IT Procurement

In continuously evolving technology world, IT plays an important role in the growth of a company. Organizations have to rely on IT to maintain a competitive edge in the market. Hence, IT procurement becomes very important. IT procurement can be divided into two parts viz. IT hardware procurement and IT software procurement. There are various factors that should be taken into consideration while doing any IT procurement. Any errors / flaws can result into heavy losses, not only in monetary terms but also in terms of organizational reputation and brand value. Thus, it can be seen that IT procurement process is very important and vital.

Various factors that should be taken into consideration while doing IT procurement are as listed below:

1. Experienced and efficient procurement team
2. Objective of the organization
3. Analyzing existing IT infrastructure
4. Requirement
5. Benefits
6. Vendor selection

1. Experienced and efficient Procurement team: First and very important step towards IT procurement process is to have an experienced and efficient procurement team. This is important as this team will be responsible for end to end successful and efficient IT procurement. Procurement team will make sure that precise IT procurement is done which will contribute towards overall organizational growth and success.

2. Objective of the Organization: It is very important to understand the organizational objective as any procurement that is done should be aligned and in favor of achieving that objective. Thus, if any procurement is aligned with the organizational objective it results in success of the organization.

3. Analyzing existing IT infrastructure: Before planning for any IT procurement, one needs to understand the existing system and IT infrastructure thoroughly. This will help to identify exact IT software / hardware that needs to be procured which would be compatible with the existing architecture and which would give maximum value for money.

4. Requirement: This is a very important factor as the success of the procurement depends on it. If the requirements are not properly analyzed and identified then the result would be devastating. Huge amount of money is utilized in IT procurement and if it is not fully satisfying the requirements then it is a failure and waste of resources, time and money for the organization. Hence, a separate phase should be implemented for requirement gathering from the required stakeholders and analysis so that while going ahead with procurement organization is clear what exactly they are looking for which would satisfy the requirements accurately.

5. Benefits: After understanding the requirements it is very important to understand the benefits in terms of return on investment (ROI). Thus, it is important to identify benefits and analyze if they are aligned with the organizational goals and objective. Stakeholders can specify various benefits from their point of view on the requirements provided by them. However, it is important for the procurement team to identify the benefits and requirements that are aligned with Organizational benefits and not for individual comfort and convenience.

6. Vendor Selection:  After performing all the above mentioned steps, vendor selection phase should be executed. This phase includes identifying appropriate vendor. There are various factors that should be considered based on which a vendor can be selected. Some of them are as listed below:

• Background of the Vendor
• Clienteles
• Expertise in the required domain
• Reviews for the clients it has provided solutions
• Is it complied with various IT and quality controls
• Location and branches
• Budget

Thus, it can be seen that IT procurement holds great importance in accomplishing overall organizational goals and objectives. Hence, it is very important to follow all the above mentioned steps to execute a successful IT procurement.

About Author:

Amol Bhembre is a consultant in Systems Plus Pvt. Ltd. Within Systems Plus, he actively contributes to the areas of Technology and Information Security. He can be contacted at: amol.b@spluspl.com