ABSTRACT
Industrial marketing defines the organizational purchasing as a decision making process, enabling organizations realize their needs, as well as identify, evaluate and choose products and suppliers (Fill 1999: 107). The purchasing process is presented as problem-solving exercise, involving group of employees called Decision Making Unit (DMU) or Buying Centre, with varying roles such as the actual deciders, influencers, end users and gatekeepers, and different perspectives, views of the organizational problems and concerns. The complexity of purchasing processes results from the involvement of many people who on the one hand represent organizational objectives, on the other hand have also personal goals (such as promotion or career advancement) and engage themselves in internal micro-political games. The people are subject to various influences, shaping the processes of requirement definition and selection, including:
influences from the external environment - e.g. regulations of the industry, strategies and actions of competitors, suppliers and customers,
influences from the organization - such as organizational culture, strategy, reward structures and purchasing policies,
individual influences – including personality (e.g. risk aversion), perception and motivation.
