Area Of Procurement Research Articles

THE APPROXIMATION OF THE ALBANIAN PROCUREMENT LEGISLATION WITH THE EU LEGISLATION

Public procurement is a process performed by the Contracting Authorities which select the Economic Operators through a public competition, to enter into public contracts for the provision of goods, services, or works, against payment from public funds. The area of public procurement is very important in the management and spending of public money because public procurement is the environment where public money is filtered to have the least possible misuse, and financial stability of state institutions so that they are more consistent in the functioning and development of professional activities.Therefore, in this context, the present paper will analyze the Albanian perspective on public procurement to comprehend its alignment with EU legislation. This paper is coherent with the integration process requirements imposed on Albania and will demonstrate the positive achievements reached and the long path ahead to become a member of the European Union family.

The Approximation of the Albanian Procurement Legislation with the EU Legislation

Public procurement is a process performed by the Contracting Authorities which select the Economic Operators through a public competition, to enter into public contracts for the provision of goods, services, or works, against payment from public funds. The area of public procurement is very important in the management and spending of public money because public procurement is the environment where public money is filtered to have the least possible misuse, and financial stability of state institutions so that they are more consistent in the functioning and development of professional activities. Therefore, in this context, the present paper will analyze the Albanian perspective on public procurement to comprehend its alignment with EU legislation. This paper is coherent with the integration process requirements imposed on Albania and will demonstrate the positive achievements reached and the long path ahead to become a member of the European Union family.

The Culture of Purchasing Processes in Innovative Production Enterprises

The issue of purchasing processes has been analyzed and studied by scientists for several years, and especially the time of the pandemic has shown that activities in the area of procurement require more analysis and focus on creating new values or developing a culture of these processes in organizations.
 The COVID-19 pandemic caused the business world to undermine the reliability of the supply chain and showed that purchasing processes can be unstable. Purchasing functions faced demand-supply imbalances, which often lead to inventory issues, uncertain supply reliability, and high-risk relationships with various stakeholders, particularly suppliers and customers. Opaque supply chains and new realities require flexibility, a certain culture and maturity in sourcing functions to stay in business and succeed as a business in the new era. In order to build effective capabilities in purchasing processes and be able to flexibly respond to the challenges of the business environment, as well as meet the needs of stakeholders, enterprises must protect themselves with new norms, values and principles in this area.
 The article, in the theoretical part, describes the term of purchasing processes, presents elements that can be considered as the basis for building a culture of purchasing processes in innovative production enterprises. The research part describes the research methodology and the results of the conducted surveys as well as the conclusions resulting from the research. The research was conducted on a group of 36 managers who deal with this area in innovative production companies listed on the NewConnect market in Poland. The analysis of the literature and the results of the research showed that the prospects for the development of the purchasing process culture are significantly high. Especially this aspect has become quite important during the pandemic and companies are increasingly including these activities in key business processes.

From Digitization to Artificial Intelligence in External Public Audit

Abstract Digitization is one of the main concerns in contemporary society, this phenomenon being accentuated with the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced everyone to use technology under the conditions imposed by the new reality based on social distancing. The paper aims to analyze the use of digitization at the level of supreme audit institutions, the transition to artificial intelligence, as well as its impact on performance management, both in terms of performance at the level of these institutions and in terms of the public sector, in its whole. At the same time, the paper aims to pinpoint a series of tools based on artificial intelligence that could be used in the external public audit and, in particular, with regard to the audit of public procurement, given the importance of the funds allocated to the area of public procurement.

The International Procurement Instrument (IPI): promoting a level playing field around the world

This article provides a summary of the latest trends and policy developments in the area of international public procurement, with a special focus on the recently adopted International Procurement Instrument by the European Union (EU). The EU public procurement market is one of the largest and most accessible in the world. However, many of the EU's major trading partners apply restrictive practices in their markets that discriminate against EU businesses. Faced with this asymmetry, the IPI allows the EU to advocate more effectively for open international public procurement markets.

