When smarter procurement means...

An efficient procurement operation begins with a smooth shopping experience that employees can make their own. ONLINE SHOPPING is here to stay. Consumers of all ages now routinely browse the web and popular e-commerce stores when looking for goods and services. Sometimes it’s just to check prices before visiting a brick-and-mortar store, but increasingly the entire transaction – from search through to delivery – is taking place without the buyer needing to leave the comfort of their own home. PAGE 3 | Smarter eProcurement BUYING AT WORK IS BECOMING JUST LIKE AT HOME One of the effects of this is that employees now expect the procurement experience at work to be just as easy as...
An efficient procurement operation begins with a smooth shopping experience that employees can make their own. ONLINE SHOPPING is here to stay. Consumers of all ages now routinely browse the web and popular e-commerce stores when looking for goods and services. Sometimes it’s just to check prices before visiting a brick-and-mortar store, but increasingly the entire transaction – from search through to delivery – is taking place without the buyer needing to leave the comfort of their own home. PAGE 3 | Smarter eProcurement BUYING AT WORK IS BECOMING JUST LIKE AT HOME One of the effects of this is that employees now expect the procurement experience at work to be just as easy as shopping at home. They want to open a browser on a device of their choice – be it a PC, tablet or smartphone – and easily find and order the goods and services they need for their work. Unfortunately, however, this is not always the case, as legacy procurement platforms are often notoriously clunky and difficult to navigate. Search functions may yield incomplete results, product menus are poorly arranged, item descriptions are often too technical to be of any use, and cumbersome requisition and form-filling procedures often result in buyer frustration before a purchase is even completed. BUILDING ON EXISTING BEHAVIOR The silver lining in all this is that procurement departments don’t need to teach employees anything new when it comes to modern online shopping. The right buying behavior already exists. Companies now just need to ensure that employees have access to online purchasing tools that work in the same way as the web shops they use in their private lives. This means providing requisitioners with a simple user interface, a powerful search engine, a OpusCapita: tailored shopping in action The fast, convenient and tailored nature of OpusCapita’s procurement solutions are brought to life on the following pages in a customer case study about Austria’s largest mobility services provider. In the intensely people-facing transport business, employees always need to look their best. So the company implemented a solution that empowers its employees to buy their own uniforms, with some special customization and delivery options that match the efficiency of the company itself. PAGE 4 | Smarter eProcurement well-organized catalog, smart help functions, and the familiar shopping basket. A TAILORED EXPERIENCE Procurement departments can even go one step further and introduce features that tailor the individual purchasing experience. It’s this personalized dimension that – in the world of private online shopping – makes for loyal, repeat customers. So why not employ the same techniques at work too? When a company has a procurement system that employees enjoy using, it automatically leads to a reduction in maverick spend. This in turns makes it easier for the procurement department to forecast costs and manage cash flow, so that more resources can be devoted to strategic-level initiatives, such as sourcing, contract negotiation and supplier management. It’s a virtuous circle of happy requisitioners, smooth catalog management, and a purchasing department that runs like clockwork.
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