Why SRM deserves a seat at the executive table

Every organisation depends on suppliers for critical outcomes: continuity of service, product availability, safe operations, regulatory compliance, and innovation. Yet relationships with suppliers are often managed as a series of transactions, rather than as strategic assets. That gap shows up in avoidable stock-outs, creeping costs, missed sustainability targets, cyber incidents that start in the third party layer, and projects that slip because the operating rhythm with vendors isn’t clear.

A fit-for-purpose SRM framework gives structure to how you set expectations, collaborate, measure, improve, and protect value with suppliers. It’s not a new piece of bureaucracy; it’s a way to turn fragmented conversations into a disciplined operating model that delivers better outcomes for the business, for end customers, and for suppliers.

In Australia and New Zealand, the case for SRM is even stronger. Our long lead times, concentrated markets, regional logistics constraints, and evolving regulatory requirements (from modern slavery reporting to industry-specific safety and sustainability standards) increase the exposure and the upside for getting supplier relationships right.

What “good” SRM looks like

1) Clear segmentation. Not all suppliers are equal. “Strategic”, “critical”, “leverage”, and “tactical” suppliers need different treatment. Strategic and critical relationships get senior attention, joint planning, and structured improvement; leverage suppliers get performance discipline and competitive tension; tactical suppliers get simple, low-effort controls.

2) Defined governance. The right people meet at the right cadence with the right information. Roles and responsibilities are explicit, agendas are standardised, and decisions don’t drift.

3) Balanced scorecards. SRM elevates the discussion from “price and punctuality” to the broader mix that matters: service levels, quality, safety, sustainability, cyber posture, continuous improvement, innovation, and total cost to serve.

4) Joint value creation. Beyond compliance, top relationships run structured pipelines of improvements—SKU rationalisation, waste reduction, logistics optimisation, digital enablement, design-to-value, and demand/supply smoothing. Value is quantified and shared fairly.

5) Risk first. You maintain a live picture of supplier risk—operational, financial, cyber, ESG, geopolitical, and concentration risk—and connect it to contingency plans you actually rehearse.

6) Contract enablement. Contracts don’t sit in drawers; they underpin the cadence: data access, KPIs, service credits, governance meetings, audit rights, and targeted incentives for innovation and resilience.

7) Digital spine. Data flows reliably, dashboards are trusted, and collaboration isn’t trapped in inboxes. SRM tooling is lightweight but deliberate.

Where SRM typically goes wrong (and how to avoid it)

• One-size-fits-all: Applying the same governance to every supplier wastes time and alienates partners.
  Fix: Segment properly and tune the cadence.
• Scorecards without outcomes: Pretty dashboards that don’t change behaviour.
  Fix: Tie KPIs to decisions, incentives, and consequences.
• Heroic individuals, no system: Results rely on one relationship manager’s personal goodwill.
  Fix: Document the playbook: team roles, agendas, escalation paths, knowledge handover.
• Contract misalignment: Agreements lack the levers to support SRM (data sharing, continuous improvement clauses, joint innovation).
  Fix: Refresh your contract templates to embed SRM mechanics.
• Over-promising innovation: Big ideas fizzle without a pipeline method.
  Fix: Treat innovation like a portfolio: prioritise, pilot, scale, and measure.

The building blocks of your SRM framework

1) Supplier segmentation that actually drives behaviour

Segment on two axes: business impact (how much this supplier matters to your service, safety, brand, regulatory compliance, and cost) and market dynamics (supply risk, switching cost, alternative capacity, geographic/geopolitical exposure).

• Strategic: Co-create roadmaps, executive-level governance, joint innovation, multi-year pipeline, risk reviews.
• Critical: Tight performance control, risk and continuity focus, regular operations reviews, targeted improvement sprints.
• Leverage: Commercial optimisation, competitive tension, standard SLAs, quarterly performance reviews.
• Tactical: Simple contracts, catalogue rates, exception-based monitoring.

Tip: Reassess segmentation every 6–12 months and whenever categories shift (e.g., supplier consolidation or regulatory change).

2) Governance and cadence

For Strategic suppliers (typical):

• Executive QBR (Quarterly): Strategy alignment, risk review, roadmap, investment/innovation decisions.
• Monthly Operations Review: Service levels, incidents, corrective actions, capacity planning.
• Working Groups (fortnightly/weekly): Focused improvement streams (e.g., forecasting accuracy, DIFOT, safety).
• Annual Planning: Joint objectives, targets, and value pipeline for the year ahead.

For Critical suppliers:

• Monthly Reviews with disciplined KPIs, risk watchlist, and seasonal readiness.
• Fortnightly Tactical Calls during peak or transition periods.

RACI clarity: Name the relationship owner, contract owner, commercial lead, technical lead, risk/compliance partner, and executive sponsor on your side and ask your supplier to do the same.

Standard agendas work: Keep 70% of the agenda consistent to make trend analysis real, and 30% dynamic to tackle current priorities.

3) Balanced KPIs & targets

Go beyond “price and on-time delivery”. Typical SRM scorecard lenses:

• Service & Quality: DIFOT/OTIF, first-time-right, rework/returns, stockouts, response time.
• Safety & Compliance: TRIFR where relevant, safety incidents, audit findings, permit adherence, regulated standards.
• Sustainability: Emissions intensity for the service, waste diversion rates, packaging optimisation, modern slavery due diligence activities.
• Cyber & Data: Security questionnaire status, control attestations, incident reporting time, critical vulnerability remediation SLAs.
• Innovation & Productivity: Number of submitted ideas, trial conversion rate, quantified benefits realised YTD.
• Financial & Commercial: Total cost to serve, price variance vs index, payment timeliness, rebates/earnbacks.
• Risk: Heat map movement, continuity test results, supplier financial health indicators.

Make targets explicit and define actions when thresholds are missed (improvement plan, service credits, or escalation).

