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Today, in many cases, it is the Procurement team who turn up in Porsches, working for some of the richest organisations on the planet.  With an increasingly commoditised product and having been ravaged by the recession, it is agencies who are struggling to make acceptable margins.

The old game of cat and mouse is over.  Today's modern world requires a modern and positive approach to running an agency, negotiating fees and working with professional purchasing teams to agree a mutually beneficial financial model.

Procurement teams, in my experience, have wised up and now understand marketing communications (and to me even the new world of digital) often better than some clients or even agencies.  They have taken the time and understand how an agency works and how it makes money.  The smarter Procurement team will want to ensure that an agency can make a good financial return, as they know how this is critical to the long term success of the relationship and the agency.  What they won't do is leave the cheque book open or the meter running or indeed accept the cost of the agencies inefficiency .. it is their duty to drive accountability and return on investment. 

So what is my advice to working with Procurement and what is my advice for them?

Understand what their role is, what their objectives are and how much power in the organisation they have.  Above all, build a relationship with them.  Some of my best client relationships are with the chaps from Procurement and I have found that they have been enormously helpful, way beyond the contractual stage of the job.  They understand the organisation and they often have a much better understanding of the bigger picture and can be a very helpful ally if you are having challenges with your every day client.

Once you understand their objective, help to work with them to achieve it.  Within negotiation (and you will need to negotiate), understand where you can give and where you can't and set yourself clear guides of what the agency can afford.  When you reach these limits, be honest and say so.

While what we sell can be quantified in some measures, it is an art and not a science, it is a creative industry and if you have demonstrated insight, understanding and a passion for a client's business, have confidence in your product and offering and in the value you attribute to that.

Finally, know your value .. benchmark your hourly rates to ensure what you think you are worth, is what the market thinks!  And benchmark yourself on projects to confirm your efficiency.

For Procurement specialists, I think the challenge is often to get agencies to see the client's view point, specifically the bigger picture.  Often we are very focussed on us and our own needs and objectives.

Recognise that to motivate an agency; you need to give them the occasional pat on the back.  Like all humans, we respond to nurture and positive encouragement and we need to eat, so be prepared to pay a sustainable rate and to recognise some of the real costs of doing business.

And finally, remember that agencies can add an enormous value to the client's business.  They build up enormous knowledge and understanding.  They often have great insight and normally will have a team of people involved - often the agency will have far better knowledge and understanding than the client who may not have been there as long.  So, before calling a competitive pitch, understand the issues driving that thought from both the client and agency side and look at alternative options to address the situation.  Discussing performance on both sides can often shed interesting light on causes and it can address issues and provide a simple and dramatic improvements. 

A pitch process is costly, time consuming and very expensive for clients and agencies and only sometimes result in a positive improvement.

So, heard it before, or wise words?  The client / agency relations will always be a key success factor in most client and agency businesses - Procurement is a central part of that relationship.  So embrace it, nurture it and value it.