As tribal development becomes more complex , the need for effective purchasing strategies is greater than ever
PURCHASING
A Sophisticated Approach
As tribal development becomes more complex , the need for effective purchasing strategies is greater than ever
By Carl Long
Iwas on my way to the groundbreaking of a tribe ’ s casino expansion and reflecting about how far casino development has progressed for tribes around the country .
The groundbreaking event was several years in the making , and the project will elevate the tribe ’ s current casino into a premier destination resort . The impetus for the expansion and renovation plan came from tribal leadership who saw potential for their casino to capitalize on the traveling public ’ s desire for premium gaming and entertainment experiences . The tribal council worked together , had a consistent vision for what they wanted for their tribe , even through multiple elections , and is developing a stronger economic future for their tribal members and the surrounding community . This tribe ’ s story of success is the story of many tribes around the country .
At the event , I had the opportunity to speak with another Native business owner in the design and construction industry and asked him what he thought about the shift in tribal development , and he agreed that tribal development is increasing in sophistication . Tribal leaders are stepping into leading development roles and demanding best-of-class execution at all levels , including casino executives , project management companies , architects , interior designers and purchasing . This rising level of sophistication translates to better projects and opportunities for Native communities to expand their sphere of influence off their reservations . Tribes can compete with commercial gaming enterprises and win .
The rising level of development sophistication is best examined within three categories :
Ownership Expectations Can tribal leaders come together and distill what their goals are for their development ? Are those goals quantifiable in terms of a return on investment , project duration and other qualitative goals ? If tribal leadership has a clear understanding of what their goals are , they can work towards those ends , and when disagreements arise in the minutia , they can still stay focused on the larger development goals .
That clarity of thought by tribal leadership is the foundation that provides direction for the entire project team . Utilizing pre-development services , feasibility experts and conceptual master planning provides tribes with the same tools used by world-class developers to achieve their goals . That also helps tribes maintain focus during leadership changes .
Project Management Once tribes have their goals defined in a measurable way , the most successful tribes have engaged with professional project owner ’ s representatives . Those professionals are either brought in-house of the tribal development offices or hired as independent owner ’ s representative companies . The value of a qualified owner ’ s representative cannot be overstated .
The best projects have clearly defined lines of communication , have an empowered leader that clearly understands the owner ’ s goals , and hold the entire team accountable to meet those goals . This does not mean that tribal leaders blindly rely on the project management company ; tribal leaders leverage the expertise of the project managers to achieve their goals and refine the execution to be consistent with the industry method of project delivery .
Purchasing We founded PMI-Tribal Services because we understood that the stakeholders for tribal development had a different perspective than typical commercial gaming . The decisions on a tribal gaming project reflect the past traditions of a community and a pathway for future generations . When a tribe hires a firm to design their new development , that designer ’ s specifications are the technical expression of the tribe ’ s goals for their project . To execute those goals properly , more and more tribes realize that professional project FF & E purchasing expertise is required . As casinos and hotels in Indian Country become more complex and the budgets continue to grow , tribes can leverage their buying power by changing the way they source and procure the FF & E and OS & E .
In the past , many tribes purchased their furniture from dealers . This resulted in poor design execution , inflated costs and a lack of transparency into project deliveries . Tribes that want to develop the best projects will utilize purchasing companies instead of a dealer . Some companies may claim to be a hybrid of a purchasing agent and furniture dealer , or they may claim to deliver a project with their preferred vendors — those companies are not purchasing companies , they are dealers and do not operate for the benefit of their client . A true agentonly purchasing company is always on the tribe ’ s side , operating in a transparent manner and always looking for the best interest of the tribe .
Professional project purchasing agents focus on design execution working directly with manufacturers . This transparent method of sourcing FF & E connects the tribe directly to manufacturers , resulting in significant project savings that all belong to the tribe . Working in collaboration with the designer and contractor , the project purchasing company coordinates the production and delivery to match the project schedule . This helps maintain the critical path of a contractor ’ s work without sacrificing design considerations . Just like a construction project manager manages the work of a general contractor , a project purchasing agent manages the work of all the vendors providing all the guest touch items in a project .
The shift in tribal development to a more sophisticated project delivery method will result in better projects that achieve the tribe ’ s goals . Wise tribal leaders will seek out partners in the project management and purchasing discipline as part of their plan to achieve their long-term goals .
Carl Long , a Choctaw tribal member , is president of PMI-Tribal Services , the leading Native-owned FF & E and OS & E procurement company . He is also senior vice president of Purchasing Management International and regularly speaks on topics related to global sourcing and procurement .
32 TRIBAL GOVERNMENT GAMING 2024