A purchase plan provides the overall strategy for accomplishing and managing a purchase and is usually prepared under the general direction of the Commodity Sourcing Strategy Plan (CSSP). Information regarding the CSSP can be found in the Section 7-2, Develop Commodity Strategy. The purchase plan helps define the type, size, and phasing of the purchase to comply with the Postal Service’s SM Principles, after having made a decision on the most appropriate sourcing option. The complexity of the purchase plan depends on the nature of the purchase and its effect on the Postal Service’s business and competitive objectives. A purchase plan should set forth the Postal Service’s objectives and tactics to obtain the best value in a specific purchase. Purchase planning also focuses the purchase/SCM team on aspects of best value that the Postal Service is seeking.
Developing the purchase plan is an ongoing process, and therefore the components of the purchase plan are discussed throughout USPS Supplying Practices Process Step 2: Evaluate Sources. The purchase plan will be considered complete when all applicable tasks of USPS Supplying Practices Process Step 2: Evaluate Sources have been addressed.
The purchase plan is designed as a stand-alone document that provides sufficient information so that someone unfamiliar with the project can understand what is being proposed. Depending on the nature of the purchase, the purchase plan does not need to be lengthy; a concise, clear statement of the facts, the best value the Postal Service is seeking, and rationale supporting the proposed purchase are all that is necessary.
The purchase plan should be general enough to allow some project management flexibility, but be specific enough to give coordinating and approving officials adequate information with which to base their decisions on the technical and business merits of the purchase. The plan should be viewed as a living document subject to periodical updating and revision during the course of the purchase. It should keep the purchase/SCM team focused on the process and to communicate the status to management and other internal stakeholders. It should also reflect the relevant CSSP.
