How to avoid unexpected consequences

Are you planning to watch the Olympic torch relay pass by – or have you done so already?

Over coming weeks, the 8,000-mile relay will travel to all corners of the UK as we near the opening ceremony of the Olympics on 27 July.

There’s been a fuss about the torches. For one thing, bearers have been asked to pay £295 if they want to keep them. But now a mini furore has ignited over what happens to the thousands of torches afterwards … particularly the ones that have been ending up on eBay.

Bids are reaching thousands of pounds. And, apparently, there’s no restriction on bearers selling them. Some sellers are reported to simply be ‘needing the money’ to pay for household bills while others are generously donating the proceeds to charity.

Whether some of this goes against the Olympic spirit – or is simply a great way to ‘share the money around’ among everyday people – is another debate.

But what’s clear is that if you put people, money and commodities together, without clear rules, then unintended consequences sometimes occur!

In the world of procurement, this can happen with maverick spending. Without a single procurement system and a set of business rules, then the outcomes can be surprising and expensive if the wrong purchases are made at the wrong price from the wrong suppliers ... without people noticing until it’s too late.

However, with the right procurement solution, buyers are guided to authorised suppliers with agreed contracts. Their purchases are authorised by the right people in a clear and auditable way – and ultimately their organisation achieves best value, possibly saving substantial amounts along the way.

Fortunately, achieving this doesn’t have to be an Olympian struggle. Winning solutions are out there already.