4) Contract terms that enable SRM

Build SRM into the contract so it’s enforceable and practical:

• Data & Access: KPI data rights, system connectivity, audit rights, cyber evidence.
• Governance: Cadence, roles, escalation triggers, and participation expectations.
• Performance: Scorecard definitions, service credits and earn-back mechanisms.
• Improvement & Innovation: Structured pipeline, BAU improvement obligations, gain-share options for identified efficiencies.
• Risk & Continuity: Business continuity planning (BCP) requirements, test frequencies, change-notification windows.
• Sustainability & Ethical Sourcing: Modern slavery risk assessments, traceability obligations where appropriate, reporting cadence.
• Exit & Transition: Knowledge transfer, IP, data hand-back, transition services.

5) Value creation: make innovation real

Treat improvement like a portfolio:

• Pipeline: Backlog of opportunities, with owner, impact estimate, complexity, and dependencies.
• Stages: Discovery → Pilot → Prove → Scale.
• Funding: Small internal budgets for pilots; clear decision gates to scale.
• Measurement: Record the benefits: cost, service, safety, sustainability to show momentum and justify reinvestment.
• Recognition: Acknowledge supplier contributions; embed fair sharing mechanisms where benefits are joint.

Typical quick wins include demand smoothing, packaging reduction, route optimisation, process digitisation, and SKU rationalisation.

6) Risk management is continuous, not annual

Keep a live supplier risk register and connect it to operational decisions. Areas to monitor:

• Operational: Capacity constraints, quality drift, subcontractor reliance.
• Financial: Deteriorating financials, credit insurance signals.
• Cybersecurity: Emerging vulnerabilities, changing control posture, third-party sub-processor risk.
• Compliance & ESG: Audit findings, unresolved corrective actions, supply chain traceability challenges.
• Geopolitical & Natural Hazards: Route disruptions, extreme weather impacts, import/export shifts.
• Concentration: Single-site exposure, single-source for critical components.

Plan and test: Alternate supplier readiness, safety stocks, cold starts, emergency communications trees, and incident drills aligned to your risk profile.

7) Digital enablers without the baggage

You don’t need heavy software to start SRM well. Aim for a lightweight digital spine:

• A consolidated supplier master and segmentation view.
• A simple SRM workspace for agendas, minutes, decisions, actions, and issue logs.
• KPI dashboards that draw from your existing systems (ERP, WMS, TMS, service management, incident logs).
• A shared innovation backlog and benefits tracker.
• Documented playbooks and contract repository with version control.

As maturity grows, consider integrating vendor risk tools, sustainability data sources, and workflow automation without turning SRM into an IT project that stalls momentum.

A practical rollout roadmap

Days 0–30: Foundation

1. Align on purpose and scope. What problems are we solving and where will SRM start?
2. Segment suppliers. Use impact and risk as primary lenses.
3. Choose the first 10–20 relationships. Focus on a mix of strategic and critical suppliers where results matter and access is possible.
4. Define governance cadences. Lock QBRs, monthly ops reviews, and working groups.
5. Draft a standard scorecard. Keep it achievable with 8–12 metrics.
6. Stand up the digital basics. Shared workspace, dashboards drawing from existing data.

Days 31–90: Stand-up & stability

1. Run the first QBRs and monthly reviews. Check the rhythm, refine agendas.
2. Baseline KPIs and set targets. Where data’s imperfect, start with directional targets and improve quality over time.
3. Launch the value pipeline. Capture 10–15 opportunities with rough sizes; start two quick-win pilots.
4. Map the risk posture. Build a risk heat map per supplier and identify top three mitigations.

Days 91–180: Improve & prove

1. Scale successful pilots. Quantify benefits; publish a short internal case note to build belief.
2. Refine contracts. Where useful, negotiate addenda to embed SRM mechanics (data sharing, cadence, incentives).
3. Measure cadence health. Track attendance, on-time actions, and decision cycle times to ensure meetings drive outcomes.
4. Upskill relationship owners. Practical training on commercial conversations, performance coaching, and conflict resolution.

Days 181–365: Institutionalise

1. Extend to more suppliers. Based on results, add the next cohort.
2. Introduce category-wide playbooks. Standard approaches to common issues (e.g., DIFOT recovery, cyber uplift, sustainability data capture).
3. Publish an annual SRM report. Summarise improvements, benefits, risk reductions, and next-year priorities to keep executive sponsorship strong.

What to measure (and report) to prove SRM works

• Service: Reduction in stockouts/service failures; improvement in OTIF; lower defect rates.
• Risk: Fewer critical incidents; improved time-to-recover; higher BCP readiness.
• Cost & Productivity: Reduced total cost to serve; fewer expedites; improved labour/productivity through process changes.
• Sustainability: Measured reductions in waste or emissions intensity where applicable; improved traceability and audit closure rates.
• Cycle time: Faster decision and escalation cycles; shorter lead times for change.
• Innovation: Number of ideas taken to pilot and scaled; quantified benefits realised.

Keep the narrative grounded: what changed, why it changed, and what’s next.

Sector nuances in ANZ

Government & Health: Strong governance and probity standards are essential. SRM must balance transparency with genuine collaboration. Expect robust auditability, clear conflict-of-interest management, and careful handling of joint innovation (IP, data).

Infrastructure, Utilities & Defence-adjacent: Safety, continuity, and cybersecurity weigh heavily. Contracts need enforceable requirements for testing, reporting, and right to audit.

Retail, FMCG & Manufacturing: Volatility and promotions drive demand complexity. SRM should obsess about forecast collaboration, inventory buffers, network optimisation, and packaging/logistics efficiency.

Universities, Hospitals & Precincts: Multi-stakeholder environments benefit from SRM’s clarity on roles, escalation, and performance baselines across cleaning, MEP, waste, catering, and other property services.

