The purchasing function has begun to assume a higher profile during the last global recession, when the top management began to worry about how much value and savings were hidden in the materials and supplies that companies need to buy to carry on its business.
In fact, for a business-type, purchases may affect 50% to 75% of the annual turnover, so it is obvious that even modest reductions in a cost base that can have a very significant impact.
So if a company has costs for the purchase of 60% of its sales with a profit of 3%, a 3% reduction in spending for purchases has an 'effect on the total value of an' increase of 60% of turnover.
Today, despite the fact that few executives who still see the purchasing function as it was twenty or thirty years ago (a pure cost center from mainly administrative responsibilities), the majority of companies still continues to underestimate and not optimize it to the best of his ability
Many times we think that the exclusive pursuit of new markets and new business opportunities is the only solution to increase profitability while you might get the same result just with a more careful and professional management of the purchasing function.
There is no single strategy for the management of purchases, but from time to time be studied solutions specific to the type of company and product that you must supply.

The potential purchase is divided into:

1. Prices / suppliers
2. Product / innovation
3. Organization and methods of purchase.

Prices / suppliers:

• Materials with low value or standard: the price negotiation is the master methodologies of e-procurement or the line auctions could be among the most effective tools today to get the best results.
• Materials bottleneck (bottleneck) is important to security of supply with suppliers to create better long-term relationships with detailed planning and precise on the timing and quantity to be supplied
• Materials related to corporate profit: purchases of equipment, components or complete; the procurement strategy must seek to obtain the best possible result with a customer / supplier relationship marked by systematic competition.
• Strategic Materials: it is more desirable setting in the customer / supplier relationship closer to that partnerschip to boost competition.

Product / innovation:

The purchasing department has evolved to take part in the development of the product already in the design phase and in this case it is important that those who hold the purchasing function has adequate technical preparation.
In this way we will be sure that the new product (or renewed) will also be immediately competitive on the market.
The training technique allows acquisition system to discuss at the same level with the technical departments and be an active part in the development of the project and the choice of materials and components.

Organization and Methods

The surprise should be an important element in the management of a deal to purchase then it is desirable that the management methods of purchase may change over time.
The methodologies of purchase that from time to time may be adopted (but not limited to) are:

• E-procurament: that the line auctions; requires the availability of an information portal and is more useful for the products more easily standardized.
• Tender: requires technical skills and ability to prepare an adequate technical specifications.
• Scouting: looking for suppliers with a focus on emerging markets and the innovative technological products that the market offers many times. 

The more the global market gets, the higher the value added that the purchasing function guarantees to the income statement of the company thanks to a clever search for suppliers in emerging countries "low cost countries".
Attention then the research spending reduction must also be accompanied by an equally effective action selection, qualification and control of partners / suppliers identified: that from a perspective of simple "global sourcing" to switch to an application of "global partnerchip "It 'important fact that they also correspond to the cost of product quality and punctual service; every purchase to be considered positively completed must:

• Correspond to the technical requirements defined by the technical departments of the contracting
• Arrive on time without delays
• Arrive in quality or respond in a manner faithful to the technical specifications drawn up and in accordance with the best design characteristics and in accordance with the rules of the specific sector.

As can be seen that the purchase has become a complex activity that requires high skills and varied.
Unfortunately the system is disappearing characteristic of our industrial districts where most of the vendors were residing within a radius of no more than 20-30 km from its seat; globalization is carrying us towards new challenges that cause us to get out of the local logic but with new incentives and more and more interesting.