Public procurement is a costly, lengthy, and generally unpleasant process. Although project managers may plan for procurement in the overall project schedule, the detailed contracting process is often opaque. This leaves the project manager's schedule at the mercy of the contracting process and the contracting officer. Contracting officers do not in general plan procurements like projects but treat procurement as an administrative process. However, by applying the principles of project control the procurement process may be transformed from a gnostic process to a transparent sub-project that may be tracked and measured like any other phase in an overall project.

This paper will examine how planning, scheduling, and monitoring procurements like projects have resulted in substantial savings in cost and time to public owners. This paper will also explore how procurement should be addressed in the TCM Framework.