How Your Business Can Save on Utility Costs in Deregulated States

While some of energy deregulation’s beneficiaries will be only too happy to tell you that deregulation will save you a ton of money, the reality is a little more nuanced.

They’ll tell you that competition is great for pricing and that more choice favors the consumer.  Again, the reality is more nuanced than the hype from vendors.

The results of deregulation are mixed.  Some states (and states are the governmental level at which deregulation is achieved) have seen price increases which have shocked consumers.  Others have struggled with limited supply.

So, how your business can save on utility costs in deregulated states depends largely on your approach.  At Centerpoint Group, we have a response that answers your needs by leveraging the power of numbers.

5 primary suppliers, 1 solution.

Most companies meet their energy needs by contracting with one (or several) of 5 major suppliers in the energy market.  These are Direct Energy, Just Energy, Constellation, Engine and NRG Energy.  But that’s not as simple as it sounds.

The energy market fluctuates constantly.  Pricing can pivot in a heartbeat in one direction or the other (remembering, of course, the 2000/2001 energy crisis in California, occasioned in the wake of that state’s deregulation efforts).

Companies may experience no little difficulty finding the best deal because of these volatile conditions.  They may also not understand how to verify their billings for accuracy, or how to seek non-traditional ways of reducing consumption and spend.

Worst of all, they dedicate material time to sorting it all out.  But Centerpoint Group can do all that for you.

A trusted procurement advisor.

Your company’s objectives don’t sleep, so turning to a trusted energy procurement advisor, able to perform a thoroughgoing RFP, allows you to turn your attention to more urgent matters than energy suppliers and getting the best possible deal.

With the purchasing power of $850 million in collective spend, Centerpoint Group can obtain more attractive pricing options from top energy suppliers, with superior terms and beneficial contract conditions.

We stay on top of your account to ensure that your billings are line with your contract with data analysis and ongoing reporting.  We’ll even train your staff to ensure you’re optimizing your contract.

Elite customer service.

Centerpoint Group brings your company hands-on service which provides monitoring of trends in the energy market and key performance indicators.  We find ways for you to reallocate the resources spared to those areas they’re most needed in your organization.

Our best in class solutions are achieved by the application of elite customer service that brings your account to the attention of top energy suppliers, even if you don’t have the corporate profile normally required.

How your business can save on utility costs in deregulated states is a matter of doing things differently.  If you’re ready to save on your utility costs, you’re ready to deploy the power of numbers with Centerpoint.

Contact us to claim your enviable position in the deregulated energy market with the procurement experts at Centerpoint Group.

Membership is powerful.

The post How Your Business Can Save on Utility Costs in Deregulated States appeared first on Centerpoint.

source http://centerpointgroup.com/business-can-save-utility-costs-deregulated-states/

How to Get Wholesale Discounts on Business Purchases

Wholesale pricing is something every business wants, with the words “I can get it for you wholesale”, serving as sweet music to entrepreneurial ears.

Paying wholesale prices for everyday business needs may seem like a pipe dream for a lot of companies.  Startups and smaller organizations may believe it’s a dream well beyond reach.  But when you’re a member of CenterPoint Group, it’s what you get.

CenterPoint Group is a trusted procurement advisor, leveraging $850 million in collective indirect spend to benefit our members with material cost savings.

How to get wholesale discounts on business purchases is as easy as becoming part of the power of numbers, with CenterPoint.

Membership is powerful

CenterPoint members enjoy the power of collective buying, enabling them to do more with their money.  Our three-step process is proven to produce cost savings.  Over the past decade, that process has averaged a 96% success rate for our members.

With a less than a 30-day implementation period, members save money immediately.  Indexed pricing and caps and multi-year protection making saving on your everyday business need sustainable for the long term.

And there’s no guessing, with CenterPoint.  We provide post-implementation reporting for each procurement project, revealing the full extent of member savings.

Procurement expertise

The CenterPoint team deploys insider knowledge to get your company cost reductions.  Our people come to us from suppliers and the world of business.  They’re seasoned procurement experts who know how to deliver substantial savings.

With up-to-the-minute market knowledge and supplier-side pricing methodology, we bring procurement best practices to every purchase we make on your behalf.

Hands-on account management

With CenterPoint Group, your account is in the best possible hands.  We ensure compliance with your contract, managing supplier-side disputes to resolution to ensure you’re getting the best deal possible.

With a customized online ordering system, streamlined billing process and superior oversight end-to-end, we manage your procurement needs, allowing human resources on your end to attend to more urgent matters.

