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Digital Transformation

Sep 12
5 Frustrations Procurement Professionals Will Understand

Five Frustrations Procurement Professionals Will Understand

By Procurement No Comments

Every profession comes with its frustrations, but procurement comes with its own very specific set. If you’ve been in the business for more than a minute, you’ve probably wanted to put your head through your desk on more than one occasion thanks to these special procurement nightmares.

Are You Ghosting Us?

We’ve all had it happen—after weeks of back and forth, we message a supplier an important question that will impact, well, everything else. And we wait. And wait. Days pass. Weeks. Centuries… Okay, maybe that’s a bit dramatic, but when we are relying on this one piece of feedback in particular, it can certainly feel this way. If you don’t have the answer to our question, let us know. It’s okay. Just please, please don’t put us through the special hell of ignoring us completely while we search for a solution or an answer.

How Big Are Your Shoes?

Did you promise us the moon? Well, buddy, you’ve got big shoes to fill. Unfortunately, lots of other departments (cough, cough suppliers, marketers, we’re looking at you) have their toes in their arch supports. It’s frustrating when the people we rely on to fulfill our job duties overpromise and underdeliver. It leaves us backed up and with a whole lot of explaining to do.

T Minus 10 Minutes

We get it—sometimes genius strikes at the midnight hour (and often when we are furthest away from pad and paper), but changing plans mega late in the game is really difficult in procurement. If we’ve spent months planning for everything you need to execute your brilliant plan, changing everything last minute makes us shudder. Oftentimes, it simply cannot be done on timescale that suits everyone, and we’re the ones who end up taking the flak. Give us plans and give us time and we will give you the world, though.

The Ol’ Switcheroo

We’re planners. Have we mentioned that enough? We like plans. More importantly, we like sticking to plans. So, marketers and sales folks, believe us when we say that we are looking for this one particular item, especially if we say that’s all we’re looking for. Extra especially if we’ve already said it once. Give it up on the upsell and the cross-promotion, and we’ll thank you for it. Respect our already limited time and we’ll pay it back in spades with loyalty and not-too-many emails. At least the former, as long as you keep your prices reasonable and your delivery on time.

Dripping in Gold

Speaking of upsells, do we look like we’re made of money? We can’t break the bank on every new request, every outlandish marketing idea, every new and ingenius product idea. We have to save for a rainy day and prioritize our cash flow toward the best and most efficient option. You can stop calling us names—we’re not literally always looking for the cheapest option, even if it seems that way sometimes. We’re not trying to make your life harder. We’re trying to make our dollars take us as far as we can and sometimes that means saying things like, “No, I get that it’s a more ergonomic option, but we cannot approve another (sigh) standing desk at this time.”

Did this list make you want to cry into your keyboard? You can find relief at the Premikati Marketplace where procurement is easy (and way less frustrating).

Sep 12
Digital Transformation in Small and Medium Sized Businesses

Digital Transformation in Small and Medium Sized Businesses

By Procurement No Comments

SMBs and Digital Transformation: Is Your Company a Laggard or a Front Runner?

SMBs have long been seen as being “behind the curve” in terms of transformative businesses processes. This unfortunate placement puts slow adopters at a disadvantage, blocking access to cost-saving solutions and process optimization.

With all the advantages that digital transformation promises, you might wonder what the hesitation is all about, but it could be due to one or more factors that include:

  1. Lack of awareness. In small businesses, often there isn’t a dedicated technology officer to inform leadership of new and helpful tools. Unless there is somebody within the organization who has an interest in pursuing this line of action, the company will likely continue as they have in the past, gradually losing market share.
  2. Cost-prohibitive nature of large analytic ERPs. Not every business is a good candidate for an ERP as these systems are often designed for the enterprise and not priced for a smaller operator.
  3. Lack of manpower. Digital transformation does not happen overnight. Identifying the right technology, migrating systems, training staff, and generally managing change is a time-consuming and sometimes complex process. Many businesses simply do not have in-house staff who are trained adequately enough to see it through and hiring an outside company isn’t always possible due to budget constraints.

