I've recently presented some procurement seminars in the Darwin Suite at the Centre for Life in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. So what you say!!! Well my theme wasn't all about the process of public procurement, it was also about what I call the 3rd Dimension in Business - the entry into the contract winning skills of the ability to show best practice in compliance.

Compliance brings a third dimension demand to sit alongside the ability to be able to deliver the highest quality at the lowest cost. Where does Darwin come in? Some say that his Origin of the Species was really about the "survival of the fittest" which lead to the evolution of a new species. My thoughts are that following the recession and its "change point", it will be the new species of business that evolves and survives. The new species will acknowledge this 3rd Dimension and embrace the aspects of compliance in a way that they are embedded and bring a competitive advantage.

In our Biz-Pulse Business Scorecard programme we have recently introduced a Compliance Scorecard template to help organisations who want to be this new species.  The template focuses on management indicators in the four perspectives of Governance, Inclusion, Health & Safety and Environment.

However you manage it, if you don't acknowledge the existence of the 3rd Dimension, you may not be the business species that survives.
A recent survey shows that 44% of businesses think it will all soon be "back to normal". They are kidding themselves - the 3rd Dimension is here to stay!

What do you think about a 3rd Dimension?