Mr. Ajay Tippe –Purchase Manager, Hotel Delmon, Goa

Mr Ajay Tippe currently the Purchase Manager for The Delmon Hotel, Panjim Goa started his ordeal of hospitality industry in 2005 from Pune city, in a Bangalore based coffee chain called Sweet Chariot Cafe as a steward. Then he got promoted as a Cafe Manager and worked there until 2009. Later he joined Cafe Coffee Day for a year and then shifted to a fine dine Pune based restaurant named Great Punjab in Pune as a Kitchen Supervisor. He has also worked as an Cafe Manager in Pune for CCD and handled three of its outlets in his work tenure. Later he moved to Malaysia for a month where he worked as a Cashier in a restaurant by the name Bombay Palace Restaurant. Due to some issues for the immigrants in Malaysia at that time, Mr. Ajay Tippe came back to India and joined as a Store In charge in Malaka Spice in Goa. After having worked in different job profiles in the hospitality sector, he eventually joined the Delmon hotel as a Purchase Manager.

Having worked in different job profiles, Mr. Tippe says that the inspiration behind choosing this career path was that he wanted to do something different in his life. There was no one from his native place who was into hospitality industry. He had never wanted to be a doctor or an engineer and had always aspired to be a unique trendsetter in his genre. So he got into hospitality sector where he has outshone in different forays.

When asked what he would like to confer to his young counterparts from his experiences, Mr. Tippe replied saying that there is growth, a healthy work atmosphere, no pressure in terms of targets in the hospitality industry. One should work with all their hearts to give the best results. Talking about the challenges faced by the purchase managers in this sector, according to Mr. Tippe the biggest challenge is the availability of the same product over and over again. Stock is a major concern. It may happen that whatever you order once might not be available the second time due to certain reasons. Finances also have to be considered. Guests have their own choice for the services and they may be very specific about it.
Among the challenges for a purchase manager, another challenge is bringing in innovative concepts. Sometimes for simple things you want to implement, traditional methods take over innovation. It is a collective responsibility. All the departments need to work with the purchase department to incorporate innovations and save cost.

In order to keep self updated about the latest trends and the upcoming demands in the market, our meticulous purchase manager relies upon the traditional ways of attending the exhibitions, mails form horeca supplies companies. He also complies with the latest trends of social media and feedback from the customers. Amongst the central purchase and local purchase, Mr. Tippe has preference over the central purchase system as he says that the purchase department has an array of indirect influences on the guests as they have to buy the things the guests would use. This way they create an indirect impact on the reputation of the hotel or resort. To increase the hotel revenue they can consider the cost control. Both the Quality and the cost matters while selecting any vendor. Vendor management is also one of the most eminent parameters to apprehend the job clarity of a purchase manager. Usually it is the General Manager who is the final decision maker but the PM also plays a significant role by choosing the right vendors. Most difficult task is to get the room amenities on time as they have printed logos on them.