The ways D1 Advisory works
with you. One consistent standard.

Independence is about who pays the advisor and who the advisor works for. An independent procurement advisor works only for you. They have no supplier relationships, no kickbacks, no preferred technology partners, and no obligation to any outcome other than the one that serves your business. Their advice’s only valuable if it’s honest, so honesty is the product. A procurement consultancy firm may operate differently. Some are independent. Others have supplier partnerships, channel revenue, or specific technology recommendations baked into their advisory model. The advice can still be good. The bias’s structural. The question’s not which is better. The question is whether you know which one you’ve hired. Ask the advisor directly: who else pays you? Do you receive commission, referral fees, or any other compensation from suppliers? For more information, check our article ‘Independent Procurement Advice vs Procurement Consultancy Firms: What’s the Difference (And Why It Matters)’ by clicking the link to view it on our Insights page: https://www.d1advisory.business/post/independent-procurement-advice-vs-procurement-consultancy-firms

Three measures. Bankable savings. Direct cost reductions you can trace to the advisor’s work. These show up in the bank account and survive your accountant’s scrutiny. Non-bankable savings. Cost avoidances, efficiency gains, and risk reductions created elsewhere in the business as a result of smarter procurement decisions. Harder to measure, often bigger than the bankable number. Capability transfer. Are your people more capable of running procurement well after the engagement than they were before? Do they have working templates, clear processes, and the judgement to apply them? If your advisor can’t quantify the first two and demonstrate the third, what you’re paying for is activity, not value. Ask for a value summary every quarter. Make them show their work. Procurement done right doesn’t cost you. It earns you.

Five signs. First, you’re signing contracts and not sure you got the right deal. That’s a clarity problem, not a supplier problem. Second, you’ve had the same suppliers for years without ever benchmarking them. Third, you’re about to spend a meaningful amount on something complex such as technology, professional services, or multi-year contracts, and your internal team doesn’t have the specialist experience to scope or evaluate it. Fourth, you’re preparing to sell the business and you know your contracts wouldn’t survive due diligence. Fifth, you’ve tried fixing the problem yourself with templates and free guides and you’re still stuck. You don’t need an advisor for every purchase. You need one when the decision matters and the cost of getting it wrong is bigger than the cost of getting expert help. For more information, check our article ‘Five Signs Your Australian Business Needs an External Procurement Advisor’ by clicking the link to view it on our Insights page: https://www.d1advisory.business/post/signs-australian-business-needs-procurement-advisor

Book a discovery call. It takes 30 minutes. No preparation required, no commitment, and no follow-up from a sales team. It is a conversation to understand your situation, work out whether D1 Advisory is the right fit, and if it is, to agree on what a sensible scope looks like.

Yes. All engagements operate under professional confidentiality obligations. D1 Advisory does not disclose client information, share commercially sensitive details, or use client data for any purpose outside the scope of the engagement. An NDA can be executed prior to any engagement that requires it, which is standard for financial services, government, and organisations with material confidentiality obligations.

It depends on the scope. A single advisory conversation for a specific purchasing decision can be completed in a few hours. A process design project or capability assessment typically runs across several weeks. D1 Advisory does not lock clients into retainers or long-term contracts by default. Engagements are scoped to what is actually needed.

D1 Advisory has experience across government and public sector, financial services and superannuation, health and community services, infrastructure and built environment, not-for-profit and incorporated associations, education and professional development, technology and professional services, and corrections and justice. The sector experience section of this page shows the types of work delivered in each area.

A management consultant typically works at the strategic level and presents recommendations. D1 Advisory works at the operational level and delivers outcomes. The difference is between being told what to do and having someone help you do it. D1 Advisory is a practitioner, not a theorist. The advice comes from having been in the room for these conversations, on both sides of the table.

Yes. D1 Advisory specifically works with small to medium businesses that do not have a full-time procurement function but still make significant purchasing decisions. You do not need to spend a minimum amount or have a formal procurement team in place. If a purchasing decision matters to your business, this is the right conversation to have.

Procurement is the process of deciding what to buy, from whom, on what terms, and at what cost. Most businesses do it every day without recognising it as a discipline. When it goes wrong, it costs money, time, and in some cases professional relationships. Procurement advisory means having a specialist in your corner who has no stake in which supplier you choose, who can help you define your requirements clearly before you go to market, evaluate your options properly, and commit to the right supplier on the right terms.