Welcome to the June edition of Costedge

As we enter June, it’s remarkable to consider how quickly the first five months of the year have passed. As we start the start of the month, it’s natural to reflect on progress made, goals yet to be achieved, and the opportunities that lie ahead.

While cost management initiatives are often driven by the straightforward objective of reducing expenses, there are frequently deeper motivations at play—less obvious, yet equally important. In this month’s edition, I explore such a case through the lens of a long-standing client relationship that has spanned seven years.

At our very first meeting, the client, the Financial Director, mentioned that his primary concern wasn’t just about saving money. Rather, it was about confidence: if the board were to ask whether the business was truly securing the best possible value across its procurement activities, he wouldn’t be able to answer with any great certainty. He lacked the visibility and benchmarks to know.

That conversation led to a partnership with ERA Group and myself. Our work has focused not only on identifying savings, but on creating transparency—benchmarking costs against industry standards and peers, highlighting areas of strength, and shining a light on those with room for improvement.

In addition, this issue includes some practical insights on cost-saving strategies in Insurance and Food/Catering, along with highlighting of a digital tool, Docparser that I’ve come to rely on to quickly extract data from PDF invoices. It has been a game changer to what I do.

I hope you find this edition both informative and helpful. As always, if you’d like to discuss any of the topics further, or for that matter any cost management issues, feel free to reach out to me directly via email or phone.

All the best.

grant

Grant Morrow
Principal Consultant
+61 415 203 575
[email protected]

Office Supply Heist: In 2012, a German city council employee was found to have hoarded over 20 tonnes of office supplies, including pens, post-it notes, and cleaning products; over 30 years, the stash was estimated to be worth six figures.

The Great Coffee Budget Cut: In an attempt to cut costs, a company switched to a cheaper brand of coffee. The result? A full-scale employee revolt, with workers bringing in their own coffee machines and forming a “coffee club” to protest the decision.

Virtual Meeting Mishap: A company tried to save money by switching to a free video-conferencing service. Unfortunately, the service had a time limit on meetings, which led to essential discussions being cut off mid-sentence and causing much laughter and frustration.