Throughout the procurement lifecycle, CenterPoint Group is there, with its eye on the ball.  We know how quickly the market and your needs can change, so we maintain vigilance to ensure we’re doing the best job we can on your account.

Sophisticated technology.

We’re a data-driven procurement advisor, meaning we don’t rely on our guts.  We rely on data and keen analytics that stay on top of trends and examine every purchase made.  With our proprietary database, we analyze every transaction, ensuring its quality and compliance with your contract.

Our procurement software (Microsoft Dynamics) allows us to identify opportunities to save you even more money, based on past purchases.  With benchmarking, auditing and analysis, we have the technology to keep you on track for tremendous savings.

Every supplier we work with is rigorously vetted, so our supply chain stays fit to serve you.

Discover the power of numbers.

How to get wholesale discounts on business purchases is demystified, when you have the power of numbers on your side.

Ready to save on everyday business purchases?  Contact us.

We can get it for your wholesale!

The post How to Get Wholesale Discounts on Business Purchases appeared first on Centerpoint.

source http://centerpointgroup.com/get-wholesale-discounts-business-purchases/

How to Use Six Sigma in Procurement Activities

Originating in the manufacturing sector, six sigma is a data-driven means of measuring process quality.  It’s aim?  To get as close to “perfect” as possible.  By increasing performance and reducing deviations in processes, six sigma reduces systemic defects.  This improves employee morale, productivity, and quality, overall.

How to use six sigma in procurement activities is a matter of applying the analytical aspect of the discipline for the sake of allowing your human resources to perform higher value functions.  That’s possible because six sigma identifies inefficiencies in your procurement processes and activities.

DMAIC.

Define, measure, analyze, improve and control – DMAIC is at the heart of six sigma, providing its methodological framework.  This approach is the most commonly applied means of implementing six sigma.

Each step leads to the desired conclusion, which is preventing defects instead of detecting them.  The result is improved processes featuring reduced waste/deviation, reduced time per cycle and an overall improvement in delivery at each link in the chain.

Where lean and six meet.

The lean approach is rooted in the goal of reducing waste.  While this is a priority for six sigma, it’s quantified differently and more in terms of reducing variation (errors and inefficiencies in the process).  There is common purpose between the two approaches, specifically – enhanced customer satisfaction.

That goal is reached by producing higher quality, faster turnaround times and nimble performance.  But lean’s methodology relies heavily on technical applications, whereas six sigma relies on analytics and data.

Procurement application.

In the realm of procurement, there are several areas procurement professionals can use six sigma principles to improve.  Transportation is one of them.  Are goods being moved around unnecessarily?  Why is that happening?

Accounts payable is another key area six sigma can address.  How is payment being processed and is it possible that this function might be automated?  Purchase orders are another item on the six sigma hit list.  Are your purchase orders inordinately backed up?  Can this function be consolidated, or purchases more effectively planned to avoid bottlenecks?

In the realm of your human resources, six sigma can be a tremendous support.  People can be freed to perform tasks in other areas when you identify areas of waste/variation in processes their hands are currently on.  Can these be automated?  Could your people be working in higher value areas and both improving productivity and their skill set/knowledge base?

Six Sigma represents a radical shift in the way your organization thinks about the procurement process and implements it.  By reducing the instances of variation and unnecessary expenditures in terms of human resources and processes and equipment, you create a leaner chain.  That leaner chain leads to better outcomes for clients, both internal and external.

Centerpoint Group.

Centerpoint Group is a trusted procurement advisor, bringing you the power of numbers.  We leverage $850 million in collective indirect spend, offering our members substantial savings.

By deploying the power of numbers, we reduce your costs on everyday business needs like office supplies, energy, and wireless telecom.  Contact us for more information.

The post How to Use Six Sigma in Procurement Activities appeared first on Centerpoint.

source http://centerpointgroup.com/use-six-sigma-procurement-activities/

What Can a Work Order Management System do for Your Business?

Data, data, data. There’s a lot of it to wrangle when you’re running a business.  Managers in modern businesses are called upon to wrestle with enormous volumes of data, quickly and efficiently, while maintaining and nurturing the relationships related to it.

When effectively processed and harvested to optimum effect, data can be an extremely effective support for managing all relevant agreements.  The benefits inherent are numerous.

And how does one do that?   With a work order management system.  This solution is cloud-based and can do so much more for your business than keeping work orders up to date.

So, what can a work order management system do for your business?  Let’s find out.

Manage vendors.

Your vendors and their deft management is an important factor in the success of any given business. Introducing a work order management system means your vendors need to log in and out of your system.  This prevents over-charging by introducing an extra layer of control.

