A Smarter Procurement Process for Teaching Materials
College of Woodworking and Furniture Design
- An Improved Ordering Process for Students and Faculty
- Smarter Procurement of Materials
- A more even workload for “stores” (fewer peak times)
- More Efficient Administration and Better Control Over Finances
- A Foundation for Continuous Improvement
The Hout- en Meubileringscollege (HMC) is a specialized vocational school for woodworking, furniture making, and interior design with campuses in Amsterdam and Rotterdam. Each year, the HMC trains approximately 4,000 students to become passionate, creative, and entrepreneurial professionals for their future and for their respective industries. The HMC is growing, and a drive toward greater professionalism in its operations is needed to accommodate the increased influx of students. The director of operations asked Turner for help with a top priority on the agenda: the “stores.”
Control over the "stores"
At these stores located on campus, instructors and students can purchase materials for their study projects (furniture, models, etc.). The stores are not-for-profit, ensuring that it remains affordable and feasible for students to bring their dream projects to life. However, it must also remain feasible and affordable for the educational institution itself. We needed to get a handle on the finances and the purchasing process for these stores. But where exactly do you start?
“With this new way of working, we keep things manageable for us as an organization and affordable for students.”
– Marga Severs, Director of Operations
A short and effective process
Together with the newly appointed procurement advisor, we set up a concise and effective process to develop a concrete action plan. Within four weeks, we provided clarity to all stakeholders and began implementing concrete improvements.
- After conducting an initial assessment with the relevant location managers, store managers, the finance department, etc., our organizational consultants compiled an overview. In an initial workshop, they presented all the processes, roles, responsibilities, and areas for improvement related to the stores. Participants then got to work: What are the main causes, and how can we address these areas for improvement? Honesty, openness, and a safe environment within the group fostered mutual trust. By keeping the shared goal in mind—keeping the stores affordable and viable—the group made significant progress.
- In a second session, our organizational consultants presented five key priorities to guide the implementation of the improvements. Each priority is assigned an owner, who immediately translates it into concrete actions. This way, a complete plan is ready after four weeks, and the group can begin implementing it right away.
Specific improvements
The improvements being implemented by the Woodworking and Furniture College are very specific:
- Improve the ordering process. By improving the ordering process for both students and faculty, the purchasing process and financial transactions will be more efficient.
- Professionalizing Purchasing. Professionalizing the purchasing policy and streamlining the product assortment for stores to improve the quality of the purchasing process
- Improving inventory management and tracking. Improving inventory management and tracking in the stores to gain insight into available inventory, make effective use of storage locations, and optimize staff deployment
- Streamline administrative processes. Improve administrative processes with the goal of providing insight into the flow of goods, purchasing more efficiently, and reducing the administrative burden.
- Facilitating change. Leading the improvement program with the goal of implementing the planned actions to achieve the intended result.
