Commercial skills in Asia

This week sees the first of a series of IACCM conferences and events in the Asia-Pacific region. These come at the end of a year which has seen steady growth in IACCM membership and activities, reflecting a growing commitment to the development of contract and commercial resources throughout Asia.

Among the major discussion points at this year’s lively and well-attended event are:

– selling the contract and commercial role – developing a compelling ROI business case

– expanding activities to provide a holistic pre- and post-award CM service

– improving understanding and adoption of technology

– raising corporate capability in post-award contract performance management

There are also many discussions on the more technical issues such as improving statements of work, SLAs and scope definitions, or producing better and more clearly expressed contracts. Participants are in many cases stretching to define and plan for ‘world class’ status, wanting to push their management with a clear vision of the steps needed and the benefits that will follow.

The extent of engagement and the enthusiasm for the challenges that lie ahead is infectious and truly confirms the extent to which contract and commercial management are ‘on the map’ here in Asia-Pacific.