УГОЛОВНО-ПРАВОВЫЕ И СОЦИАЛЬНО-ДЕМОГРАФИЧЕСКИЕ ХАРАКТЕРИСТИКИ ЛИЧНОСТИ ПРЕСТУПНИКА В СФЕРЕ ЗАКУПОК ТОВАРОВ И УСЛУГ ДЛЯ ОБЕСПЕЧЕНИЯ ГОСУДАРСТВЕННЫХ ИЛИ МУНИЦИПАЛЬНЫХ НУЖД

The publication examines the criminal and socio-demographic characteristics of the personality of the offender in the field of procurement of goods and services for state or municipal needs. Based on the characteristics of the subject of the crime in the area under study the classification of persons who have committed crimes in the area of procurement of goods and services for state or municipal needs is developed, the conclusion about the possibility of classifying persons committing crimes in this area into three independent groups is made. It is argued that the presence of such criminal law feature as a criminal record or other criminal prosecution of the person has no significant impact on the criminological characteristic of the offender in the procurement of goods and services for public or municipal needs. The study found the presence of another criminal law feature that affects the personality of the offender who committed the crime in the field of procurement of goods and services for state or municipal needs, namely complicity. Also in the publication such socio-demographic characteristics of the personality of the offender in the sphere of procurement of goods and services for state or municipal needs, such as age, social status, educational level, gender, are considered in detail

Digitization of government contract

The digital development in the Russian Federation is to a large extent reflected in the specific relationship that emerges in the procurement procedure for State and municipal institutions as a result of the contractual system in the area of procurement. The term «procurement» refers to the acquisition of goods, construction or services; it is the process of determining the need of a solvent audience, identifying the supplier (its search and choice), as well as concluding and executing the terms of the contract, whether delivery of the goods, Performance of the work or services required by the terms of the contract. The article provides a brief overview of the process of digitization of the contract system in the procurement section and details the features of the digitization of the public contract, identifies the specific nature of the contract in the context of digitization and identifies its shortcomings, opportunities for the use of smart contract technologies in the conclusion and execution of government contract were considered.

Digitization of government contract

The digital development in the Russian Federation is to a large extent reflected in the specific relationship that emerges in the procurement procedure for State and municipal institutions as a result of the contractual system in the area of procurement. The term «procurement» refers to the acquisition of goods, construction or services; it is the process of determining the need of a solvent audience, identifying the supplier (its search and choice), as well as concluding and executing the terms of the contract, whether delivery of the goods, Performance of the work or services required by the terms of the contract. The article provides a brief overview of the process of digitization of the contract system in the procurement section and details the features of the digitization of the public contract, identifies the specific nature of the contract in the context of digitization and identifies its shortcomings, opportunities for the use of smart contract technologies in the conclusion and execution of government contract were considered. Keywords: digital, contract, government contract, smart contract, blockchain, Smart contract, contract system, automation, EIS (also a single information system), electronic information platform, electronic document management system, electronic signature, EPC, electronic document, portal, procurement of goods and services, procurement.

Procedura selekcji projektów unijnych – ocena i możliwości zastosowania w zamówieniach publicznych

Purpose – The main objective of the study is a multi‑faceted assessment of the process of obtaining EU funds by enterprises and the identification of the possibility of their use in other areas where public entities participate in the project selection process. Research method – To achieve the goal, a targeted review of literature, legal acts, and analysis of documentation of the Regional Operational Program for the Lubelskie Voivodeship for 2014–2020 (RPO LV 2014–2020) were carried out. In addition, individual and unstructured group interviews were conducted, and the method of analysis and logical construction was used. Results – The revealed features of the EU project selection process and the identified possibilities of its adaptation in the area of public procurement for innovations confirm its usefulness as a tool to stimulate sustainable development. Originality/value/implications/recommendations – The study presents an original approach to the evaluation of the selection procedure for projects financed from EU funds, which is carried out to be verified in terms of usefulness in other projects. The postulate of using the procedure in public procurement for innovations formulated in the article is in line with the postulates made by the European Union in the field of quality and innovation in public procurement and the selection of the most economically advantageous tenders instead of those with the lowest price.

