Is your service contract not getting the results you want? Contract theory may help!

Have you ever wondered why your services contract is just not working properly?  Why the incentives you put in the contract are not delivering the desired outcome? The reason is most likely due to an area of study called contract theory and this year, the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Science was awarded to the economists Hart and Holmström for the development of contract theory.

These prize-winning economists have provided valuable theoretical tools for understanding real-life contracts as well as potential pitfalls in contract design.

Is there something we can learn from this as contract owners and apply to services contracts? At Acquire, we think so.

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Can Safety be bought in Mining Services Contracts? Beware the Cobra Effect

Mining safety has come a long way in Australia and now is at a point where the safety cultures of some of the Australian miners are considered leading practice in the world. As mining operators continue to improve productivity and reduce their bottom line, mining services providers remain paramount for delivering business outcomes.

One common question we get from our operator clients is What should be done to ensure Safety is paramount in a Mining Service relationship? What are the roles of the supplier and the operator and what’s the best way to promote a safety culture when designing the mining services contract?

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Event 27 Oct: Fraud in Procurement (Remember Joel Barlow?)

Last week I was discussing fraud and corruption in business in Australia with a friend who works in Kordamentha’s Forensic division.  I was staggered to find out that even in today’s world with systems with checks and balances, most businesses over $1B in revenue lose almost 10% of that amount ($100M) each year to theft.  This “theft” includes fraudulent activities, corruption, and simple theft of goods. PWC’s Global Economic Crime Survey/ Australia Report identified Procurement Fraud in the top 5 of all economic crimes, with 30% of Australian respondents experiencing this type of fraud in the 24 months leading up to the survey, 7 % above the global average.

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Brent Harvey (Photo by Adam Trafford/AFL Media)

Would you pay $20k for Brent “Boomer” Harvey?

The team at Acquire Procurement Services recently attended the Harvard Law School Negotiation and Leadership Program in Boston, Massachusetts. Run by a consortium based at Harvard University, the program examined core decision-making challenges, analysed complex negotiation scenarios, and provided a range of competitive and cooperative negotiation strategies to be used in both private and public negotiation environments.

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Acquire’s Visit to MINExpo 2016 – Our Favourite Innovations

Acquire Procurement Services attended the global MINExpo 2016 (Sep 26-28), held once every four years in Las Vegas. The MINExpo featured 1,900 exhibitors from around the world showcasing cutting edge mining products and services and attracted over 44,000 attendees from 130 countries. The MINExpo also featured education sessions from world-leading experts on topics ranging from the commodity market outlook to best practice in various mining practices.

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Travelling to the Source of the World’s Top Negotiators

Acquire at the Harvard Negotiation and Leadership Program

The Harvard Negotiation and Leadership Program

The team at Acquire Procurement Services attended the Harvard Law School Negotiation and Leadership Program in Boston, Massachusetts last month. Run by a consortium based in Harvard University, the programme was designed to accelerate participant’s negotiation and leadership capabilities. It examined core decision-making challenges, analysed complex negotiation scenarios, and provided a range of competitive and cooperative negotiation strategies to be used in both private and public negotiation environments. Read more