IT directors at the UK's leading charity organisations are to set
up a working group to explore collaborative purchasing in order to
drive cost savings in the not-for-profit sector.
The initiative was announced at a quarterly meeting of the
Charities Consortium IT Directors' Forum, a body made up of the
heads of IT at 55 of the UK's largest charities (with turnovers of
£5m-plus) including Oxfam, the National Society for Prevention of
Cruelty to Children and the World Wildlife Fund.
Forum treasurer Graeme Steele said the group had decided to set up
a sub-committee of six of the larger charities to discuss the
possibilities of joint purchasing as a way of driving better
pricing through economies of scale.
"We have to agree on what we have in common. We have to look at
what different specs of kit each organisation is buying, what
they're paying and where they're getting it from to work out the
best leverage in terms of bulk buying," he said.
The best deal would be where companies were buying standard, rather
than bespoke, kit, Steele added.
Once that was established it was a question of setting up a
mechanism by which the group could go about purchasing. "It's the
equivalent of a buying club except we don't yet have any method of
purchasing. It's not a legitimate, VAT-registered entity yet so
that will take a bit of time," Steele said. The procurement group
intended to begin purchasing by the end of the year, he added.
Established last July, the charity IT directors' group was modelled
on a similar collaborative initiative set up by finance directors
in the not-for-profit sector.
Membership of the charity IT directors forum had nearly doubled
over the last couple of months as an increasing number of charities
realised the potential value of participating in the initiative, he
said.
"Charities, more so than other businesses, are keen to know that
their money is being spent properly because of the moral element
involved," Steele added.
Aims of the charity IT forum
- Exchange information and experiences on the best industry
practice and to encourage this best practice across the
sector
Keep in touch with the latest technology
Evaluate suppliers and consultants and share experiences
Exchange information about purchasing issues and to optimise buying
potential across industry sector
Seek commercial benefit for members.
Hazel Ward
hazel.ward@rbi.co.uk