Bio Spectrum — May 2017

Changes in the functioning of

procurement processes

Previously we were doing purchase planning

activities manually. But with the evolution of IT and

SAP, systems are quite matured. It takes 1/1ooth of

the time now than it used to take earlier. Vendors are

primarily approved for quality and facility and

registered as an approved vendor. But, it was not the

same earlier.

Is there any change in the focus of

work?

Going forward, quality will be the only focus

for the Indian pharma industry. Price won’t be

Raman Subramaninan

General Manager (Commercial), Bharat Serums and Vaccines Ltd.

discounted, but price would take second step and

quality would lead the whole front.

How do you ensure timely supply?

We have multiple vendors for each set of an

item and maintain adequate inventory level.

How do you do market analysis?

We analyse our finished goods through ORGs.

With that we come to know which are the top brands in

the industry. Coming to the backward integration of

these products, we know which products are getting

into demand, which kind of chemicals are getting into

demand and what kind of pharmacopeia standards

they are likely to meet.

How the

procurement practice

benefits the company in

the long run?

Procurement practice

helps companies to develop strategic supplier

relationships that yield significant benefits for both

parties. These multifaceted business relationships

are viewed along four primary dimensions: strategic

value, economic value, performance, and risk

management. SRM is a systematic approach that

segments, analyses, and aligns customer-supplier

relationships to develop ongoing value.

How you successfully manage your

Sudeep Hota

Sr Manager Procurement Operations, Mondelz International-India

supply chain?

We formally categorise supplier relationships

into different levels of importance and relationships.

For example, some suppliers may be categorised as

candidates for acquisition because their proprietary

capabilities are so significant.

Suppliers that are not acquirable but have

unique capabilities that can help a company build a

stronger brand or higher value-add can be locked-in

with advance orders, and technology partners with

superior knowledge may require investment or more

involvement in product development. Commodity

suppliers and one-time purchase relationships require

the least attention.

How the role of procurement managers

has changed over the years?

I am going back nearly 30 years when I joined

in purchasing. Those days were supply driven. We

had to find suppliers, but now it is more a demand-

driven market and suppliers face competition. But

these things can go up and down. Sourcing has

become even more important in nutraceuticals than

pharma. Another critical part is one has to be sure of

backend supply chain before the product is

introduced in the market.

How technology has changed supply

chain?

Technology has changed supply chain in

TS Giridharan

Sr Vice President–Supply Chain Management, OmniActive Health Technologies

terms of information.

Today, we are able to globally

connect with vendors. There

are concepts like reverse

auction that have come up. They

are still being used in limited way. But it is definitely

an efficient way of purchasing when used in proper

way.

How do you ensure timely supply?

The most important job of a purchase or

procurement manager is to judge vendors, their

strengths, weaknesses. How reliable they are in supply.

We always do a lot of work on strategy of purchasing

and try to diversify our supply base.

http://www.biospectrumindia.com | May 2017 | BioSpectrum COVERStory^27