Frequently Asked Questions

What does a procurement consultant do?

A procurement consultant helps organisations improve how they select, manage and negotiate with suppliers. This can include analysing supplier spend, running sourcing or RFX processes, negotiating contracts, consolidating suppliers and introducing procurement best practices.

Procurement consulting is often used by organisations that want to reduce supplier costs, improve supplier performance or introduce more structure to their purchasing processes.

What is strategic sourcing?

Strategic sourcing is a structured approach to selecting suppliers based on value, performance and long-term commercial benefit.

Strategic sourcing typically involves:

  • analysing supplier spend

  • evaluating supplier capabilities

  • running competitive RFX processes

  • negotiating pricing and contract terms

  • establishing supplier performance management frameworks

The goal is to ensure the business is working with the right suppliers at the right commercial terms.

When should a company hire a procurement consultant?

Companies often hire a procurement consultant when:

  • Supplier costs are increasing

  • There is no formal procurement function

  • Contracts need reviewing or renegotiating

  • The business is scaling and supplier spend is growing

  • Leadership wants independent commercial insight

A procurement consultant can provide experienced commercial support without the cost of hiring a full-time procurement team.

What is a procurement health check?

A procurement health check is a structured review of a company’s procurement practices, supplier contracts and supplier spend.

The purpose is to identify:

  • cost reduction opportunities

  • contract risks

  • supplier performance gaps

  • procurement process improvements

Many organisations use a procurement health check as a starting point to understand whether their supplier landscape is fully optimised.

How can procurement consulting reduce supplier costs?

Procurement consulting can help reduce supplier costs through:

  • competitive sourcing processes

  • supplier benchmarking

  • contract renegotiation

  • supplier consolidation

  • identifying pricing inefficiencies

In many cases, structured procurement processes can reduce supplier costs by 5–20% across key categories.

What is supplier performance management?

Supplier performance management is the process of monitoring and improving how suppliers deliver against agreed expectations.

This often includes:

  • supplier scorecards

  • performance metrics

  • service level agreements

  • regular supplier review meetings

Effective supplier performance management helps ensure suppliers deliver consistent quality, service and value.