Procurement

This week Ricardo discusses the impact of inflation on the project risks. In the past, countries with weak economies were more likely to experience inflation; however, today, countries with stronger economies, like those in Europe, are experiencing relevant impacts of inflation. The ability to complete projects may be heavily impacted by inflation, which presents a significant issue for project managers.

In this week's episode, Ricardo talks about Forensic Planning, explaining that this is an area of ​​Project Management widely used for claims, litigation, and lawsuits. Often in capital projects or large projects, delays and other types of disruption happen when parties disagree on which side is responsible. This type of work attempts to assess and support the parties in the solution and identify the root cause of the problem.

In this week's episode, Ricardo talks about the legal aspects of project management. He explains that the project manager often may perceive that their work is being delayed due to the requirements of other areas, for example. Ricardo explains that these requirements are made to protect the project and, in the end, your organization.

This week, Ricardo reflects on companies' benefits and challenges with the visible increase in interest in outsourcing activities, especially concerning outsourced activities due to incapacity and lack of knowledge about work. He ponders the damage that the lack of knowledge, mastery of technology and know-how, can generate in the project's sustainability and its benefits.

In this episode, Ricardo explains the fundamental difference between the scope you define for the project, the procurement documents you may use to source products and services, and the requirements you identify to set the boundaries of the work you need to do. It is essential to highlight that Ricardo does not restrict these documents to waterfall project management.

In this podcast, Ricardo talks about the types of contracts of the International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC). These contracts are widely used in engineering projects and published as books. Ricardo explains that the contracts are well prepared, bringing best practices that can be applied to various types of projects. Visit the site of the federation at http://fidic.org/

In this podcast, Ricardo talks about the dangers of underestimate the complexity of the procurement management. He gives three tips on how we can increase the chance of success in our projects. They are: 1 - Seek knowledge about what will be purchased; … 2 - Analyze the total cost of acquisition, not just the price; … 3 - Associate payment events to deliveries on your project.

In this podcast, Ricardo talks about the relationship between suppliers and customers, the process of procurement management and claims. He explains that often the claim generates a discomfort between the parties and that the best way to avoid this problem is to plan the project in the best possible way, defining in detail the scope and trying to document all the changes during the project.

In this podcast Ricardo talks about the changes related to the Procurement processes, where some of the 6 processes described in the third edition of the PMBOK Guide were melted, resulting in 4 process at the PMBOK 4th Edition. This new structure gave more clarity and fluidity for the readers, summing up all the procurement process with the verbs "Plan", "Conduct", "Administer" and "Close".

In this podcast Ricardo discusses the III Annual PM Network Trend Report, published in June, 2009. He presents the main trends in projects induced by the global crisis and how companies and professionals can benefit themselves from this scenario. The PM Network magazine is distributed to PMI members and they can access the file at member's area of PMI website.