How to Outsource Christmas

By Steven Low

First off, I love Christmas.  It’s a great time of the year and a wonderful opportunity to get together with friends and family to celebrate the holiday season.  However, what I loathe more than anything is the trudge round the shops, fighting with fellow citizens for cheap-price TVs and for the woolly jumper my dad is probably never going to wear.

What if there was a better way?  Let’s say I wanted to outsource Christmas?  What are my options?  Do I want to outsource certain elements or do the full-outsource – well until the meal is served on Christmas Day!

Here’s my take on a successful Christmas outsource.

Broken Chains, the NHS Core List & Medical Supply Chain

by Scott Pryde

They might not be the most glamorous of technologies that the NHS buys, but items like bedpans and patient wipes are big business.

After reviewing the spend in the Southern Procurement Partnership (SPP) on these products, and 10 categories like them, we would estimate the NHS England secondary care market size to be £250m, and if the recent focus week on driving better value in these categories is anything to go by, there is a £40m national savings opportunity for aggregating demand, rationalising products and making commitment.

‘Gloves Off’ – Benchmarking NHS Procurement

By Scott Pryde

We met in a beautifully renovated farm courtyard just outside the quiet village of Ilminster for the first of the Southern Procurements Partnerships Buyers events. The sunny, calm surroundings blended seamlessly into the spacious and professionally equipped  presentation room, the service and technology flawless proving once again that low cost can mean high value when you’re willing to search for it.