The procurement category plan identifies the buying strategy to be implemented. As procurement team member how are you going to identify the critical purchasing costs in the supply chain? How are secondary and tertiary costs going to be identified and controlled?

As a procurement team member, my first step in identifying critical purchasing costs in the supply chain would be to outline all key stakeholders involved and determine their respective roles and responsibilities. This will help me gain an understanding of which activities are likely to involve significant financial outlays, as well as any potential opportunities for cost savings or efficiencies. Additionally, by mapping out the entire process I can also identify areas which may require additional resources (e.g., personnel or technology) in order to effectively execute the buying strategy.

Once I have done this initial research, I should then look into sourcing options available both domestically and abroad as this could potentially lead to more competitive pricing depending on quality of product/service offered. Furthermore, it is important that I keep track of relevant market trends such as changes in commodity prices or fluctuations in currency exchange rates so that any adjustments can be made accordingly when assessing total costs.

To control secondary and tertiary costs associated with a given purchase transaction, it is necessary to consider not just the price but other factors such as payment terms (e.g., whether discounts are provided for earlier payments), delivery schedules (i.e., how quickly goods must arrive at destination) and after-sales support services (what sort of technical assistance is available if needed). All these elements should be examined alongside each other before making any decisions so that maximum value can be obtained from each purchase transaction.