Playbook elements you can copy and tailor

Standard QBR agenda (90 minutes):

1. Safety & incidents (5)
2. Performance recap: scorecard trends, exceptions (20)
3. Risk register: changes, mitigations, continuity (15)
4. Value pipeline: wins, pilots, upcoming (20)
5. Strategic topics: capacity, technology, roadmap, regulatory (20)
6. Decisions & actions summary (10)

Monthly ops review (60 minutes):

• KPI deep dive, root-cause analysis
• Corrective actions status
• Forecasting & capacity outlook
• Upcoming changes or promotions/events
• Issues requiring escalation

Innovation pipeline fields (one line each):

• Problem statement, hypothesis, expected benefits, required data/systems access, owner, stage, next milestone, risks, go/no-go date.

Supplier relationship charter (one page):

• Shared objectives, behaviours, meeting cadence, data sharing principles, escalation path, contact list.

Common pitfalls to sidestep

• Trying to do everyone at once. Start with relationships that matter and where you’ve got access.
• Over-engineering the tooling. Begin with a pragmatic digital spine; evolve later.
• Unclear benefit logic. Agree on how benefits will be measured and attributed before pilots begin.
• Ignoring the people side. Equip relationship owners with the coaching, commercial, and conflict skills to handle tough conversations.
• No executive air cover. Senior sponsors must show up and back decisions; otherwise SRM stalls at middle management.

How Trace Consultants can help

Trace Consultants supports organisations in Australia and New Zealand to design, stand up, and embed SRM without unnecessary complexity. Depending on where you are on the journey, we can help with:

• SRM diagnostic & blueprint: Rapid current-state assessment, supplier segmentation, and a practical SRM design aligned to your risk, regulatory, and category mix.
• Framework & contract enablement: Scorecards, playbooks, governance packs, and updates to contract schedules so SRM is enforceable and usable.
• Digital spine: Light, sensible SRM workspaces and dashboards that pull from your existing systems. Where relevant, we can integrate Power Platform solutions and pragmatic automations to reduce manual effort.
• Stand-up support: Facilitation of early QBRs and operations reviews, coaching for relationship owners, and support in building a credible value pipeline with suppliers.
• Risk & continuity uplift: Practical supplier risk registers, test plans, and “cold start” rehearsals tied to local conditions and seasons.
• Sustainability & ethical sourcing integration: Incorporate sustainability and responsible sourcing into SRM in a way that’s feasible to measure and manage.
• Benefits tracking: Straightforward methods to quantify and report improvements so the program keeps momentum and sponsorship.

We keep it grounded, no bloated software projects, no performative governance, just the operating rhythm and artefacts that make supplier relationships work better. If you’d like a short, no-obligation discussion about your SRM maturity and quick wins, we can tailor a starting point appropriate to your categories and risk profile.

Putting it all together

An SRM framework isn’t paperwork. It’s the everyday structure that helps your team and your suppliers deliver on what matters: safe operations, reliable service, value for money, and meaningful improvement. It will:

• Make accountability and cadence clear.
• Ensure performance is measured and acted on.
• Turn improvement from “nice to have” into a pipeline of results.
• Expose and manage supplier risk before it becomes an incident.
• Build the trust (and tension) that leads to better outcomes over time.

Start small, focus on the relationships that matter most, and build belief through early results. Keep the framework human, the data useful, and the meetings purposeful. With those conditions in place, SRM becomes one of the most effective levers your organisation has, particularly in the ANZ context where geographic realities, supply concentration, and regulatory expectations raise the stakes.

If you’re ready to move from transaction management to relationship performance, Trace Consultants can help you stand up an SRM model that fits your business and sticks.

Quick checklist (to get moving this quarter)

• Agree SRM objectives and scope with executive sponsor
• Segment suppliers and select first 10–20 relationships
• Lock governance cadences and name the RACI on both sides
• Stand up scorecards for service, risk, cost, sustainability, and innovation
• Run the first QBRs and monthly operations reviews
• Launch two quick-win pilots and a simple benefits tracker
• Build a live supplier risk register and top-three mitigations
• Plan contract updates to embed SRM mechanics
• Publish a short internal update on early progress

Trace Consultants is an Australian supply chain and procurement advisory supporting government and commercial organisations across ANZ. Get in touch if you’d like a pragmatic SRM blueprint and the hands-on help to make it real.

How Universities and Schools Can Reduce Costs by Going to Market for New PPM Contracts

Why this matters now

Across Australia and New Zealand, education providers face a perfect storm: rising utility and labour costs, aging building stock, heavy compliance obligations, and heightened expectations for sustainability and student safety. Property Services—waste, vertical transport (lifts and escalators), mechanical/HVAC, electrical, plumbing, fire & life safety, and general contracting—sit right in the middle of the cost and risk profile.

Many institutions are still operating on legacy contracts signed years ago, often extended multiple times, with schedules and rates that no longer reflect actual demand, modern technologies, or today’s market pricing. A structured go-to-market (GTM) for Planned Preventative Maintenance (PPM) is one of the quickest, cleanest ways to reset costs, lift compliance, and reduce risk—while preserving the on-campus experience.

This article is a practical, copy-and-paste-friendly playbook you can use to plan and run a competitive procurement process. No hype, no jargon—just the steps that work in ANZ education environments.

The outcomes you’re aiming for

Before diving into tender packs and pricing schedules, get crystal clear on the five outcomes that matter:

1. Lowest total cost of ownership (TCO)
   Not just cheaper rates—fewer call-outs, less downtime, optimal replacement cycles, and energy-efficient operation.
2. Assured compliance and safety
   Meeting Australian and New Zealand Standards, Building Codes, WHS legislation, and fire/life safety rules—without administrative drag.
3. Performance you can see and measure
   Defined SLAs, uptime guarantees for lifts and critical HVAC, transparent reporting, auditable evidence, and clear abatement mechanisms.
4. Future-ready operations
   CMMS/BMS integration, data-rich asset registers, smart sensors where they create value, and sustainable practices aligned to institutional targets.
5. Minimal disruption to teaching and student life
   Planned works aligned to term dates, exams, events, and public access.

The business case in plain numbers

A well-run PPM tender often finds savings in three places:

• Unit rate optimisation: Competitive market pricing for standard tasks and parts.
• Scope rationalisation: Removing duplicate tasks, mis-timed frequencies, or activities that don’t materially reduce risk.
• Operating model improvements: Consolidating vendors, aligning service windows to demand, tightening escalation paths, and using data to prevent failures.

