Building Bridges” event run by South Australian Government Contract Services Division on 10 August 2006, also endorsed by the APCC. To secure your ticket, please visit:www.cipsaconferences.com.au

SMART 2007 “Engine for Growth” conference

CIPSA will be represented on the SMART 2007 Committee by Geoff Woods and Declan Devanney – both of whom are now formally members of the CIPSA NSW Regional Committee as well. The Regional Chair for New South Wales, David Sharam, will also be in the loop on SMART progress. In addition, the resources of the CIPSA national office in Melbourne will be fully utilised in support of SMART 2007.

It is still expected CIPSA will play a full role key partner in SMART 2007 - currently timetabled for late June 2007 in Darling Harbour.

It is recognised that the principal audience for the Procurement stream within SMART 2007 will be supply chain and logistics professionals with an interest in procurement matters. Content should be focussed on meeting the needs of delegates with a broad supply chain responsibility, not just a specialised procurement responsibility within their organisation.

SMART 2007 issues a “call for papers” as a process for gathering content. The call for papers will go out in late 2006 in all probability. CIPSA will facilitate the call for papers to its membership.

Queensland Supply Chain Conference

The 2-day Queensland Supply Chain Conference kicks off on 13 July. The theme is “Availability”, and conference attendees will delve into issues such as: right price, right price, right place and right time. This conference is designed for all professionals - ranging from logisticians, practitioners to procurement and supply chain managers. An earlybird rate is available for CIPSA members.

Click here to download the pdf attachment to secure your seat now! For further information go to www.qldscc.com.

The CIPSA-Portland Group Capability Benchmarking Survey 2006

A joint survey between CIPSA and The Portland Group is seeking to benchmark the relative capabilities of the strategic procurement role within the Australian profession. In addition to a base questionnaire, to be sent to several hundred practitioners, over 50 face to face interviews will be conducted with strategic procurement professionals from across the profession including: private sector, public sector, academics, consultants and trainers who are active in the procurement field. The final results will be published at the CIPSA annual conference, to be held in Melbourne at the Crown Promenade Hotel, between 17 and 18 October. Detailed feedback on the survey will be revealed at the ‘CPO stream’ series of seminars during the first day of the conference, and will be published in booklet format for the second day of the event.

Managing the Tail Explored

Our “Managing the Tail” Conference took place at the Sofitel Wentworth in Sydney last month. Almost 100 attendees listened to a variety of speakers who dissected and deliberated over the ‘tail’ – an often-neglected area of expenditure. Informative and practical sessions were held on managing, making over, capturing and outsourcing the tail. The CIPSA white paper, “Managing the Tail” was provided to all conference attendees. To request a copy, please contact the CIPSA office on 1300 765 142. 18% of the delegates rated the overall conference as excellent, 79% good, 3% average and 0% poor.

Global Supply Management Awards

CIPS welcomes entries from Australian organisations for the CIPS/SM Global Awards 2006. These awards recognise excellence in a variety of procurement categories – public sector, private sector, large organisations and SMEs. The award will be presented at a gala dinner in London in October. Telstra are a previous winner. For further information and application details, please visit the CIPS website, www.cips.org.

Training program off to a flying start

In April, CIPSA kicked of their first training course for the year - ‘Strategic Price Management’, held at the CIPSA office in Melbourne. The course proved so popular, it was a sell out weeks before-hand. Future training courses are scheduled in both Sydney and Melbourne, on a range of relevant topics, such as: Contract Law, International Procurement, e-Procurement and Procurement Strategy. To view the CIPSA training brochure, please visit: www.cipsa.com.au and click on “Training”.

New Strategic Alignment with UK Government Procurement Service

A new strategic alignment between CIPS and the UK’s government’s procurement service (GPS) was announced at a launch event on 20 March. As part of this new relationship, CIPS will set up a public sector faculty as a central reference point and resource for public sector purchasers. DCEO Keith Trower will be revealing more about this exciting alliance at the Public Sector Procurement Forum, at the Hyatt hotel in Canberra between 17 and 18 May. For further information, please visit: www.cipsaconferences.com.au

International Council Election Nominations

Nominations have now closed for the RoW seat on the CIPS council. At the closing date, the valid nominations are:

• Nick Bennett MCIPS, Strategic Development Director, Glanbia plc, Republic of Ireland
• Tony Clare MCIPS, Purchasing Manager, Auckland District Health Board, New Zealand
• David Freeman MCIPS, Supply Chain Manager, Vodafone, New Zealand
• Derek Gaynor MCIPS, Procurement Officer, National University of Ireland, Republic of Ireland
• Rene Kling MCIPS, Chief Executive, RMK Business Consulting, Australia
• Paul Maras-Hilling MCIPS, Senior Purchasing Manager, Teligence Communications, Canada

Ballot papers are being printed and are currently being dispatched from Easton House, UK directly to all full members of CIPS, who are eligable to vote i.e. those which are MCIPS only.

Wanted: Your Top 10 Issues!

Currently, each CIPSA region is collating the Top 10 procurement issues specific to each region. Once compiled, CIPSA intend to publish a White Paper that explores each issue in more depth. CIPSA would welcome your contributions. Please email: CIPSA at info@cipsa.com.au with “Top Ten Issues” in the subject line.

REMINDER: University of Melbourne Survey-Supply Chain Uncertainty

Just a reminder that CIPSA members are invited to participate in the new University of Melbourne survey of Supply Chain Uncertainty. Download the pdf document, complete the survey and return it to the University of Melbourne. It should take no more than 15 minutes of your time, but shall no doubt provide some valuable insights for all of us.

Renew your membership before the end of the Financial Year

As you may be aware, we are coming up to the end of financial year, which means your membership may be up for renewal. Renewal forms will be sent out as early as the end of May. If your details have changed since renewal last year, please forward through your change of details to: info@cipsa.com.au. And of course, renewing before the end of the financial year means claiming your tax back!

Expansion of CIPS International Conferences

CIPS is expanding its conference programme internationally. May sees the inaugural CIPS Middle East Conference being held in Dubai, as well as the 2nd IPSA/CIPS Pan-African Conference being held in Johannesburg. IPSA is the South African purchasing institute, now affiliated with CIPS to support practitioners in South Africa.

How do we measure up? Performance Measurement Conference

Measuring performance is one of the key areas of interest for many procurement organisations. “How do we measure up” will address specific ideas and suggestions for improving performance measurement of the procurement contribution via expert presentations and case studies. Held at the Crown Towers Melbourne, this conference is not to be missed. To register or for further details, please visit: www.cipsaconferences.com.au

CIPS Australia Level 10, 520 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia
Tel: 1300 765 142, Fax: 1300 765 143, Email: info@cipsa.com.au, www.cipsa.com.au

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