Procurement solutions: turning laggards into front-runners

Even if your digital transformation is underway, some departments are often overlooked or put on the back burner while more critical areas are addressed. Procurement is one such area, but in truth, it is one of the easiest to gain control over, helping you lower costs and gain some competitive ground.

Procurement is, perhaps, the largest area of total spend over which SMBs do not have complete oversight. In most cases, there will be several individuals spread out over various departments who are making purchases covering everything from office supplies to raw materials.

In the enterprise, these tasks are centrally managed through the ERP. Buyers can access a centralized list of preferred suppliers, leverage an integrated PO system for efficient financial reporting, and stakeholders are provided with complete transparency into all procurement activities.

How can SMBs take advantage of enterprise approaches to save?

The good news is, the ability to easily manage spending analytics and choose from a catalog of diverse suppliers is no longer the sole realm of the enterprise.

The solution: Premikati Marketplace

Running on the SAP Ariba™ Buying and Invoicing platform, Premikati Marketplace can accomplish all of these things, offering affordability and scalability combined with the simplicity and security of a cloud-based platform.

Premikati Marketplace is a B2B marketplace that features tens of millions of items from fully-vetted and sustainable suppliers. SMBs can access features like rock bottom pricing and leverage built-in spending control, driving value straight back to the bottom line.

“Finding frictionless ways for your business to initiate digital transformation in their organization is a growing trend and plays a key role to maintain competitiveness. The challenge is that businesses are just like consumers – they want fast time to value and convenience. Premikati Marketplace offers both for SMB companies by digitally connecting suppliers to help SMB companies buy goods at market-friendly prices with control and visibility that is required by companies. This is a great foundation for any business to start digital.”

 

Sean Thomson, SAP Ariba, Network & Ecosystems

@seanthomson0108

Benefits of Premikati Marketplace

There are many benefits of Premikati Marketplace, including:

  • Control spending across multiple departments and buyers
  • Reduce time spent on ad-hoc buying processes from days or weeks to just hours
  • Up to 35 percent reduction in costs overall
  • Cashback feature: receive a rebate of up to one percent on your P-Card for all purchases

If your company is lagging behind the pack in digital transformation, even small changes can deliver significant results. To learn more about how we can help you optimize your procurement spend, visit www.premikati.com/marketplace or call us directly to find out how we can help.

About PREMIKATI

Founded in 2009, Premikati, Inc. is a WBENC certified woman-owned Supply Chain Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) firm, providing cost savings and financial, contractual and supplier risk mitigation services to purchasing organizations for mid and large enterprises while leveraging best-in-class purchasing processes and technology. Premikati has partnered with SAP and is one of only five companies globally to have been granted the most exclusive partnership level with SAP Ariba, as a BPO Partner.

Sep 12
Premikati and SAP Ariba Deliver Enterprise-class Procurement for SMBs

Premikati and SAP Ariba Deliver Enterprise-class Procurement for SMBs

By Procurement No Comments

For small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), shrewd spending decisions can mean the difference between failure and success. But many lack the systems and staff to make procurement a mission-critical priority.

Premikati Inc. has a solution to their problem. Leveraging technology from SAP Ariba, Premikati introduced the Premikati Marketplace, giving SMBs access to enterprise-class procurement as a service.

“Small and medium-sized businesses have long wanted to take advantage of enterprise-class procurement, but they haven’t had the means,” said Marisol Buczynski Buchanan, CEO of Premikati. “Using the Premikati Marketplace, they can access millions of vetted suppliers and enterprise-class procurement tools that provide greater visibility into their spend and procurement process from end to end – all at a cost they can afford.”

As an SAP Ariba partner, Premikati has created the marketplace specifically geared to SMBs in just six weeks, from delivery to cutover to production. It provides them with critical elements they need in driving a simple, efficient source-to-settle process that quickly delivers results. Their customers can manage spending, connect with suppliers, improve cash flow, and drive compliance – all without adding complexity.