Beyond direct cost savings, the real prize is avoided cost: fewer breakdowns, faster recovery, less overtime labour, and lower energy usage from well-tuned plant and equipment.

What good looks like: the PPM procurement blueprint

Think of the process in six stages. Each stage has a clear deliverable and a go/no-go decision.

1) Mobilise and baseline

• Set the mandate: Confirm the contract list in scope (waste, VT, mechanical/HVAC, electrical, plumbing, fire/life safety, general contracting) and the campuses, precincts, or satellite sites included.
• Form the squad: Property/Facilities, Procurement, Finance, WHS/Compliance, Sustainability, IT/Systems (for CMMS/BMS), and key academic stakeholders.
• Baseline the current state: Gather contracts, rate cards, SOWs, performance reports, service history, abatement logs, and ad-hoc variation records.
• Define success metrics: TCO reduction target, compliance KPIs, uptime requirements, energy intensity goals, and service experience measures.

Watch-outs: Don’t let the process be data-blocked. If your asset data is messy (it usually is), plan a quick-and-clean uplift—not perfection—before market.

2) Fix your data (enough to move)

• Asset register uplift: For lifts, HVAC, switchboards, pumps, fire equipment, etc., capture make/model, age, criticality, and last major service.
• Condition and criticality tagging: Not everything needs the same frequency. Tag assets by student safety impact, teaching criticality, and compliance requirement.
• Demand profile: Overlay term dates, events, lab schedules, and holiday shutdown periods to rationalise service windows.
• Systems integration mapping: Confirm how vendors will read/write to your CMMS (e.g., Maximo, Archibus, SAP, TechnologyOne) and relevant BMS.

Rule of thumb: “Right enough” data is the goal—accurate asset lists, frequencies tied to standards and risk, and a clean service history for the last 12–24 months.

3) Decide your sourcing strategy

• Single integrated FM vs multi-category: Universities often benefit from category bundles (e.g., MEP + Fire) where synergies exist, but lifts and waste can remain separate due to specialisation and OEM constraints.
• Campus vs portfolio contracts: ANZ institutions with multiple campuses can consolidate to unlock buying power, while keeping local responsiveness in the SLA structure.
• Term and options: Typical PPM terms are 3+2 or 5+2 years. Align options to capex milestones and planned refurbishments.
• Performance and risk: Choose between prescriptive SOWs (exact tasks and frequencies) and outcome-based models (availability, compliance, and energy performance)—or blend them.

Tip: Keep incumbents honest by designing a process where service quality and continuous improvement matter as much as price.

4) Build the market pack properly

Your RFT pack should be simple to navigate and impossible to misinterpret:

• Instructions to tenderers: Timelines, site walks, questions protocol, addenda, and commercial terms.
• Scope of services by category:
  • Waste: Streams (general, recyclables, organics, clinical/lab, e-waste), expected volumes, on-site compaction, Container Deposit Scheme where applicable, contamination thresholds, and reporting.
  • Vertical Transport: Asset list with serial numbers, uptime targets per asset, response/rectification times, entrapment procedures, incident reporting, and after-hours cover.
  • Mechanical/HVAC: Compliance to standards, maintenance task lists by equipment type, performance tuning, filtration standards, seasonal changeover, and energy optimisation.
  • Electrical: Switchboard inspections, RCD testing, thermographic scans, emergency/exit lighting, generator/UPS testing, and statutory reporting.
  • Plumbing: Backflow prevention, thermostatic mixing valves, water quality testing (including Legionella management), pumps and tanks, and emergency response.
  • Fire & Life Safety: EWIS, sprinklers, hydrants/hose reels, extinguishers, passive fire systems, smoke management, evacuation drills, and mandatory certification cadence.
  • General Contracting: Minor works, patching/painting, small carpentry, flooring, glazing, and 24/7 make-safe protocols.
• Asset registers and drawings: “Read-only” canonical lists with IDs that match your CMMS.
• Service level regime: Response and rectification times, uptime targets for critical assets, and a clear escalation pathway.
• Performance and abatement: KPI scorecards, evidence requirements, and a fair abatement structure that rewards improvement and penalises persistent under-performance.
• Sustainability and social procurement: Recycling and circularity targets, waste diversion, Indigenous procurement commitments, modern slavery due diligence, local jobs and apprenticeships, and carbon reporting requirements.
• Safety and compliance: WHS documentation, permits to work, contractor inductions, working with children checks where applicable, and emergency procedures.
• Systems and data: API specs or data templates for CMMS/BMS integration, data ownership clauses, and cyber expectations for vendor connections.

5) Price it the right way

A pricing schedule that’s poorly structured is the fastest path to “apples and oranges” comparisons and hidden cost creep. Get these elements right:

• Fixed PPM: Annual fixed price for defined tasks and frequencies per asset (with inclusions/exclusions clearly marked).
• Reactive call-outs: Hourly rates by trade/qualification, min charges, after-hours multipliers, and call-out bands.
• Materials and parts: Discount structures vs list, preferred brands, OEM vs equivalent policies, and warranty handling.
• Quoted works: Mark-up caps, competitive quoting rules above thresholds, and a transparent variation process.
• Indexation: Define the index (e.g., CPI, Labour Price Index) and timing. Avoid compounding surprises by setting guardrails.
• Incentives: Share-in-savings or performance bonuses tied to energy reductions, uptime improvements, or waste diversion milestones—only where measurement is robust.

Pro tip: For lifts and fire/life safety, pay close attention to OEM proprietary parts and software. Design pricing schedules that limit monopolistic behaviour while preserving safety.