You can also grade vendor performance.  This allows you to clearly see gaps in performance you may not notice otherwise.

A big picture.

In the data-driven world, it can be tough to see the big picture.  You’ve got data coming at you from everywhere, making it difficult to see the daily bottom line.  With a work order management system, this problem is eliminated.

Because an OMS allows reports to be customized to your specific needs, you achieve a level of visibility previously unattainable.  This can be segmented to address your requirements, targeting your operations regionally, or at specific locations.

Cut costs.

This is a key advantage of an OMS, as it can be set to alert you to possible budget overages in the realm of labor, specifically.  Workflow is tracked, allowing you to identify areas with the potential for automation.

Understanding the magnitude of savings is possible by starting with a simple formula.

Hourly pay x hours of work = cost of labor.  Determining actual savings can be complex, but essentially, you can obtain an estimate with this second formula.

Cost of labor – savings from automation = total saved.

A task which may have taken considerable time with human labor can be reduced to a matter of minutes with automation, so the possibility of savings is enormous and an OMS can highlight areas of potential readily.

Time lost to unproductive workplace behaviors (social media usage), unscheduled breaks and other factors can also be calculated using an OMS, making it clear where improvements in productivity are required.

Automation doesn’t waste your company’s time.

CenterPoint Group.

We’ve trusted procurement advisors with a transatlantic presence in North America and Europe.  By leveraging a collective indirect spend of more than $850 million, we save you money on your daily business needs.

With strategic vendor sourcing, we get you the best possible rates in several key areas, offering you an additional layer of account management that keeps its eye on the ball and cuts your business’s costs.

Ready to cut your business costs?  Contact us.

The post What Can a Work Order Management System do for Your Business? appeared first on Centerpoint.

source http://centerpointgroup.com/can-work-order-management-system-business/

5 Procurement Trends to Watch For in 2018

As the world turns, the procurement playing field can shift dramatically.  For better or worse, international trends in consumer focus, economics, and politics impact what we do in the field of procurement.

Here are our top 5 procurement trends to watch for in 2018.

1. The KISS rule.

When the pace of change is as blistering as it is in the current global environment, it’s comforting to know that some things never change – especially in procurement.

The Keep It Simple Stupid rule comes to mind!  What could be more compelling than the bedrock of procurement – cash flow and savings?  Those two factors have driven procurement and its interaction with clients since the dawn of time.

These are simple advantages that speak to executives and managers in terms they can understand and embrace.  And while it’s not so simple, technology promises to enhance these considerations.

2. Technology still hot.

Supply chain leaders can expect more of new, hot technologies in the coming year.  Everything from machine learning, to the Internet of Things, robotics, and 3D printing are huge and surging, wherever you look.

Keeping pace with all that is a challenge.  Keeping abreast of where some of the newer technologies are going and how they impact procurement is a fulltime job.  Some of these innovations will grow in relevance, while others will fade.  It’s, therefore, crucial to keep your eye on the ball, where tech is concerned.

3. The Brexit effect.

Because our global agreements cover North America and Europe, this is a big one.  Uncertainty over the impact of Brexit has prompted 63% of European countries to cut the UK out of their supply chains, entirely.  In the second quarter of 2017, investment in the UK flatlined.

With a referendum to reconsider Brexit now being floated, it’s anyone’s guess as to where this will land.  For the time being, supply chain relationships with the former EU member are tenuous, at best.

4. The new credibility.

People everywhere want to know that they’re dealing with ethically-based suppliers.  And so, transparency and sustainability are key best practices that add up to the new credibility.

The granularity of consumer demand for exact and highly-specific information about what they buy is urging companies to comply to compete.  The market is being driven by a high demand for accountability about the origins and contents of products.  Again, technology is key to keeping pace with this demand to maintain market position.

5. Go big or go home.

Big data is poised to become highly significant to the procurement process, moving forward.  The insights big data offers supply chain professionals can assist in predicting events which disrupt the chain, including consumer behavior.

This means collecting key information to be synthesized toward instigating predictive analytics, making procurement an almost clairvoyant undertaking.

CenterPoint Group is a trusted procurement advisor, leveraging $850 million of collective indirect spend that saves our customers on everyday purchases.

We’re a transatlantic presence, embracing North America and Europe.  Contact us to find out how we can lower your business costs.

The post 5 Procurement Trends to Watch For in 2018 appeared first on Centerpoint.

source http://centerpointgroup.com/5-procurement-trends-watch-2018/