Call for skill development in procurement

Experts in the procurement industry have said it’s important for CEOs in hospitality to recognise the value in developing skills and competencies of this division.

Jumeirah Group vice president — supply chain and logistics Mohammed Kapital said it’s important to secure a budget for training to create a professional working environment, which cannot be done without qualifications.

“To carry out change, you need to show the real numbers and the real improvement, in order to capture the management and make the management trust you as a procurement professional who can add value,” he added.

Mansoor Malik, head of business development MENA, CIPS said: “If we compare this [profession] with other more established ones like finance, marketing, HR, there is a need for specific competencies for the practitioners, from technical hard skills to soft skills, including negotiation, leadership and influence.”

He continued: “If the procurement sector within an organisation had a single determinant for success, it would be the management buy-in. The CEO has to see value being generated. Competencies, skills, professional accreditation, on-the-job training, these are all the things that can actually render developing leadership in procurement.

“The skills and competencies within the procurement team can help the organisation fill a gap, but it’s also about the competencies of the practitioner and what they can do on a daily basis which can translate into the achievement of business objectives, not just procurement but externally as well.”

Abdelghani Sinan, managing director, ADR Middle East said there is a trend now of young graduates focusing on procurement, which is evident in the educational offerings in universities.

“There is definitely a demand in the market that compels universities to offer these programmes. There is an attention paid by young graduates to focus on supply chain, and from a functional perspective, procurement should be seen as important, as critical and as a contributor to increasing shareholder value as much as finance.”

These experts were speaking at the Hotelier Middle East Procurement Summit. The full round-up can be read in the December 2015 issue of Hotelier Middle East.