Understanding that project managers, with the support of the project team, develop a projects procurement management plan

always within the context of the organizations procurement framework of policies and procedures, the procurement strategy should originate from and support the long-term needs of the organization, as the organization reacts to internal and external factors such as technology, procurement trends and supply issues (University of Liverpool/Laureate Online Education, 2013). Having said that, the process to generate and review requirements and specifications for procurement that I would follow for an organization with non-critical and leverage purchases (i.e. numerous suppliers, substitutes are accessible, and market keeps prices competitive), should be based on a strategic-driven sourcing method (Cavinato, Flynn and Kaufmann, 2006). Therefore, a strategic-driven planning process would evaluate the current and future supply needs of the organization, which is done by using a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis; hence, requirements and specifications generated would effectively address the type of resources required for each particular area of the organization (Sollish et al., 2011). Nonetheless, this is a dynamic process, which should be seen as an evolutionary process involving close and continuous liaison between the internal customer or user, and the procurement staff; and continuous input from the different projects should be done in the form of a specification or SOW (Tanel, 2009). Finally, as part of a procurement specification, the information gathered must be clear and unambiguous, and should allow for the requirement to be defined in terms of outputs and outcomes, allowing for innovative proposals, but also helps to keep the door open for the possibility of change (Office of Government Commerce, 2010, p.3). Moreover, specifications set limits and thereby eliminate or restrict items that are outside the boundaries drawn; and constitute the heart of a contract document that will govern the supplier of required goods or services in the performance of the contract as well as the basis for judging compliance (Virginia Information Technologies Agency, 2008, p.1). To this objective, Carter (2010) suggests that the information gathering must be guided by three types of specifications: commercial specifications (what standards of quality for materials and procedures should be used), design specifications (how the product should be made or a service should be provided), and performance specifications (the specific performance required, but not a method for achieving such performance). Reference List Cavinato, J.L., Flynn, A.E. & Kaufmann, R.G. (eds.) (2006) Supply Management Handbook. University of Liverpool Catalogue [Online]. Available from: http://site.ebrary.com/lib/liverpool/docDetail.action?docID=10155019 (Accessed: 21 June 2013). Carter, S. (2010) Procurement Process - The Three Types of Procurement Specification [Online]. Available from: http://ezinearticles.com/?Procurement-Process---The-Three-Types-of-ProcurementSpecification&id=4492946 Office of Government Commerce (2010) Contract Management in Long Term or Complex Projects: Key Commercial Principles to Help Ensure Value for Money [Online]. Available from: http://clients.squareeye.net/uploads/east2010/Contract_Management_in_Complex_Procurement(1).pdf (Accessed: 21 June 2013). Sollish, F., Semanik, J., Morris, P.W.G. (ed.) & Pinto, J.K. (ed.) (2011) Planning and Administering Project Contracts and Procurement. Laureate Education, Inc., custom ed. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. Tanel, T. (2009) The Art of Planning and Writing Specifications & Requirements [Online]. Available from: http://www.ism.ws/files/Pubs/Proceedings/2010ProcCI-Tanel.pdf (Accessed: 21 June 2013). University of Liverpool/Laureate Online Education (2013) Week 3: Procurement management: part 1 [Online]. Available from: University of Liverpool/Laureate Online Education VLE (Accessed: 21 June 2013). Virginia Information Technologies Agency (2008) IT Procurement Policy Manual: Buy IT [Online]. Available from: http://www.vita.virginia.gov/uploadedfiles/VITA_Main_Public/unmanaged/scm/procurement_manual/chapter_08 _-_ng_partnership/SCM_Chapter08.pdf (Accessed: 21 June 2013).