The Impact of Commodity Councils on the Internal Structures of Purchasing Organizations in the United States Air Force

Abstract

To better support the warfighter, the Department of Defense is emulating industry's Best Commercial Practices (BCP). Identified as a BCP, strategic sourcing is an integral part of the procurement transformation, aimed at buying products cheaper and faster. Success in the commercial industry has shown that strategic sourcing is a powerful tool that can significantly cut costs and improve customer responsiveness. The Air Force has taken initial steps to implement strategic sourcing into their purchasing organizations through commodity councils. This research uses the case study method to identify patterns and trends experienced by commercial companies in their implementation of strategic sourcing. In particular, it focuses on 1) job description 2) training 3) manpower 4) realignment 5) procedures and 6) human aspect. Further analysis compares these "lessons learned" to current Air Force practices and discusses potential barriers and to what extent they can be adopted. Based on these findings, specific recommendations are made to better help the Air Force enable this transformation.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Dec 01, 2004
Accession Number
ADA429268

Entities

People

  • Beth M. Rairigh
  • Eva R. Sanchez

Organizations

  • Naval Postgraduate School

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Cyber
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Human Systems
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Acquisition
  • Air Force
  • Business Administration
  • Commerce
  • Employment
  • Health Services
  • Lessons Learned
  • Management Personnel
  • Military Personnel
  • Operating Systems
  • Organizational Structure
  • Personnel Management
  • Public Policy
  • Students
  • Supply Chain
  • Supply Chain Management
  • Training

Readers

  • Aerospace logistics and air mobility.
  • Defense Acquisition Program Management