Hurdles on the Way to Sustainable Development in the Education Sector of China

Globally, sustainable procurement is seen as a crucial component of public sector sustainability initiatives. This research investigates the internal and external barriers to the implementation of sustainable procurement in China’s public sector. Primary data for this research were gathered using survey techniques from 287 respondents who were procurement officials at higher education institutions that are part of the public sector. Twelve hypotheses were developed based on the conceptual model and literature review and evaluated using SEM-AMOS in order to look at the correlations between the variables. The study’s findings demonstrate that employee competency, employee motivation, training programs, financial aspects, management commitment, government rules and regulations, unavailability of green products, supplier capacity, and third-party pressure statistically influence the sustainability of public procurement. At the same time, green practices, the ineffectiveness of green products, and prices of green items had statistically no significant influence on sustainability in public procurement. This is a crucial effort to identify the factors that influence sustainable purchasing in China’s public colleges. This study draws interest from stakeholders and adds to the scant body of knowledge on sustainability in developing nations. In addition, this research is crucial for creating a roadmap for China’s long-term sustainable development in the area of procurement.

Whistleblowing w świetle nowych zasad dyrektywy o sygnalistach a doświadczenia ładu korporacyjnego wybranych polskich spółek energetycznych

In this paper (occurrence), will be discussed the principles of whistleblower protection in the corporate governance systems of Polish energy partnerships, as well will be presented the model principles resulting from the so-called whistleblower directive. In specific, attention will be concentrated, to the fact major change, witch was made by the amendment to the Act on public offering entered into force of 30 November 2019. It contained a provision (Art. 97d) imposing on issuers of financial instruments the obligation to ensure easy, unrestricted and stress-free reporting of violations of law, procedures, as well as ethical principles to the management board or the supervisory board. In addition, a new EU regulation is imposed on national polish legislation – Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council (EU) 2019/1937 of 23 October 2019 – on the protection of persons reporting violations of EU law (EU Journal of Laws of 2019 L 305/17 from 26.11.2019) – so-called whistleblower directive. In according new regulation, Polish energy partnerships will also be obliged to adapt their procedures, special regarding public procurement (Art. 2 (1) (a) (i) of the Directive with Annex Part I A) to the new rules, because the scope of application in the area of public procurement has been covered to (among others) Directive 2014/25/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on the award of contracts by entities operating in the sectors of water management, energy, transport and postal services, repealing Directive 2004/17/EC (Official Journal of the EU of 2014 L 94/243 from 28.3.2014). The transposition date imposed on Member States is 17 December 2021. The author draws attention to the need to implement solutions that actively involve supervisory boards in the process of evaluating reports submitted by whistleblowers.

Artificial intelligence/Machine Learning in Supply Management: Review, Application, Future Research

Artificial intelligence and machine learning are key technologies for procurement and their usage is still in its infancy. Only a few have successfully integrated these methods into their operations and across their supply chains that are recently starting to emerge. This review aims to assess the current state as well as provide guidance for management and future research. 286 related publications were identified based on a keyword search and consecutive snowball search. A classification framework was composed combining concepts from information technology and supply chain management to derive a structure for inclusion criteria leading to 48 ranked works that were interactively classified along the procurement process in eleven clusters and enriched with practical ideas. Their business value and ease of implementation were assessed by interviews to derive a research agenda through triangulation. Research seems to be ahead of practice where there are often proof of concepts only. However, recently many practical solutions are emerging by innovative organizations. Still, often there is close to no useable data, therefore it is crucial to start now to lay the foundation to profit in the future. Matching literature with the results of the expert interviews, the use case cluster cost analysis deserves higher research attention. Moreover, there seems to be a gap in the literature on the operational area of procurement. This research contributes to the understanding of artificial intelligence and machine learning in supply management from theory and practical insights.

MARINE REQUIREMENTS ELUCIDATION AND THE NATURE OF PRELIMINARY SHIP DESIGN


 
 
 My thanks to the author for a fine paper. It is also an important one, at least in the area of naval whole ship procurement where the idea of ‘Requirements Engineering’ has been taken up by those ignorant of the process of successful ship design. It is notable that such mistakes do not appear to be made in commercial ship procurement, where the pressures of finance, time and more direct accountability seem to concentrate the mind against ill-thought-out fads.
 
