FAQs
Q. What is the Procurement Intelligence Unit?
Q. What does the PIU provide?
Q. Why was the PIU established?
Q. What are its services?
Q. Who can access these services i.e., who is the PIU for?
Q. Which members does PIU currently partner with?
Q. Specifically within the Procurement team, who do services support?
Q. What are the objectives of the PIU?
Q. What is 'procurement intelligence'?
Q. How does the PIU differ from its competitors?
Q. How is the PIU team structured and resourced?
Q. Where does the PIU get its information from?
Q. How does the PIU deliver its content?
Q. What type of content does the PIU web portal deliver?
Q. What is Shared Intelligence?
Q. What kind of information is classified as Shared Intelligence?
Q. What is Bespoke Intelligence?
Q. What is Procurement GPS?
Q. Typically, what kind of information is classified as Insight in the PIU web portal?
Q. Typically, what kind of information is classified as Reports in the PIU web portal?
Q. Who can access PIU services?
Q. Why do organisations typically buy access to PIU?
Q. Does PIU offer trial membership?
Q. Why can't I access PIU services?
Q. What is the Procurement Intelligence Unit?
A. The Procurement Intelligence Unit (PIU) is an independent market intelligence provider, dedicated to the procurement function.
Q. What does the PIU provide?
A. It provides intelligent information services, such as analysis, research, data and case studies, at both the Executive and Operational levels of the procurement function.
Q. Why was the PIU established?
A. The PIU was built by the founders of the Procurement Leaders Network in response to overwhelming feedback from CPOs at the world's largest organisations. Their request was for more strategic research, in-depth analysis and benchmarking data to support the procurement function's further development and ability to meet the needs of its stakeholders in an increasingly complex business environment.
Q. What are its services?
A. The PIU model offers procurement teams three core services: Shared Intelligence, Bespoke Intelligence and Procurement GPS. These offerings are supported by a series of networking events and benchmarking activities.
Q. Who can access these services i.e., who is the PIU for?
A. The PIU's services have been developed for corporate procurement professionals and their key stakeholders at large organisations. 100% of PIU customers are currently Global 2000 organisations.
Q. Which members does PIU currently partner with?
A. As the PIU's services offer a source of competitive advantage, we do not publish our members list publicly. The PIU currently works with large corporate organisations from sectors such as Chemicals, Construction, Electronics, Energy, Financial Services, FMCG, Food & Beverage, Healthcare, Media & Entertainment, Mining, Oil & Gas, Pharmaceutical, Technology, Telecommunications, Transportation and Utilities.
Q. Specifically within the Procurement team, who do services support?
A. Uniquely, services support both the Executive and Operational levels of the procurement function. At the Executive level, our services support CPOs and senior leadership teams involved in procurement planning and development. At the Operational level, services are geared towards category managers, buyers and managers involved in the day-to-day delivery and planning of procurement operations.
Q. What are the objectives of the PIU?
A. The objective of the PIU is to be at the forefront of innovation and information in the profession, acting as the source of critical market intelligence, trends and best practice, supporting our clients executive and operational decision making and ultimately helping to maximise the value that procurement delivers to the wider business.
Q. What is 'procurement intelligence'
A. Procurement Intelligence is defined as the skills, tools and practices used to help a business to acquire an enhanced understanding of its commercial context to support better buying and sourcing decision making.
Q. How does the PIU differ from its competitors?
A. The PIU model is unique in the market, delivering a mix of onshore, local analyst expertise, complemented by offshore research capability and efficiencies, in addition to access to the experiences of a truly global network of senior procurement professionals outside of the membership base. This ‘best of three world's' approach is further supported by the PIU's 100% focus on procurement, ‘so what?' analysis capability, research expertise and the efficiency of the shared intelligence model, eliminating vast duplication of information-gathering effort around common priority topics.
Q. How is the PIU team structured and resourced?
A. The PIU management team and a team of in-house, client-facing analysts are based at the PIU's global headquarters in London, as well as in New York and Sydney. In addition to the local analyst team, the PIU utilises offshore capabilities through an outsourced analyst team, which provides tactical and strategic support to the onshore analyst team.
Q. Where does the PIU get its information from?
A. In addition to working with its subscriber base and the wider procurement community to conduct primary research and obtain benchmarks and case studies, the PIU also gathers information through the procurement and supply chain press, global news sites, social media channels, market research and subscription portals and search engines.
