A 23-unit hospitality management company discovered a gap in supplier engagement during an audit of spend through a hospitality group purchasing organization. A review of the client’s account payable, data relative to the reported supplier spend, would determine if the gap could be reduced and the balance explained. In addition, suppliers outside the GPO program were examined to determine if there were suitable substitutes within the GPO portfolio.
INDUSTRY CHALLENGES
- GPO contracts with suppliers are complicated
- Hoteliers do not always know how to ensure compliance
- GPOs have limited resources to ensure optimal engagement at property level
EVALUATION & SOLUTION TOOLS
- Compare accounts payable data with GPO reported spend
- Identify any GPO suppliers where reported spend is below AP report and determine if gap is valid
- Examine suppliers not on the GPO list to see where they can be replaced by GPO suppliers
PRIMARY FINDINGS:
25% of AP expenses with contracted suppliers was unreported
20% of reviewed spend recaptured, equal to 5% of total spend
80% of reviewed spend was legitimate, outside of GPO program