Procurement is so accustomed to aligning our technology and processes with the objectives of the business at large that we sometimes miss opportunities to align our own technologies and processes with each other. Supplier Information Management (SIM) and Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) provide a perfect case example. Both bring together suppliers and internal touch points, extend beyond procurement’s peak involvement in managing spend categories, and play an important role in addressing (and mitigating) supply chain risk.

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We do love our acronyms in procurement, but rather than being an exclusionary tactic designed to keep “them” out, I like to think that shortening our long phrases to “TLAs” is in line with the resource efficiency we apply to spend management.

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This blog first appeared on Decision-Achats, 05/09/2017

Today, e-procurement providers are racing to offer ever more features to their customers. The result is often mixed: unused features, and rigid processes that do not really meet each company’s specific business needs.

Most source-to-pay solutions on the market stick to a linear process: purchase requests, orders, receipt and invoice reconciliation. However, this process only works for certain purchase categories. As soon as you want to add more negotiation, teamwork, or contract management, these solutions become complex to implement and use.

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Business is evolving in a volatile legal context: regulations are changing and becoming tougher. The notion of “conformity” and “compliance” have never been so prevalent. During the 7th annual Journée du Management Juridique (Legal Management Day) in Paris this past June, Mr. Philippe Ginestié evoked a time when a supplier’s word and handshake were enough to constitute a contract.

But that time has passed.

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As we enter Q3, many companies are beginning next year’s  budget setting process. Establishing a new budget creates opportunities for big thinking, goal setting, forecasting and growth planning. In order to secure approval, however, each budget owner must demonstrate budget alignment between their funding requests and overall enterprise objectives. Continue Reading