Simplifying Technology is a compelling vision for the procurement organization of the future. Challenged by issues of slow adoption, lack of resources and perennial technology bottlenecks, procurement leaders are re-defining their search for the right solution. Find out why 'simplifying technology' may be a smarter alternative to the conventional approach.

SAMPLE CHAPTER
<< Looking Back at Procurement Technology
B2B Procurement has come a long way in the past 10 years. Professionals have lived through technology hype cycles, and have spent millions of dollars automating and improving sourcing and purchasing processes. Cost Savings remained the primary driver for transformation, all throughout the journey.

First there was darkness. Enterprises realized that the biggest savings opportunities lay trapped in the silos of diverse procurement systems. Then there was light. The insight gleaned from aggregating and cleansing spend data for the entire enterprise led to consolidation of the supplier base and creation of a preferred supplier pool with national and global contracts. The bottom-line savings that could potentially be realized through better sourcing far outweighed benefits accrued via process improvements or outsourcing. Investments in strategic sourcing platforms soared as a result, and electronic procurement platforms took a backseat.

Circa 2006 - the savings opportunities identified remains 'potential savings' in many cases as organizations grapple with the challenge of 'compliance'. There is no dearth of information. Actionable information is not 'acted' on in many instances, because of the dire shortage of people resources. There is a compelling need for 'change agents'. Without people who can manage the transformation agenda in-house, adoption of technology remains severely impaired.

Finally the finger points to technology itself. Corporate executives now question the merit of making multi-million dollar investments in technology platforms, when their organizational maturity demands something different. Users complain that procurement technology has become unnecessarily complicated, resulting in poor adoption. Many believe that the problem is about setting the wrong priorities.

Huge investments have been made in sourcing processes without paying attention to data - the core underlying framework that powers visibility. Certainly it should have been 'visibility first', followed by better sourcing processes. The value of Contract Management that comes via collaboration and better document management is insignificant, if the contract is not linked to the procurement process in an intelligent and meaningful way.

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