Purchasing in the furniture industry is divided into two camps: trailblazers and latecomers. This is the result of a joint study by the Kerkhoff Competence Center of Supply Chain Management (KCC), St. Gallen, the Institut für Demoskopie Allensbach and the trade journal "Möbelmarkt".
Many furniture manufacturers don't react to current developments in their sales and buying markets. "If you don't react immediately to megatrends, you'll continue to fall back behind the best in the business", Gerd Kerkhoff is convinced of it. Medium-sized companies would ignore market changes, criticizes the CEO of the consultancy Kerkhoff Consulting which specializes in purchasing and procurement. Actually, almost all buyers see the need for change. But only 14 percent favor a fundamental reorganization. Eight of ten are of the opinion that small changes would be sufficient.
Despite the high material quota, at 41 percent of the furniture manufacturers, it happens that the procurement department is not included in all decisions regarding the purchase of goods and services. Even today, there are still other departments which do purchasing on their own. It is thus not possible to adjust terms and conditions, or develop a purchasing strategy. "I find the statements surprising", comments Kerkhoff who has been consulting medium-sized companies for years – from the furniture industry as well. But that's not all yet: Four of ten German manufacturers have no defined purchasing strategy; half of them fail to do any standardized supplier assessment, and 57 percent have no risk management established. Every third company does not even offer its workforce any advanced vocational training.
But this is only one side of the coin. "On the other hand, companies have already begun to offensively modify their purchasing processes", says Wolfgang Stölzle, professor of logistics and head of the KCC at the Faculty for Logistics Management of the University of St. Gallen. One third of those interviewed expect increasing budgets for their own area. And 57 percent not only have plans in store but are already in the middle of their implementation. Nearly two thirds of the large companies have already taken measures; but only about half of the small companies. Stölzle: "In the months to come, manufacturers will also have to restructure their purchasing department. Those waiting things out will be ousted from competition in the long run."
Basis of the survey
A total of 104 manufacturers participated, with workforces of at least 250 people and sales of at least € 10 million. Of those interviewed, 80 percent were heads of purchasing departments, 20 percent general managers or other executive personnel.presse(at)kerkhoff-consulting.com |
