Defining ‘tail end’ spend. We define ‘tail end’ spend as the spend within any organisation, and primarily within a procurement-driven organisation, that forms the bottom part of the organisation’s spend. This typically encompasses 20% of spend with 80% of suppliers and includes purchases where organisations believe that common procurement rules can not be applied.

Organisations with a ‘long’ tail end spend typically purchase a small number of goods from a large number of suppliers, generating a high volume of administration that drives down productivity and increases cost. The burden of dealing with numerous suppliers means that staff often have neither the time, nor the resources to identify the most appropriate products or achieve the best prices.

Bates Tail End Management. Our Tail End Management service delivers a fully integrated solution to control and leverage purchasing expertise to generate both direct and indirect savings. We achieve this through a structured and transparent methodology to provide a tailored solution that consolidates tail spend and optimises the efficiency of procurement and supply chains.

As the NHS, along with all public sector organisations, faces growing challenges in the delivery of services, the need to rationalise and contain procurement costs has never been greater.

Large procurement-driven organisations like the NHS inevitably develop management systems that focus on their highest value/volume spend; spend that typically involves large purchases from relatively few suppliers.

Small and low value purchases, or ‘Tail End’, spend is often more devolved, with a greater number of staff purchasing from a wide network of suppliers. The quantity and complexity of transactions at this level can reduce the efficiency of spend management and generate disproportionate costs.

Our benchmark service provides a robust, tailored framework for Tail End Management, founded on extensive industry experience, proven methodology, intelligent delivery, consistent monitoring and transparent reporting.

Our service identifies and rationalises the ‘Tail End’ of your spend, directly reducing the cost of supplies and the cumulative cost of procurement.

Our Tail End Management service can identify and reduce the ‘hidden’ costs associated with tail end procurement. These costs include sourcing supplies, managing vendors, processing large volumes of invoices, managing multiple deliveries and the cost of processing orders.

Consolidating a tail spend supply base rationalises numerous suppliers into a single source for procurement, significantly reducing administration, man hours, rogue spend and unauthorised purchasing.

We provide access to an enhanced range of products through a single source, with dedicated support, expert advice and sourcing, improved product consistency and quality management.

In addition, our Tail End Management service provides an established framework for real time monitoring and reporting – making it easier for you to control your procurement spend.

The Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust’s Commercial Procurement framework allows NHS authorities and other public bodies to procure Tail End Management services, including purchasing, supplier management, delivery and reporting with no further competition. This will enable Trusts to expedite the management of their tail end spend.

The framework is available for use by all NHS bodies and other public sector organisations in the United Kingdom who are referenced within the OJEU award notice. OJEU Number 2016/S 200-360874

Our methodology. We identify Tail End Spend and deliver Tail End Management through a process of five key steps: Analyse Spend; Define Tail End Spend; Identify Savings Opportunities; Source and Contract; Measure and Report Improvement.

Implementation. We understand that no two organisations are the same and we are uniquely placed to identify and address the specific challenges faced. We implement tailored solutions through a flexible yet robust and proven infrastructure of fully integrated services.

Delivery. From the ground up, our services are delivered by experienced professionals who are invested decision makers with a wealth of industry expertise.

Key performance indicators (KPIs). As part of our audited ISO9001 and ISO14001 management system, we have our own internal management tools for measuring our performance. At the heart of our KPI management is a customised application designed to give an instant real time performance report against more than 40 different KPIs including: order fulfillment, quotation tracking, delivery success, call answering time, query resolution time, stock performance reporting & timed delivery accuracy.

Bespoke frequency and scope of reporting against KPIs. We generate a bespoke reporting framework based on your specific requirements in order to deliver continuous improvement.

Management information and reporting. We offer regular business intelligence reports across key areas of procurement activity. These would typically include: Total Spend, Spend by User Location & Cost Centre, Product Alternative Report, Volume of Orders by Location, Savings Report, KPI Monitoring Information.