PurchTips edition #353

When you’re writing or modifying your organization’s procurement policy, it is not advisable to start from scratch. You should begin by adapting an existing policy or procurement policy template to your needs. Here is a 12-point checklist of questions to help you ensure that you properly and thoroughly adapt an existing policy or template for your use.

• Who has the authority to commit to a purchase on behalf of the organization?
• Under what circumstances and at what point should the procurement department be involved in evaluating the prospective purchase of goods or services?
• At which monetary thresholds are additional approvals required?
• What constitutes a conflict of interest or a breach of procurement ethics?
• When is competitive bidding required?
• Under what circumstances can the competitive bidding requirement be waived?
• What categories of diverse suppliers are recognized by the organization?
• How does a supplier’s diversity status factor into supplier selection decisions?
• What processes should be used to make different types of purchases?
• What information, such as internal supplier preferences and competing supplier terms, must be kept confidential?
• When the procurement organization has established a contract with a supplier, under what circumstances, if any, can an employee purchase goods or services from a competing supplier?
• How, where, and for how long should procurement records be retained?

If you’re SPSM-Certified or enrolled in the SPSM Certification Program, you can get a 6-page procurement policy template from the NLPA website. Login at https://app.certitrek.com/nlpa/login and go to the Library tab.