6) Run a fair, competitive process

• RFI/EOI (optional): Pulse the market for capability and shortlist if the field is large.
• RFT: Issue clear packs, hold site walks, and require Q&A through a formal channel.
• Scoring: Use weighted criteria covering price, methodology, compliance, capability, sustainability, and digital integration.
• BAFO/Negotiation: Invite clarifications, test alternative pricing structures, and tighten contract terms.
• Reference and safety checks: Validate safety performance, statutory compliance track record, and campus-like experience.
• Award and standstill: Communicate outcomes professionally and prepare transition plans immediately.

Category-by-category tactics to lower cost without lowering standards

Waste services

• Right-size your streams: Measure actual generation by building type (labs vs general teaching) and adjust bin sizes/frequencies.
• Tackle contamination at source: Clear signage, student ambassadors during peak periods, and vendor education cut landfill costs.
• Plan logistics: Consider BOH constraints, collection windows that avoid student congestion, and container deposit schemes where available.
• Data you need: Weights by stream, contamination rates, and exception logs. Use it to reset pricing annually.

Vertical transport (lifts/escalators)

• Uptime is everything: Tie PPM schedules to availability targets per asset, with response and rectification SLAs clearly defined.
• Independent lift consultancy (where needed): Use for scope validation, OEM neutrality, and major refurb planning.
• Event overlay: Exams, graduations, and open days drive load—align manning and standby accordingly.
• Spare parts & software: Clarify access, versions, and update rights to prevent lock-in.

Mechanical/HVAC

• Energy is the lever: Optimise BMS set-points, filters, and preventative tasks. Demand-controlled ventilation and season-appropriate schedules often yield quick wins.
• Indoor air quality (IAQ): Education spaces need healthy CO₂ and particulate levels; define the monitoring standard.
• Chilled/hot water plant: Condition-based tasks (e.g., vibration analysis) can reduce breakdowns and overtime.

Electrical

• Prioritise risk: RCD and thermography programs catch issues early. Align testing windows to low-occupancy periods.
• Emergency lighting: Move to LED and define failure thresholds to minimise call-outs.
• Generator/UPS: Include load testing schedules that won’t disrupt labs or data centres.

Plumbing

• Compliance first: Backflow and TMV testing regimes must be watertight (pun intended).
• Water efficiency: Leak detection and smart metering often pay back quickly, especially across large campuses.
• Legionella management: Define roles across HVAC and plumbing to avoid gaps.

Fire & life safety

• No grey areas: Clear delineation between active and passive systems, testing frequencies, and defect rectification timeframes.
• Evacuation and training: Tie vendor responsibilities to drill schedules and documentation, especially for residential colleges.
• Evidence pack: Certificates, logs, and photos stored against asset IDs in your CMMS.

General contracting (minor works)

• Make-safe first: Define a 24/7 make-safe protocol with caps and an approval ladder for follow-on works.
• Small works panel: For jobs above a threshold, use a mini-competition among pre-approved contractors to keep pricing sharp.
• Student-safe sites: Clear requirements for hoardings, traffic, and hours to minimise disruption.

Compliance and risk—done once, done right

ANZ campuses carry a unique mix of public access, heritage buildings, laboratories, and residential facilities. Your contract and governance pack should address:

• Statutory compliance matrix: Map each category to relevant Australian/New Zealand Standards and testing frequencies.
• WHS and child-safe obligations: Contractor inductions, worker clearances where required, and incident reporting templates.
• Insurance and financial surety: Appropriate coverage, performance bonds where proportionate, and rapid rectification provisions.
• Modern slavery and supplier ethics: Practical due diligence questionnaires, escalation steps, and audit rights.
• Cyber and data: If vendors connect to your systems (CMMS/BMS), set minimal security baselines and data ownership rules.

Contracts that actually work on campus

Choose a contract form familiar to the local market (many institutions use standard ANZ forms with schedules tailored to services). Focus on:

• Clarity on inclusions/exclusions: Especially for lift OEM parts, fire rectifications, and after-hours works.
• Performance regime: KPIs, evidence, abatements, improvement plans, and a fair dispute pathway.
• Change control: Simple mechanisms for adding/removing assets, frequency changes, and new buildings.
• Indexation and benchmarking: Annual resets against agreed indices with optional third-party benchmarking at mid-term.
• Continuous improvement: A formal process for proposing and approving savings and sustainability initiatives.

Transition and mobilisation—where tenders succeed or fail

Plan your mobilisation like a mini-project:

1. 90-day plan: Contractor onboarding, inductions, system access, asset verification, and PPM schedule upload to CMMS.
2. Site protocols: Keys and access, hot works, confined spaces, permits, and emergency call-out rosters.
3. Communications: Campus-friendly notices for noisy works, lift shutdowns, and system tests.
4. Safety first: Toolbox talks, SWMS reviews, and joint risk walks.
5. Evidence check: First month’s certificates and logs to validate processes work end-to-end.
6. Early wins: Energy tuning, bin right-sizing, and backlog triage to build momentum.

Governance and reporting that people actually read

• Monthly ops packs: KPI scoreboard, compliance certificates, top risks, and completed/overdue PPM tasks.
• Quarterly performance reviews: Trend analysis, energy/waste results, improvement pipeline, and upcoming risks.
• Campus voice: Feedback from facility managers, student representatives, and residence managers.
• Audit-ready records: Everything tied to asset IDs in your CMMS—no emails as “systems of record”.

How to avoid the five classic mistakes

1. Treating PPM as “set and forget.”
   Build in continuous improvement and benchmarking.
2. Over-specifying tasks that don’t reduce risk.
   Focus on statutory needs and criticality; shift to condition-based where justified.
3. Underweighting uptime and response times.
   For lifts and HVAC, availability is the value driver—price it and measure it that way.
4. Letting data drift.
   Make the vendor responsible for updating asset registers after every change, with QA checks.
5. Ignoring student and teaching calendars.
   Lock your service windows around term dates and exams from the start.

