I sort of agree with what you are saying, and had the same question. Obviously when looking at vendors, one must take into account the price of their raw materials and the services that they perform. I agree that something like this should be done in the planning phase rather than the executing phase. The way I thought about it was let's say you found this vendor who you thought fit the requirements of your project and waited until the executing phase to contact them, what if the vendor changed or went out of business. Now you've wasted a whole bunch of time for essentially nothing because you're back to the drawing board on finding a new supplier that fits your requirements. However, what I think the lecture was referring to was maintaining proper risk management of suppliers which is done in the executing phase. One of the departments that plays a huge role in the entire project management cycle is Quality Assurance. They are responsible for dealing with failed vendors and ensuring that the proper preventative actions are taken so the project does not take a big hit.

I think source selection should be done in the executing process. In the planning phase, you are developing many aspects such as the DDP which includes the GANTT chart. I think you should wait until everything including the DDP and the GANTT chart is done (or as much as possible) before doing source selection because you learn what you really need from that source. If you don't know the time frame you need something, how can you ensure the source can provide? You have to know what you want to be able to say that that source works and can deliver or not. I think waiting until the executing process when you are actually using them ensures less things can change and affect your project.

While I see the area for confusion when considering the appropriate time to consider source selection for a particular project, I believe this process generally falls under the excitation phase. Having said this, I believe a good project manager should consider the source of materials earlier in the project’s life cycle such as in the planning phase. Similar to what Hiren was saying in his answer, the PM should have a general idea throughout the project yet, not waste too much time investing in potential vendors early on for a wide variety of reasons. As mentioned above, various changes could occur on the supplier’s side during the project life cycle so it is important to not invest too much time/trust into such a time variable asset. By taking preventative actions in anticipation in this way, change control, scope change control, and schedule control can exercised to make the process run as smoothly as possible. Ideally, this consideration of source selection throughout the project will matriculate into a confident decision when the project matures into the execution phase.

I believe that the actual purchasing of raw materials or even contacting with prospective vendors is best carried out while under the execution phase of a project. However, I can see as to why some may feel that it's best carried out while under the planning phase. Source selection during the planning phase does have its pros as it does pull the project ahead of schedule and may even jump-start the execution of the project earlier than expected. However, that itself can be exactly why it can work as a double edged sword. If a project team is already going off purchasing raw materials from said vendor when the project is still in its planning phase then things can go wrong as in changes to design, specifications, inputs etc. for example. It is best to hold off on spending company resources until documents such as the DSD and DDP start to become more solidified. What I think is best during the planning phase is for project managers to only start thinking about potential vendors so that they can be prepared for actual purchasing and price comparisons during the executing phase.

I agree gingeranderson. Though suppliers are on the PMs mind from early on, these should be given serious consideration during the execution phase when the necessary items are finalized. This helps to reduce iteration and the need to qualify suppliers unnecessarily. I believe the purpose of putting this so late in the execution phase is to avoid additional steps that would not be of value to the overall project.

Ussually when looking at vendors the company has a list of approved suppliers that would ease the purchasing aspect because prior business has already been initiated,and buying from an approved supplier means that you know what type of quality of product you will be receiving. So essentially you may not need to qualify the vendors if they are already within the companies approved supplier list. And as a comment mentioned above, delays may occur so having a potential back up supplier is a must.

Chris

I agree with Robert, that the suppliers must be contacted in the Project Planning Phase as this is the phase where the PM has to make an educated guess of the staff, resources and equipment needed to complete the project. He needs to communicate and plan procurement activities, and make contracts for any 3rd party suppliers. In short, this is the phase where a clear project roadmap for the project is set. PM needs to prepare a comprehensive suite as per the requirements of the project. Apart from that, contacting the supplier also involves many steps such as: tender process, a statement of work, request for information and request for proposal which i feel will be difficult to carry out during the third phase. Because in the implementation phase, the project plan is in full motion. And it is more of a maintaining control and communication. Progress is continuously monitored and appropriate adjustments are made in accordance with the original plan.

I agree with dag56. It is very important to keep potential options in the project manager's mind until it is time to pick for all of the reasons he mentioned. I would like to add that not only in the supplier's side but the project changes are also something to be considered. Within companies' planning process changes occur all the time and it is not to commit to one supplier and then the team figures out that they need to change it.

I agree here. The suppliers you want to be dealing with are well-established and are known for their high quality materials. In fact build a relationship with these suppliers and do not burden the planning phase. Additionally, a good relationship might help you get your materials faster and at better prices and latest qualities. A good relationship is achieved through loyalty, trust in your business dealings (you pay your bills on time, do not use their materials for illegal purposes, are fair, etc.), and involvement, that is, let them understand your product and company. Also being demanding is important as well to establish you can not be double crossed, cheated, or swindled.

I concur with post above. In spite of the fact that providers are on the PMs mind from at an early stage, these ought to be given genuine thought amid the execution stage when the vital things are finished. This lessens cycle and the need to qualify providers superfluously. I trust the motivation behind putting this so late in the execution stage is to stay away from extra strides that would not be of an incentive to the general venture.

As has been mentioned above, the general selection of a vendor for a given supply is probably considered in the planning phases of a project, but not finalized until the execution phase. However, no matter who the vendor is, they do need to be qualified according to the quality system. This is something I am currently experiencing first hand at my place of employment. We are currently in the process of qualifying a new vendor for one of our principle raw materials. This was brought on due to inconsistencies in the product we were receiving from our current vendor. There are multiple teams working on this qualification, including processing/manufacturing, R&D, and regulatory. As a member of the R&D team, my contribution to this process involves validating the products performance. All that being said, the choice of vendor is something that can occur at any phase of a project, including when a project has been completed.

Source selection is one of the major issue of the entire project. This must be taken care properly. The entire project time might get delayed due to the lack of resources. Even a project might lead to failure if there is no proper quality in the source. So sources must be taken into consideration in the initiation details. I mean that the sources must be taken into consideration when we are setting up the project duration. So during the estimation of the project time the supply of the source must be taken for estimation. So at that time PM will get some awareness regarding the source and he can get to know the situation. We can take all necessary steps for source in execution phase but we should get clarity about it in initiation phase. This lead to the efficient progress of the project. During the execution phase it will be easy for planning the resources and the project would be completed perfectly in time without the delay. As we say that prevention is better than cure. So prior judgement would be good enough to deal with the emergencies.

Posted by: @rgp29

In this week’s lecture Dr. Simon mentioned that during the executing process of a project, the project manager (PM) is in charge of the source selection. This means the PM must decide on who are the appropriate suppliers for the project. The PM must qualify vendors under quality system. I understand that the supply must come at the least price in order to reduce the budget but shouldn’t this be done in the planning phase instead of the executing phase? I’m saying this because in the planning phase was mentioned that the more details you provide, the more probability that your project will be successful in the executing phase.

Let me know what you think about this

Sincerely,
Roberto Pineda.

This is actually a great question that I did consider but although the planning phase is typically the layout of everything that is involved in developing a project, I would first begin by saying I think that project managers should do research on prices and vendors during the planning phase in advance. Therefore as the project evolves and moves into the execution phase they will know who to work with and the budget that they have. Every vendor is different and they provide different services that can be unique for your specific project. Working with the right vendors are extremely important because if they do not supply the proper resources then your project can fail. Also throughout the project, your supplies may vary. Waiting until the execution phase is more beneficial because being able to avoid such risks can do you more favors in the long run of the project.