Date posted: April 13, 2018

Name: Jim Cowan
Role: Managing Director
Company: Caliba Group
Jim has worked for manufacturing and mining corporates for 15-years before starting up Caliba Group 8-years ago. Caliba Group assists businesses to reduce their operating costs by improving their procurement practices.

How long have you been working with family businesses?
We have been assisting large corporates for the past 8-years, and have been involved in helping family businesses for 2-years.

What’s one of the most common mistakes you see in family businesses?
From what we have seen so far, it’s the challenge of separating business and family life. From a procurement perspective, it’s not having robust procurement procedures in place, and not challenging suppliers for better supply arrangements. Proper contract management also appears to be lacking.

What is your “uh ha” moment with your clients? When they realise…
That if you review your business’ goods and services requirements on a regular basis, and tender requirements to pre-qualified suppliers, the on-going cost reductions can be significant.