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Description of  Bad Buying: How Organisations Waste Billions Through Failures, Frauds and F**k-Ups

Why is the Berlin Brandenburg Airport ten years behind schedule and nearly four billion euros over budget? What possessed Kenya's government to spend a whopping $35 million on a chain link fence just six miles long? And how did a fraudster known as Fat Leonard use prostitutes and spa treatments to swindle the United States navy out of millions of dollars and a wealth of classified information? Organisations large and small spend up to 90% of their budgets on external suppliers of goods and services. Huge amounts of money flow between firms, yet most pay little attention to this element of their business and are unaware that they could save huge amounts of money - and boost profits - by simply spending that money in a better and more effective manner. All too often billions are wasted on large-scale projects and the damage caused by corruption, ineptitude and mismanaged buying is hidden from shareholders and the public. By turns an entertaining account of some of the worst procurement scams in history and also a resounding lesson in how not to operate, Bad Buying offers clear and practical advice on how to avoid embarrassing mistakes, minimise needless waste and make sound, strategic procurement decisions on your next initiative.