“The Sanders Group has been transacting over the Ariba Network for many years as a media technology and communications supplier to some of the largest companies in the United States,” said Mike Sanders, president of The Sanders Group. “With the Premikati Marketplace, we can now use the same SAP Ariba solution to purchase products and services we need to run our business. Premikati was able to get our team enabled and completing transactions within one hour of receiving our information.”

Sep 12
Ariba Snap procurement implementation

Procurement with a Purpose – SNAP! Implementation

By Procurement No Comments

Marisol Buchanan, CEO of Premikati, Inc., had the pleasure to speak in NYC at SAP Ariba’s Business with a Purpose Summit – along with Step Up for Students (SUFS) COO, Anne White.  The challenges faced by SUFS and and solutions of implementing SAP Ariba’s Guided Buying and SNAP! tools are highlighted below.

The Problem

At a high level, Premikati had been tasked with giving parents and guardians access to their children’s scholarship funds AND providing easy access to the things they are allowed to buy including tuition, provider services and school supplies.

If we asked to partner on this project a few years ago it would have been very difficult from a change management perspective and we would not have recommended Ariba due to the complexity and all of the massive capabilities of the software, which is a good thing for large corporations but rather confusing for a basic consumer who may not even know what the word “Procurement” or “advance ship notice means”.

The Solution

Now, through the innovations made by SAP Ariba to the user interface and adding Guided Buying, along with the simplicity of SAP Ariba SNAP!, the implementation end user training has been drastically simplified.

This is imperative considering the landscape of the situation:

We have:

  • 100,000 families
  • not using corporate devices with standard operating systems
  • limited access to email
  • low user experience with business support technology like WebEx for training
  • multiple languages
  • many families with multiple children
  • 2000 schools which now are “Suppliers” who have limited experience with “e-Invoicing”

With this said, Premikati, Inc. has developed a robust and creative Change Management Strategy.  In addition to standard business communication vehicles, we are leveraging social platforms such as text messaging, YouTube, Facebook and twitter to engage and interact with these families in a way that easy and common for them.

So, essentially, we are taking complex procurement technology and best in class business processes and applying them in a way to make a positive impact on families, because that is what really matters.  That is truly procurement with purpose.

Sep 12
SAP silver partner

Changing the Game in Education with Step Up for Students and SAP Ariba

By Press No Comments

Non-profit to launch digital marketplace for simple, efficient administration of scholarships to low-income and special needs students

PALO ALTO, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Back to school can be a stressful time for parents and students – particularly those with financial and special needs. Step Up For Students is out to change this. The non-profit, which is expected to provide scholarships this fall to about 110,000 qualifying students in the state of Florida, today announced plans for a digital marketplace powered by SAP Ariba through which recipients will be able to purchase education along with associated services and supplies in a simple, consumer-like way.

“Premikati has particular expertise in simplifying complex challenges like these which will be key for a successful program.”

“At Step Up For Students, we don’t believe that quality education should be determined by financial means or disability, and we have made it our mission to give children from lower income families and those with special needs a chance at a brighter future through the scholarships we help to manage,” said Doug Tuthill, President, Step Up For Students.

Fueling Equal Opportunity

To advance this mission, Step Up For Students will leverage SAP Ariba’s cloud-based applications to provide an easy and efficient way for parents and caregivers of scholarship recipients to pursue and engage in the most appropriate learning options for their children. The nonprofit will begin to introduce the platform during the 2017-2018 school year with the goal of full implementation by 2018-2019.

“Education is the great equalizer,” said Alex Atzberger, President, SAP Ariba. “Yet there remains a significant divide in the ability for everyone to capture opportunities to learn. Technology is powerful tool that can change this and we are pleased to be supporting Step Up For Students in their mission to innovate with the purpose of closing this gap.”

Using SAP Ariba® Buying and Invoicing™ and SAP Ariba Commerce Automation™, Step Up For Students will create online catalogs through which scholarship recipients can find, buy and pay for tuition at schools of their choice along with educational services and school supplies with just a few clicks.

Bridging the Digital Divide

The solutions will be accessible anywhere, anytime via any device, including mobile phones – a key factor in Step Up For Students’ selection.

