to infinity and beyond!…. skills for the 21 st century presented by norma j. hall, fnigp, cppo,...

To Infinity and Beyond!….Skills for the 21st Century

Presented by

Norma J. Hall, FNIGP, CPPO, CPPB, CPM

State It Procurement Officer

SC Budget & Control Board

Division of Procurement Services

Information Technology Management Office

To Infinity and Beyond!….Skills for the 21st Century

Skills for the 21st Century

• The world and workplace are changing rapidly.

• In the last 5 - 7 years these changes have

had a drastic impact on public procurement.

• We must analyze our organizations and staff to ensure we have the skills necessary to be a world class procurement organization.


What changes have you seen in your organization over the

past 5-7 years?

Social Networking Sites

Major impact to public procurement

• Public Procurement Transformation– In February 2005 GovPro republished an article in entitled

“Harnessing Procurement Transformation” by David P. Gragan, CPPO, Managing Director of Gov’t. Procurement, Silver Oak Solutions. David is now the Chief Procurement Officer for the DC Office of Contracting and Procurement .

Public Procurement Transformation

• Gragan identified transformation as taking a current, cumbersome process and implementing changes to complement a government entity’s vision and sense of public duty.

• It includes shifting the emphasis from process to

outcome, and from lowest price to best value, doing more faster - with less money and people.


What transformation activities have taken place in your agency recently?


• Gragan identified several steps to transformation: – Evaluate Procurement Processes– Introduce Process Automation– Promote Communications– Enhance Reporting– Improve Sourcing– Launch Training Programs – Manage Vendor Relationships– Overcome Challenges


• Global Management Consultants A.T. Kearney in one of their projects for Procurement Transformation identified three major areas of concentration:– Capacity Building – assessment of current organization’s

structure and people capabilities– Spend Management – looking at total spend and

developing a plan to target areas for savings– Strategic Sourcing – implementing a strategic sourcing

plan and detailed skills training


• Not just in the US – it’s worldwide • In the UK the Office of Government

Commerce in 2006 began procurement transformation efforts. They identified three key areas:– Collaboration – joining forces to create economies of

scale to capitalize on greater negotiating power– Setting and Monitoring Standards – including program

and project management through Gateway Reviews for projects and Procurement Capability Reviews


The Procurement Capability Reviews are conducted for intensive assessments of procurement leadership, skills and systems in every government department

Skills – the government admitted the need to address skills across all professions in the public sector – nowhere more so than procurement, they emphasized raising professionalism within procurement. There is significant focus on training, learning and development processes.


• In all three cases there are common threads– Evaluating Procurement Processes– Introducing Process Automation– Improving Sourcing– Identifying Skills and Delivering Training


What skills do you think are necessary for procurement

professionals in the 21st Century?


Through a survey of State Procurement CPO’s the following skills were listed as being important for government procurement officials:

Analytical skills – • Proficient in use of Excel and/or Access• Capable of independent research – making valid

comparisons and analysis such as business case

analysis and market analysis


Analytical skills – continued

• Critical thinking and problem solving• Creativity – finding positive ways to

make things happen• Sound theoretical skills• Negotiation skills• Read and understand laws and specifications


Personal skills – • Integrity (#1)• Solid Professionalism (self-awareness; commitment

to continuous learning; social skills)• Excellent communication skills (written and verbal,

including public speaking skills)• Customer service skills (ability to work well with

others) • Positive attitude


Personal skills – continued • Excellent time management• Adaptability (change management and inspire

others to be on board with changes)• Flexibility • Commitment to public service• Passion for the work• Detail oriented (consistently produce

accurate documents)


Personal skills – continued• Innovative• Inspirational (Inspire suppliers to become partners)

• Organizational skills • Moving from transaction processing to tactical work

(spend analysis, strategic sourcing)• Understanding agency’s mission, role, and function• Refining work processes – effective & efficient• Bridging the Generation Gap

Skills for the 21st Century Organizational skills – continued • Ability to Affect Legislation• See the Big Picture • Have a Global View and Perspective

Learned skills• Proficient Information Technology Skills• Knowledge and Understanding of Contract Law• Communication Skills (Written and Verbal, Including Public

Speaking Skills)• Market Analysis and Business Case Analysis


In a recent survey of public procurement officials in South Carolina the following skills (or characteristics) were the top ten listed as being important for “top-notch” public procurement officials:

• Accepts Responsibility – takes on new challenges, admits mistakes and fixes them

• Ability and desire to communicate effectively• Intelligent, shows common sense & ability/desire to

learn

Skills for the 21st Century • Gets along well with others – Team player• Flexible – Adaptable, accepts change• Organizes and presents thoughts clearly• Sets and achieves goals, continuous improvement, has

personal direction• Self –Confident, shows assertiveness and initiative• Work Oriented; hard working • Manages conflict and anger


• In a research paper presented at the International Public Procurement Conference (IPPC) in Seoul, Korea entitled “Emerging Professionalism in a Defense Acquisition Workforce” by David Moore and Kevin Burgess of the UK, they identified Core Skill Sets and Sub Skill Sets for the Core Skills that should be included in the defense acquisition body of knowledge:


• Leadership –– Visibility and Impact Leadership– Vision, Aspirations, Business and Policy

Alignment– Stakeholder and Supplier Base Confidence Levels

• Skills Development and Deployment –– Effective Resourcing of Procurement Activity– “Intelligent Client” Capability


• Systems and Processes – – Governance and Organization– Strategic and Collaborative Approach to Market

Engagement and Sourcing– Effective Use of Procurement and Program and

Project Management Tools and Techniques– Knowledge and Performance Management


• Another IPPC research paper presented in Seoul, Korea entitled “Professionalization of the U.S. Defense Acquisition Workforce: Progress, Problems and Future Directions” by Rene G. Rendon. It focused on how DoD professionalizes its acquisition workforce, including workforce management, organization, and training to ensure it has the right skill mix and competencies to successfully manage DoD’s acquisition projects.


• Legislation has been initiated to improve effectiveness and has impacted the requirements for education, training and experience.

• The DoD recognize there are other initiatives and programs that are also focused on professionalizing the acquisition workforce. These include educational institutions, training organizations, and professional associations. The DoD relies on these as well for education and training of their workforce.

In Summary

• Public Procurement entities around the globe have made significant changes resulting in transformation of our business processes.

• Changes have required staff to develop additional skills and knowledge, leading to increased professionalization.

• Technology has, and will continue to aid in the transformation of public procurement.

• Change is inevitable!

Questions?

to infinity and beyond!…. skills for the 21 st century presented by norma j. hall, fnigp, cppo,...

Documents

procurement processes

procurement capability

chief procurement officer

century slide

transformation activities

detailed skills training

public sector

skills necessary