Terms of Reference for Supply Chain Consultants
Terms of reference document the objectives for the project team and also form part of the contract between an organisation and its supply chain consultants. As such, it's an important document to get right. Whilst anyone can write the terms of reference for a project from scratch, the process of developing them in accordance with a good quality template usually helps to identify (and ultimately clarify) a number of important issues, which until this point may not have been picked up.
At Executive Interims - Supply Chain Practice we work with our clients using the following generic template for terms of reference.
- Background and Introduction
- Project Stakeholders
Identification of key stakeholders in the assignment including the Project Owner/Sponsor
- Objectives
Unequivocal quantified targets e.g. cost reduction of xx%
- Deliverables
Tangible deliverables, which are the things which a client organisation keeps after the completion of the project. Although of course related to the objectives, the deliverables may be different e.g. contracts, reports, presentations, analysis etc.
- Resources
Team room, white board , access to your organisation's IT systems. etc..
- Team Members, Stakeholders & Supply Chain Consultants
Named team members and stakeholders, their roles and anticipated contributions to the assignment and how many days per week they'll be dedicated to the project, including the supply chain consultants .
- Project Activities
Strictly speaking this isn't an essential part of the terms of reference, because the outputs (namely the objectives and deliverables have already been defined) but if you feel that there's a risk that the team may overlook certain issues if they're not spelled out, this is the place to be more specific.
- Project Timescale
Often just an "envelope" timescale for the project is appropriate at this stage. The detailed plan will be developed by the team within this framework. It is this overall timescale which will have to fit in with the objectives of a wider Programme
- Key Dependencies
There may be other work-streams, within other projects which will either affect or be affected by this project. These should be identified, and as far as possible it should be clear what the potential implications are likely to be.
- Communication Mechanisms / Reporting.
Can be in a number of different parts:
a). Daily team meetings - reviewing the project plan and today's actions.
b) Informal meetings usually every week - for quick updates with the Project Owner/Sponsor, this can be supported by a brief "traffic light" report.
c) Formal Presentations every four to six weeks to the Steering Committee/Board
- The project terms of reference need to be signed off both by the Steering Committee (usually the Executive or Board of the organisation), the Project Owner/Sponsor and the supply chain consultants.
Executive Interims - Supply Chain Practice
In addition to providing interim management services, Executive Interims - Supply Chain Practice provides clients with consultants formerly from "Big Four" consultancy firms, including:
Looking for Supply Chain Consultants?
Executive Interims - Supply Chain Practice is a specialist provider of supply chain consultancy and interim management services. If you'd like to know more about what our supply chain consultants can do for your business, contact us to explore the subject further.
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