Q. How does the PIU deliver its content?
A. The PIU delivers its content through its fully categorised and searchable web portal in addition to a host of face-to-face and online events and activities focusing on key topics and procurement priorities.
Q. What type of content does the PIU web portal deliver?
A. The web portal hosts daily market intelligence and analysis, trends and data in its 'Insight' section and Operational and Executive level reports, white papers, case studies and benchmarking exercises in its 'Reports' section. This information is delivered through standard articles, presentations and research studies, but also through multimedia content such as webinars, podcasts and video blogs.
Q. What is Shared Intelligence?
A. Shared Intelligence refers to research and information that provides value to more than one entity. Rather than multiple organisations undertaking market and topic research for the purpose of gathering essentially the same data, the PIU can conduct this research and enrich it with its own analysis, and share it with the subscriber base, saving time, money and resources. Subscribers can also share their own experiences and approaches in return for the learnings from a broader group of peers across a range of topics and activities.
Q. What kind of information is classified as Shared Intelligence?
A. Common member priorities are studied and published under the Shared model - for example, Executive topics such as CPO Strategy, Megatrends, Talent Management, Category Management, Spend Analysis and Organisational Alignment, or Operational topics examining key spend categories, supplier markets, risk and commodities. Specialist vertical or industry-specific reports are also produced under the Shared model.
Q. What is Bespoke Intelligence?
A. Bespoke Intelligence is tailored or custom research produced by the PIU typically on behalf of one member organisation, although via syndicates or industry groups is also common. This falls outside the Shared Intelligence model when the topic is a non-common interest or priority subject, or when the requesting organisation views the topic as highly sensitive (e.g., to provide a source of competitive advantage). The specification and scope of bespoke studies are built in collaboration by the PIU's local team, account managers and the client.
Q. What is Procurement GPS?
A. Procurement GPS is a web-enabled continuous improvement toolset and methodology developed in the corporate world and brought to market by the PIU. GPS is a true progression tool, which helps procurement to move from where it currently is to where it needs to be, based on wider business objectives. It identifies capability gaps and interdependencies that need to be tackled in order to meet explicit business objectives, based entirely on an organisation's individual context.
Q. Typically, what kind of information is classified as Insight in the PIU web portal?
A. Insight focuses on daily market occurrences, volatility and trends and how they affect procurement operations. Typically, this might include an examination of market issues affecting specific suppliers, companies, industries, commodities and regions, as well as specific economic and purchasing indicators.
Q. Typically, what kind of information is classified as Reports in the PIU web portal?
A. The Reports section provides detailed, but practical analysis of CPO-level topics, key spend categories, supplier markets, risk studies and commodities, as well as white papers and case studies.
Q. Who can access PIU services?
A. Annual subscription to the PIU is currently open to corporate organisations only. A single, company-wide login is provided so that access is readily available across the entire procurement team and for any relevant stakeholders. A dedicated account manager helps to ensure the most suitable members of the team obtain access.
Q. Why do organisations typically buy access to PIU?
A. Depending on the service mix purchased, the range of member value drivers and use cases is very broad. For example, Shared Intelligence can be viewed as an extended workbench or outsourced provider, freeing up category managers' time, supporting the team in developing RFXs and category strategies, tracking key trends, drivers and innovations, powering decision making, or helping senior leaders to test and support their teams and develop procurement strategy. Bespoke Intelligence is often used to free up headcount, for specific price benchmarking, supplier risk monitoring, to add an independent viewpoint to current thinking or to generate data in an unknown or risky area. Finally, GPS is often used to build a procurement development roadmap, for its comprehensive self-assessment of current functional maturity, as a communication tool to highlight procurement improvement or contribution to stakeholders and to simulate the effects of capability improvements and to identify interdependent processes (i.e., to improve ‘x', you must first improve ‘y').
Q. Does PIU offer trial membership?
A. The PIU does not currently offer trial membership, but a full demonstration of all of its services can be arranged on request. The PIU also provides sample research findings and ad hoc event invitations to non-members on an occasional basis, to provide an additional insight into PIU member privileges.
Q. Why can't I access PIU services?
A. You will need access to a corporate subscriber login to access PIU services. Simply contact the PIU to find out if your organisation is currently subscribed.
