Project Procurement Management - Overview

This knowledge area includes the processes necessary to purchase, or acquire products, services or results needed outside the project team. It also includes the contract management and change control processes required to develop and administer contracts or purchase orders issued by the project team members. As well as controlling any contract issued by an outside organization and administering contractual obligations placed on the project team by the contract.

Contract = also known as agreement, understanding, subcontract, or purchase order.

You can have multiple contracts on a complex project. It is assumed that the buyer of an item for a project is assigned to the project team and that the seller is organizationally external to the project team. Also assumed that a formal contractual relationship will be developed and exists between the buyer and the seller.

It covers four processes:

1)     Plan Procurement Management – documents project procurement decisions, specifying the approach, and identifying potential sellers.

2)     Conduct Procurement's – obtains seller responses, selecting a seller, and awarding a contract.

3)     Control Procurement's – manages procurement relationships, monitoring contract performance, and making changes and corrections as appropriate.

4)     Close Procurement's – completes each project procurement. 

Source: PMBOK 5th ed.