EUROPE “ Take tendering for example ,” says Piepel . “ Previously , people would mail out tonnes of paper to the suppliers , and time was wasted when files came back to do research , comparison and benchmarking . Now , we do most of our tendering electronically with software like myFUTURA , which has helped us reduce cycle time and become way more efficient .” MyFUTURA allows for automatic comparison of various quotes and price allocation , and is a fully compliant with innogy ’ s back end systems , as well as being faster and easier for buyers to use , according to Piepel .
More surprisingly , negotiation can also be automated through electronic auctioning tools . “ Electronic auctioning brings us way more savings because we take away the personal element between supplier and buyer , which isn ’ t always needed when talking about facts and figures .” While this was a challenge to introduce to some staff who felt negotiation was their biggest strength , Piepel persevered . “ Now , people love it . We ’ ve done thousands of e-auctions , and have in some areas up to 80-90 % of our spend going through e-auction tools . It ’ s been a big boost , but also one of the toughest things to introduce , as there was resistance from buyers , technical departments … and suppliers who know it ’ s tough .
Call-offs notoriously involve a lot of paperwork which can be a huge drain on time and resources . “ We needed tools , like catalogues , which cover
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