A practical 12-week tender timeline (indicative)

• Weeks 1–2: Mobilise, confirm scope, form the squad, collect current contracts and performance data.
• Weeks 3–4: Asset register uplift, compliance matrix, and pricing structure design.
• Week 5: Issue RFT; run site walks.
• Weeks 6–7: Q&A and addenda; bidders refine technical and pricing proposals.
• Week 8: Receive bids; screen for completeness and commercial compliance.
• Week 9: Evaluate; clarifications; negotiate BAFO.
• Week 10: Recommendation, approvals, and intent to award.
• Weeks 11–12: Contracting and mobilisation planning.

(For multi-campus portfolios or complex lift portfolios, add time for independent technical reviews.)

Digital enablers that pay their way

• CMMS discipline: One asset list, one job history, one source of truth.
• BMS and IoT: Use where they help you predict issues or save energy; avoid gadgetry for its own sake.
• QR on assets: Field techs scan to log works and attach evidence—no back-office paper chase.
• Power BI/analytics: Visualise uptime, compliance, and spend by building and vendor to steer decisions.

Sustainability that actually saves money

• Waste: Reduce contamination, right-size collections, and divert organics where practicable.
• HVAC/Energy: Seasonal tuning, demand control, filter strategy, and metering/monitoring.
• Materials: Preference long-life, repairable components and transparent supply chains.
• Vendor incentives: Link part of the fee to measurable energy or diversion improvements—with clear baselines.

What success feels like on campus

• Fewer student complaints about hot/cold rooms or out-of-service lifts.
• Faster response to reactive issues, with better first-time-fix.
• Predictable monthly costs and fewer surprises.
• Compliance evidence at your fingertips when auditors knock.
• A facilities team that spends less time chasing vendors and more time improving the campus experience.

How Trace Consultants can help

Trace Consultants supports education providers across Australia and New Zealand to plan and execute property services procurements that stand up to scrutiny and deliver measurable results—without making big promises we can’t evidence. Typical support includes:

• Rapid current-state and data uplift: We clean and structure asset registers, map compliance requirements, and build pricing schedules that make comparisons straightforward.
• End-to-end GTM execution: From strategy and RFT pack development to evaluation, negotiation, contracting, and mobilisation planning—aligned to term dates and campus realities.
• Performance frameworks and governance: Clear KPIs, SLAs, abatement regimes, and reporting that connect cost, compliance, and student experience.
• Sustainability and social procurement: Practical targets for waste diversion, energy optimisation, local participation, and ethical supply chains.

If you’re planning a refresh of waste, lifts, mechanical/HVAC, electrical, plumbing, fire & life safety, or general contracting—and want a pragmatic ANZ-specific approach—Trace can partner with your property, procurement, and finance teams to deliver a clean, competitive outcome.

Your action checklist (keep it on your desk)

• Confirm your portfolio in scope and the outcomes that matter.
• Lift your asset register enough to make the tender real.
• Decide your bundling (what to consolidate and what to keep specialised).
• Build a pricing schedule that kills ambiguity.
• Lock in compliance, safety, and data requirements from the start.
• Align service windows to academic calendars.
• Govern with simple, visual reporting and firm abatement rules.
• Plan mobilisation like a project with a 90-day clock.

Final word

Going to market for PPM is not about squeezing vendors for one-off savings. It’s about resetting how the campus runs—safer, simpler, cheaper to own, and easier to manage. With a disciplined process and the right partner, universities and schools in Australia and New Zealand can lower total cost, improve compliance, and enhance the student and staff experience—all at once.

If you’d like a sounding board or a second pair of eyes on your pack, Trace Consultants can help you get there—quickly, transparently, and with a method you can reuse across your property services portfolio.

‍

Trace Consultants – Procurement as a Service

Most organisations know there’s value in their external spend. The challenge is turning that value into bankable benefits while keeping the business moving. Internal teams are stretched; niche category expertise comes and goes; systems are partial; data is messy; and stakeholders want outcomes yesterday.

Procurement as a Service (PraaS) changes the frame. Instead of a one-off consulting project or a big tech program, you subscribe to a flexible, always-on procurement capability—blending people, process, and pragmatic technology—measured on results, not slide decks. It’s procurement you can dial up or down, aligned to how your business actually buys, with a pipeline you can point to and a benefits ledger that stands up to Finance.

This article sets out how PraaS works for Australian and New Zealand organisations, where it delivers the most value, the traps to avoid, and how Trace Consultants stands up and runs the function with you—so it sticks.

What is Procurement as a Service?

PraaS is a managed procurement capability you can scale on demand. Rather than staffing every category in-house or cycling through episodic projects, you access a multidisciplinary team that runs the core procurement value chain to a clear operating rhythm:

• Spend discovery and analytics that reveal where value is hiding.
• Opportunity assessment and a rolling pipeline everyone can see.
• Sourcing strategies matched to category dynamics and market conditions.
• Market engagement, RFx design, evaluation, and negotiation.
• Contracting that protects value (not just price).
• Implementation support, supplier onboarding, and change management.
• Supplier relationship management (SRM), performance and risk monitoring.
• Benefits tracking and reporting that Finance can rely on.

It’s not a temporary blitz. It’s a durable engine that keeps running—month after month—so savings are realised and sustained.

Why PraaS makes sense now in Australia & New Zealand

Our markets are open, concentrated, and sensitive to supply risk. Many ANZ businesses buy from a small set of national and international vendors, where leverage and relationships matter as much as pricing mechanics. Add tight labour markets, evolving ESG requirements, modern slavery reporting, cyber clauses, and local content expectations—and procurement’s workload has grown faster than internal headcount.

PraaS helps by right-sizing capacity, bringing in specialist category and commercial skills only when they’re valuable, and anchoring everything to a rhythm your business can live with. You get outcomes faster, with less internal strain, and no long-term fixed cost you don’t need.

Who benefits most

• Retail, FMCG, and Manufacturing: packaging, logistics, MRO, co-manufacture, ingredients, energy, and capex programs with clear levers and real constraints.
• Healthcare, Aged Care, and Education: clinical consumables, services, agency labour, waste, facilities, and technology—where assurance and auditability matter.
• Hospitality, Integrated Resorts, and Venues: property services, F&B, linen and laundry, security, cleaning, engineering/MEP, and projects—high spend and high visibility.
• Public Sector and Government-funded Services: transparent market engagement, probity, and value-for-money outcomes under clear policy settings.