 

PUBLIC CONTRACTS IN HOLDING COMPANIES OPERATING IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY – A CASE OF THE CZECH REPUBLIC

This paper is produced as an exploratory study with the aim of carrying out a taxonomy of construction companies operating in the Czech Republic, taking into account the type and number of concluded public procurement contracts. In processing the multidimensional matrix describing the companies, a cluster analysis was used to identify the dependence between the set of variables. Results of the analysis suggest that the prevailing types of public procurement procedures include negotiated procedure without prior publications, open procedure and simplified below-threshold procedure, while from the point of view of the contracted value, the open procedure is of the highest importance. As for the cluster analysis conducted for the types of public procurement analysis, one can conclude that there is a relation between the number of public contracts concluded and the scope of the types. On the other hand, the extension of the conducted cluster analysis did not provide any conclusive evidence regarding the relationship between the types of public procurement contracts and the types of holding structures. Such a study has not been realised in the Czech Republic yet. Thus, the results of this study provide a background for research in the area of public procurement in the Czech Republic. Some potential research questions have been stated in the discussion part of the paper.

PUBLIC PROCUREMENT IN THE CONDITIONS OF THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC WITH REGARD TO THE PARTICIPANTS IN THE PROCUREMENT

Public finances are a term used to denote specific financial relations and operations taking place within the economic system between public administration institutions, on the one hand, and other entities, on the other. From an economic point of view, a public contract means an efficient allocation of resources with the aim of material and material provision of public administration bodies with such services that these bodies cannot or do not want to secure themselves. Through public procurement, a relatively high volume of public spending is realized in each developed country. Public procurement of goods, services and works by public institutions currently accounts for a relatively high percentage of GDP, estimated at more than 15% in the economies of Central and Eastern Europe. The area of procurement is one of the key areas where the public and private sectors interact financially with each other. As part of the paper, we primarily deal with below-limit and above-limit contracts in public procurement in the Slovak Republic. As part of the research, we focused on the period from 2016 to 2019. The paper provides an overview of the number of procedures in public procurement for the period from 2016 to 2019. In this comparison of data, we try to demonstrate the strength of public procurement in the public sector as well as the volume of financial flows spent on procurement. Within the issue of our research, the acquisition of relevant documents as well as verified procedures is very problematic, as we do not have a significant number of sources of professional and science publications related to these topics in the Slovak Republic.

Advancing the Circular Economy in Public Sector Organisations: Employees’ Perspectives on Practices

Circular economy (CE) is a concept that is gaining attention as an approach to help accelerate the transition towards sustainability. Research has focused on the adoption of CE practices in the business sector while the adoption within public sector organisations has been relatively overlooked. Examining CE adoption in the public sector through the perceptive of employees is crucial because of their expertise in the organisation where they work. The main aim of this study is to identify what public employees perceive as suitable CE practices for their organisations and their critical role in implementation. As the adoption of CE practices is influenced by social and material configurations, this research has taken a case study approach, focused on the Portuguese Central Public Administration. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with public employees working on CE and sustainability issues, and a complementary analysis was undertaken of governmental reports and legislative documents. The results show that public employees view the existence and potential of CE practices mainly in the area of public procurement but also in resource efficiency and optimisation, dematerialisation and in practices related to the R-hierarchy including reduce and reuse. Both technical-oriented practices aimed to achieve traditional resource efficiency, and human-centred practices targeted at reducing consumption and sharing resources have been identified. This research provides insights into how a specific group of stakeholders envisions CE activities for their sector. Identification of practices for central public sector has the potential to assist decision-makers in the process of defining priorities for CE planning, implementation and monitoring. This study focusing on CE practices in central public sector organisations contributes to the calls for an inclusion of human/socially-based practices centred around consumption reduction, sharing and dematerialisation activities to enhance the transformative and innovative potential of CE.

