Developing procurement management expertise is an important goal for Québec businesses, and a sure way to attain it is to give employees an incentive to excel and innovate. Judicious use of positive reinforcement and highlighting of good moves made by employees and other partners will undoubtedly boost procurement management efficiency. Understanding this, J2 sees fostering good ideas as vital to strengthening its employer brand – and an excellent opportunity to make creativity and initiative the focal point of the organization.
Positive reinforcement: a procurement management practice to be encouraged
For a variety of reasons, highlighting an employee’s achievements does not always come naturally in procurement. And yet, it is a winning strategy: “When you realize that procurement accounts for almost 70% of spending for some businesses, you understand that it is vital to help your human capital strive for greater efficiency. And in doing so, you highlight the crucial importance of the work we do,” explains Dominique Ouellet, consultant director with J2. Here are some practices that J2 uses to foster its employees’ development in their professional sphere – as well as some approaches that are best avoided.
The best ways to promote success in procurement management:
- Hold regular training meetings:
Monthly training meetings during which all employees can share ideas will prove very valuable. This is why J2 holds frequent “Orange Zones,” roundtables at which the entire team can draw attention to their good moves. For example, a J2 employee recently developed a new way of scheduling production for a customer, thereby reducing its costs. His explanation to colleagues of how he went about it gave the entire team a chance to appreciate his groundbreaking initiative. Orange Zones allow everyone an opportunity to speak, enabling the adoption of new working methods in procurement management. They also strengthen labour relations and promote constructive communication.
- Highlighting your colleagues’ achievements:
Sometimes successes that deserve to be celebrated end up going unnoticed because people are reluctant to boast about their own exploits. This is why J2 encourages employees to talk about their colleagues’ achievements and give them positive reinforcement.
- Tell the customer about your team’s successes:
Encouraging innovation and supporting winning ways are generally appreciated by customers. But it is important to be able to demonstrate to them how these successes help their business and achieve savings. “By doing so, we can use our team’s good work as a marketing tool. We show businesses how we can bring them innovative procurement solutions and just how much we can increase their productivity. This is something that buyers too greatly appreciate, because they know we will come up with new solutions to improve their customers’ performance,” says Cassie Morin, human resources adviser at J2.
Bad habits to avoid if you want to boost your success in procurement:
- Claiming all the credit for achievements:
Good ideas often involve input from several people. This is why J2 stresses the importance of acknowledging the participation of every employee involved in a project. Failing to give colleagues due recognition deprives them of positive reinforcement and undermines the work climate.
- Highlighting a good move in a negative manner:
Drawing attention to a success by putting others down is counterproductive and unprofessional, especially if it involves making comparisons between customers. Never laud a good idea by comparing it negatively with another method. The ultimate goal of highlighting successes is to help others improve and take on new challenges.
J2: a solid employer brand with a stimulating working atmosphere
A procurement management specialist with a decade of experience, J2 has always had the mission of developing new working methods and reinforcing its employer brand. Its employees are seen as the focal point of their creative process. Join the team and bring your creative procurement management ideas to life.