If your spend is dispersed across many categories, suppliers, and sites—and benefits feel sporadic—PraaS gives you discipline and flow.

Outcomes you should expect

A credible PraaS model is accountable for outcomes you can measure and defend:

• Bankable cost reductions and cost avoidance, tracked to general ledger where possible.
• Service and quality improvement through clearer scope, KPIs, and supplier performance management.
• Risk reduction across supply continuity, safety, environment, cyber, and modern slavery obligations.
• Speed to contract with fewer handoffs and less rework.
• Stakeholder satisfaction because the process is transparent, decisions are evidence-based, and suppliers know what’s expected.

The anatomy of effective PraaS

1) A simple, visible operating rhythm

Monthly opportunities council, weekly project stand-ups, and an agreed intake process. Everyone can see the pipeline, stage gates, and what’s needed from them. The cadence fits your business: quick where it must be quick, thorough where the risk warrants it.

2) Spend analytics that drive action

Not just dashboards. We reconcile spend to vendors, categories, and contracts; spot fragmentation and off-contract buying; and quantify leverage and consolidation opportunities. We look at total cost of ownership, not just unit price—labour content, compliance, transport, energy, wastage, and rework.

3) Category strategies grounded in the market

We pick the right levers for the context: aggregation, rationalisation, alternative specs, should-cost, volume commitments, logistics redesign, service level and scope clarity, or outcome-based contracting. We don’t force every category through the same playbook.

4) Market engagement that respects suppliers and competition

Clear RFx packs, sensible evaluation criteria, commercial models that align incentives, and a process that suppliers can navigate without guesswork. The result: better bids, stronger relationships, and contracts that stand up when tested.

5) Contracts designed to protect value

The clauses that matter are clear and enforceable: scope definition, KPIs and SLAs, pricing formulas and indexation, service credits or abatements, change control, transition plans, termination rights, data and cyber, modern slavery, health and safety, and ESG commitments that are achievable and auditable.

6) Implementation support and supplier onboarding

Value evaporates when contracts sit in drawers. We plan handovers, align to P2P, set up catalogues and rates, brief stakeholders, and deliver quick reference guides. Suppliers know what “good” looks like from day one.

7) SRM that actually happens

We schedule supplier reviews, run them to an agenda, and record actions. Performance is tracked and shared; issues are solved with facts; continuous improvement is expected and recognised.

8) Benefits tracking Finance will sign off

We attribute benefits to budgets where appropriate, avoid double-counting, distinguish once-off from recurring, and make the assumptions explicit. No mystery maths.

How PraaS compares to typical approaches

A one-off sourcing project can deliver savings—but benefits fade without SRM, data care, and a pipeline. Buying a procurement suite helps—but tech alone doesn’t negotiate, write scope, or manage suppliers. Hiring more permanent headcount can be right—but you’ll still need niche expertise on demand.

PraaS orchestrates people, process, and technology so you get enduring results without over-building internally. If you later choose to insource, you’ll inherit a clean operating model, templates, and data that work.

A pragmatic stance on technology

We’re solution-agnostic. Many ANZ organisations already have ERP and P2P platforms—they’re often under-utilised. We start by making your existing stack work harder: guided buying, catalogues, approval flows, rate cards, and contract repositories that people actually use. We then automate the boring parts: intake, RFx templates, evaluation scoring, contract clause libraries, supplier performance forms, and simple dashboards.

Where helpful, we use lightweight components from our broader toolkit—for example, structured supplier performance capture (helpful for DIFOT and service KPIs) or workflow apps to keep approvals moving. The point is utility, not bells and whistles.

How we structure a PraaS engagement

Phase 1: Mobilise and baseline (first 4–6 weeks).
We clarify governance, define the intake process, baseline spend, and establish the initial opportunity pipeline. We align on benefits definitions with Finance and agree reporting. We set the cadence: a monthly council and weekly stand-ups, plus a simple project tracker stakeholders can trust.

Phase 2: Execute priority waves (first 90 days).
We run a handful of high-impact sourcing events to prove value while building confidence. In parallel, we clean up contract data, implement simple P2P fixes (catalogues, rate cards), and stand up SRM for strategic suppliers. Outcomes are visible: signed contracts, updated budgets where appropriate, and supplier reviews that produce actions.

Phase 3: Run the engine (months 4–12).
The pipeline matures. We expand to secondary categories, embed benefits tracking, and deepen SRM. We refine commercial models, risk registers, and ESG/modern slavery reporting. We keep improving the experience for stakeholders and suppliers, and we train internal teams where you want to insource.

Roles and responsibilities that avoid confusion

• Business owners bring requirements, confirm scope and service levels, participate in evaluation, and own go-live outcomes.
• Finance agrees benefits definitions, validates savings, and ensures alignment to budgets and forecasts.
• Legal/Risk shapes templates and engages at the right moments—no last-minute surprises.
• IT and P2P teams enable the mechanics: access, catalogues, approvals, integrations.
• Trace (PraaS) runs the cadence, analytics, sourcing, negotiations, contracting, onboarding, SRM, and benefits tracking—bringing in specialist category or commercial skills as needed.
• Executive sponsor removes blockers, champions the process, and helps sequence the pipeline.

Clarity here keeps things moving and avoids the “who decides?” loop.

Common pitfalls—and how we avoid them

Scope blur and “lift-and-shift” pricing.
Re-tendering the same scope for a better unit price rarely fixes the problem. We clarify scope, service levels, and KPIs, then rebalance pricing models (fixed vs variable, outcome-based where it fits) so the incentives line up.

Underestimating change effort.
Savings are real only when the business buys differently. We plan the change—catalogues, go-live guides, communications, and training—so adoption is baked in.

Probity theatre in public settings.
Procurement must be transparent and fair, but also efficient. We design the process to meet policy requirements without unnecessary delay.

