November 6, 2018
Procurement Organization Becomes First Group to Achieve Industry Recognition for Managing Indirect Spend
WINTER PARK, Fla. and REDMOND, Wash.— (November 6, 2018) — COPC Inc., a global consulting firm that helps companies improve operational performance, today announces that the procurement organization at Microsoft Corporation has met the qualifications to be certified to the COPC Indirect Procurement Standard. Developed in 2017 by a team of industry leaders, the COPC Indirect Procurement Standard is a set of best practices and key metrics for any company seeking to strategically manage its indirect spend. Earning certification to the Standard demonstrates an organization’s commitment to excellence and validates their achievement of high performance for quality, efficiency, value, and stakeholder satisfaction.
“Always a leader, the global procurement organization at Microsoft immediately stepped up to meet the challenge of the benchmarks and metrics found in the COPC Indirect Procurement Standard. The Microsoft team consistently develops and implements best practices that build and sustain their high-performing operation providing indirect goods and services. We are most impressed with their organization, their accomplishments, and the value they bring to the larger Microsoft organization,” said Cliff Moore, co-founder, COPC Inc.
Certification to the COPC Indirect Procurement Standard begins with an assessment of the company’s procurement organization covering five key areas: leadership and planning, business processes, support processes, people processes, and performance. Next, a structured plan is developed with recommendations to implement operational change to close gaps and improve performance on key metrics. The final step in the certification process is an audit that validates the organization’s improvements are scalable, sustainable and consistently implemented.
“We strive to create a culture of continuous learning and improvement, and certification to this rigorous industry procurement standard validates that we are achieving that goal while also delivering significant business value to our stakeholders,” said Michael J. Simms, chief procurement officer, Microsoft Corporation.
The Standard is managed by a steering committee of leading indirect procurement executives, including representatives from ADP, BAE Systems, Cisco, Harley Davidson, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Intuit, Magna International, Stryker and Western Michigan University. This group is responsible for reviewing, managing, and updating the Standard to ensure it continually addresses the changing marketplace.
Certification to the Indirect Procurement Standard is offered as part of a suite of services called IndirectPro™ and is provided by COPC Inc. specifically for organizations managing indirect procurement. To learn more about the Standard and the host of services that COPC Inc. offers, visit www.indirectpro.com.
About Microsoft
Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) enables digital transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.
About COPC Inc.
COPC Inc. provides consulting, training, certification and the RevealCX™ software solution for operations that support the customer experience (CX). The company also offers the IndirectPro™ line of services for sourcing professionals. Starting in 1996, COPC Inc. created the COPC Standards, a collection of performance management systems for call centers, CX operations, vendor management, and procurement. COPC Inc. is privately held with headquarters in Winter Park, FL, U.S. and with operations in Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific, Latin America, India and Japan. www.copc.com