wk 4 procurement systems Flashcards
what is systems management?
“a set of identities together with the relationships between them and their environment”
What systems are in traditional procurement?
entities
relationships
environment
what is an entity?
components of a system which make the total procurement system eg client contractor and designer
what is a relationship in procurement?
supervision, contracts, communication
what is the in the environment in procurement?
eg external entities such as funding bodies
case study - what entities are involved in the partnership?
What relationships are between them?
RS - designer (contracting and communicating)
Crown - client, manufacturer (communicating and contracting)
No contractor
what is an open system?
operates freely with surrounding environment eg construction industry
less predictable and more difficult to control and manage
influenced by variable inputs
has greater impact on society
what is a closed system?
receives no input - normally purely academic
case study - what features characterise it as a closed/open system?
open - producing product for consumers
hiring labour and procuring materials
however, closed in the sense that they do not openly tender design contracts
9 characteristics of a system
component
interrelated
boundary
purpose
environment
interface
constrain
input
output
what are the components in the case study
RS and crown
what are the interrelated relationships in the case study
crown and RS - personal
what is the boundary in the case study
they designed a lot of components in house
what is the environment of the case study
New Bremen - rural town
very closed
know what the clients want as employees grew up on farms
good stability of workforce and ethic
what is a constrain in the procurement in the case study
poor communication between employees - no email
ageing products
office of occupation safety hazards
money pg 5
what do flow charts show? (5)
tasks
decisions
inputs
outputs
responsibility
4 types of procurement management tools
flow charts
decision tables
document analysis
linear response analysis
what are the advantages of flow charts (4)
easily shows operation of the system
clear communication
can see where the system is failing
can show how the system changes over time
weaknesses of flow charts (3)
can be too big to show over one paper - defeats the point
some decisions are more complex than yes/no have a range of responses
no weighting of decisions
example of a flow of work in the case study
crown call in RS as soon as they have an idea of a product. both RS and crown assess the user needs, and RS designs the product
what are the 4 corners of a decision table
conditions
rules
actions
outcomes
where do decision tables work best
for a limited set of conditions
benefits of decision tables
easily map out all possibilities
standardise responses to make consistent actions
simplifies decision making
weaknesses of decision tables
focuses on outcomes rather than the process
not useful for when the decision making process is not precise or conditions are poorly defined
limited flexibility on outcomes