Benefits that don’t land in Finance.
We agree definitions and baselines up front, avoid double-counting with other programs, and track benefits to budget lines where appropriate.

SRM collapses after go-live.
We schedule reviews, set agendas, and make action tracking unavoidable with light tooling. Value protection is treated as seriously as value creation.

The KPIs that matter

• Savings and cost avoidance by category and business unit, with clarity on one-off vs recurring.
• Contract coverage: percentage of spend under contract with current, accessible terms.
• Supplier performance: service levels, DIFOT/OTIF where relevant, quality metrics, safety/environmental incidents, and continuous improvement actions.
• Cycle times: intake to RFx, RFx to award, award to go-live.
• Risk posture: concentration risk, critical supplier health, cyber and modern slavery findings, and remediation progress.
• Adoption: on-contract vs off-contract spend, catalogue utilisation, and maverick buying trends.

We track these together so trade-offs and progress are visible.

What we need from you

A visible sponsor, access to spend data (we’ll help tidy it), a list of live pain points, and a willingness to follow a rhythm that makes decisions quickly. We don’t need perfect systems to begin; we need enough signal to prioritise the right categories and enough engagement to move decisively.

How Trace Consultants helps

Operators first, consultants second.
We’ve run large, complex procurement programs across property services, logistics, MRO, F&B, healthcare, and technology—where contracts are lived every day, not just signed. We design for reality: site operations, supplier capacity, legacy systems, and governance requirements.

Right-sized, on-tap capability.
You get the category and commercial skills you need, when you need them—no idle bench. We bring frameworks, templates, and negotiation experience that lift outcomes without slowing you down.

Pragmatic technology.
We make your current stack work harder and add lightweight tools where they earn their keep—guided buying, clause libraries, RFx packs, supplier performance capture, and benefits dashboards. Nothing ornamental.

Transparent, defensible benefits.
We align with Finance, avoid double-counting, and keep a benefits ledger that connects to the chart of accounts where it makes sense.

Designed for insourcing.
If you want to build internal capability, we plan that from day one. We document, train, and progressively hand back categories and processes at your pace.

What we won’t do.
We won’t fabricate case studies or claim savings we can’t substantiate. We won’t sell technology for its own sake. And we won’t bury stakeholders in jargon or paperwork that doesn’t move the dial.

A straightforward roadmap to get started

Weeks 0–2: Orientation and access.
Confirm governance and escalation paths. Get spend extracts and contract lists. Capture immediate pain points and quick wins.

Weeks 3–6: Baseline and pipeline.
Clean and classify spend. Map contracts and expiry risk. Build the first wave of opportunities with indicative benefits ranges and delivery effort. Agree definitions with Finance.

Weeks 7–12: Execute and prove.
Run priority RFx events, negotiate, and sign. Onboard suppliers, update catalogues/rates, and put SRM meetings in flight. Share early outcomes and lessons learned with the business.

Month 4 onwards: Run and expand.
Extend to secondary categories, deepen SRM, refine templates and playbooks, and embed benefits tracking. Plan insourcing where that’s your goal.

Commercial models that encourage the right behaviours

We favour models that balance predictability and performance: a base service fee for the standing capability, with a sensible, clearly defined performance component tied to agreed measures (for example, realised savings validated by Finance, improved contract coverage, or cycle-time reduction within probity constraints). Scope can start narrow—high-impact categories, a region, or a division—and scale as outcomes land.

Change management that sticks

People adopt what is simple, fair, and helpful. We keep the process transparent, shorten training into bite-sized sessions, and make “the new way” easier than the old—clear intake, clear RFx packs, fast decisions, and catalogues that work. We also retire outdated reports and parallel processes rather than layering more on top.

Frequently asked questions

Do we need to change systems before we start?
No. We start with your current ERP/P2P and tidy what matters—catalogues, approvals, data hygiene—then decide if further tech is warranted once benefits are flowing.

How do you handle probity and fairness in public or quasi-public settings?
We design the process to meet policy and probity requirements without unnecessary friction, documenting decisions and ensuring transparency for auditors and boards.

Can we keep strategic categories in-house?
Yes. We tailor scope to your goals. Many clients keep a handful of relationships in-house while we handle the rest—or we co-source during a transition.

How quickly will we see results?
Most organisations see early wins within the first 90 days as priority categories close and contract coverage improves. The bigger dividend comes as SRM prevents leakage and more categories flow through the engine.

What about ESG, modern slavery, and local content?
We incorporate these into sourcing design, evaluation, contract clauses, and SRM—practical, auditable, and proportionate to the risk and regulatory context.

Signs you’re ready for PraaS

• Contracts are expiring without a plan, or renewals are rushed.
• Spend is fragmented across too many suppliers, with inconsistent rates and scope.
• Stakeholders are frustrated by slow cycles—or by no cycles at all.
• Benefits are claimed but not visible in budgets.
• Risk and ESG obligations are growing faster than internal bandwidth.

If two or three of these ring true, an on-tap procurement engine can restore order quickly and sustain it.

How to brief us

Keep it practical. Tell us the spend in scope, the categories that hurt, must-make deadlines, system realities, and your appetite for change. We’ll propose a first-wave pipeline, the cadence, who needs to be involved when, and what benefits we think are credible—and we’ll track them in a way Finance will support.

Final word

Procurement as a Service isn’t a shortcut; it’s a smarter path. It gives you the capacity, expertise, and rhythm to turn spend into value consistently—without building a permanent team you don’t need or waiting on a tech transformation to finish. In Australia and New Zealand, where supplier markets are concentrated and compliance expectations are rising, a disciplined, right-sized procurement engine delivers outsized returns.

Trace Consultants can stand this up quickly, run it well, and—if you want—hand it back on your timeline. No theatrics. No jargon. Just measurable savings, better supplier performance, and a calmer path from need to contract to delivery.

Interested in exploring PraaS with Trace Consultants?
Let’s start with a short conversation about your categories, timelines, and targets—and map a 90-day plan you can execute.

‍