Bidding Strategy in Construction Public Procurement: A Contractor’s Perspective

A contractor’s ability to prepare a competitive bid for a construction tender is crucial for its survival on the market. The bid price estimation strategy should promote the probability of winning a sufficient amount of tenders but, at the same time, ensure the economic stability and development of the company. This paper aims to address this issue in the area of Czech public construction procurement. The opinions, experiences and practices of contractors were collected through a questionnaire survey, and the data were evaluated with the support of statistical methods. This revealed that Czech contractors mostly base their multicriteria bidding strategy on cost-oriented pricing while considering various aspects such as the risks and attractiveness of the tender. The Czech construction market is generally perceived as oriented toward low costs, and with a relatively common occurrence of abnormally low bids. The findings presented in this paper may help contractors improve their current bidding strategies in public construction procurement.

Procurement Transformation in Digital World

Technological development and progress in digitization permeate all areas of life, of course not excluding companies and their activities and individual business processes. In this paper, we focus on the area of corporate procurement as one of the key areas for fulfilling corporate goals and its transformation in the age of digitalization. The paper aims to identify the changing function of procurement and possible opportunities of digitalization for the development of procurement and its role in organization. As the results shown, procurement is a value-creating process that is changed by the digitalization. It is moving from a traditional focus on cost reduction to value creation through dynamic cooperation and building relationships with business partners. Procurement is beginning to play an increasingly strategic role in organizations. It becomes a partner to support business efficiency and the creation of new business models.

THE POLYVOCALITY IN ACTION: EMBODYING THE EPIPHANY ON PUBLIC HOUSING CONUNDRUM

Purpose of the study: This paper aims to elaborate on how the institutional logic of public housing provision transforms from the old logic into the new logic. By encapsulating tacit-knowledge from the shift, this study focuses on how to explicate a model of multi-criteria decision-making for executing official residence projects in Indonesia. This research also aims to recuperate the future of the public residency field. Methodology: The methodology employed was a mixed method. The qualitative method was firstly applied by utilizing semi-structured interviews to build a decision-making model. Later, a quantitative method was implemented to improve the consistency of the model by using the Analytical Hierarchy Process protocols. Thirteen project representatives and ten decision-makers were being involved as the main informants. Google Sheets web-based software was applied for analyzing survey results by making use of a mathematical model for the Analytical Hierarchy Process. Main Findings: The result indicates that land not used as paddy field, fair house price, safe from flood location, serene ambiance, and developer experience has played a significant part in affecting buying decisions for residency projects. To carry out the new method, the total scores of the AHP calculation should be above 50. Otherwise, the government shall opt for the old mechanism. Applications of this study: The paper contributes to the public sector accounting field in the area of asset management and public housing procurement. The paper also gives a strong basis for the field to make use of the model of Indonesia's public housing provision. The government can adopt the research framework for choosing the new model or the old one. Novelty/Originality of this study: This study might be the only one of its kind. The research was using a multi-method to achieve the objectives. To generate a multi-criteria decision-making model, grounded data of excessive interviews were abstracted. Then the abstracted tacit-knowledge was tested with AHP to provide a consistent model.

Determinants of corruption crime in the area of state (municipal) procurement

The subject of this research is the norms of international and domestic legislation on state (municipal) procurement and corruption prevention, as well as the scientific works on the determinants of corruption crime in this field. The goal consists in identification of the subjective and objective determinants of corruption crime in the area of state and municipal procurement. The author sets a task to analyze and generalize the established within scientific literature approaches towards explanation of the determinants of corruption crime in the indicated sphere, as well as to systematize such determinants by content and origin. The scientific novelty consists in systematization and generalization of scientific knowledge on the determinants of corruption crime in the area of state (municipal) procurement. The author explores subjective and objective determinants of corruption crime in this field, and based on their content, reveals the socio-psychological, socio-economic, political, legal and organizational-administrative determinants of corruption crime in the area of state (municipal) procurement. The conclusion is made that due to continuous reform in the corresponding legislation in this area, as well as the instability of socioeconomic situation for ensuring the prompt adaptability of the system of corruption prevention in area of state (municipal) procurement, it is necessary to provided regular monitoring of the determinants of such type of crime.