“Many of those we serve lack access to technology in their homes and it was critical that we remove this as a barrier,” said Scott Massey, Chief Information Officer, Step Up For Students.

Enter SAP Ariba partner Premikati. “Step Up for Students has high user counts where the users are not actually employees but rather students and their families,” said Premikati CEO Marisol Buczynski Buchanan. “Premikati has particular expertise in simplifying complex challenges like these which will be key for a successful program.”

SAP Ariba offers a range of solutions that help organizations of all sizes digitize the source to settle process and run faster, simpler and smarter than ever before. To learn more about the them and the value they can deliver, visit www.ariba.com.

About Step Up For Students

Step Up For Students is a nonprofit organization that helps manage the income-based Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program. Students who qualify for the national free or reduced-price lunch program, or those who are homeless or in foster or out-of-home care, may qualify. The scholarship program provides tuition assistance to the private school of their parents’ choice or financial assistance to offset the transportation cost to an out-of-district public school. Since 2001, Step Up has awarded nearly 580,000 scholarships.

Step Up also helps administer the state-funded Gardiner Scholarship Program for Florida students with certain special needs. With the Gardiner Scholarship, recipients may use the funds for a variety of approved services including private school tuition and fees, private tutoring, occupational therapy, instructional materials and other services. For more information, visit: http://www.StepUpForStudents.org.

About Premikati

Premikati is an Indianapolis-based WBENC certified WBE Management Consulting and BPO firm that utilizes SAP Ariba solutions as a key component of its service offerings. Premikati helps its clients with all facets of Procurement and Contract Management, focusing on simplifying complex processes and challenges. To learn more about the company, visit www.premikati.com.

About SAP Ariba

SAP Ariba is how companies connect to get business done. On the Ariba Network, buyers and suppliers from more than 2.8 million companies and 190 countries discover new opportunities, collaborate on transactions and grow their relationships. Buyers can manage the entire purchasing process, while controlling spending, finding new sources of savings and building a healthy supply chain. And suppliers can connect with profitable customers and efficiently scale existing relationships – simplifying sales cycles and improving cash control along the way. The result is a dynamic, digital marketplace, where nearly $1 trillion in commerce gets done every year.

To learn more about SAP Ariba, visit www.ariba.com.

About SAP

As market leader in enterprise application software, SAP (NYSE:SAP) helps companies of all sizes and industries run better. From back office to boardroom, warehouse to storefront, desktop to mobile device – SAP empowers people and organizations to work together more efficiently and use business insight more effectively to stay ahead of the competition. SAP applications and services enable approximately 355,000 customers to operate profitably, adapt continuously, and grow sustainably. For more information, visit www.sap.com.

Any statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “predict,” “should” and “will” and similar expressions as they relate to SAP are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. SAP undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations. The factors that could affect SAP’s future financial results are discussed more fully in SAP’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including SAP’s most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates.

© 2017 SAP SE. All rights reserved.

SAP and other SAP products and services mentioned herein as well as their respective logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP SE in Germany and other countries. Please see http://www.sap.com/corporate-en/legal/copyright/index.epx#trademark for additional trademark information and notices.

Sep 12
Premikati Transforms Contract Management with SAP Ariba

Premikati Transforms Contract Management with SAP Ariba

By Press No Comments

Certified WBE outsourcing firm leverages cloud-based solutions to fuel efficient digital process that delivers savings and compliance

PALO ALTO, Calif., November 16, 2016 – The cloud is where efficient contract management is happening. But many businesses lack the technology and resources to get there. Premikati is out to change this, with some help from SAP Ariba. The business process outsourcing and management consulting firm today announced that it will leverage Ariba® Contract Management Professional™ to drive an efficient, digital process for managing contracts that delivers savings and compliance.

“We have seen clients of all sizes and industries struggle with contract management,” said Marisol Buczynski Buchanan, CEO of Premikati. “Lack of tracking with respect to items such as expiration dates, renewal terms/price increases, service level agreements, notice provisions, and even counter signatures is all too common. With SAP Ariba, we can help them overcome these issues.”

An SAP Ariba BPO partner, Premikati will use SAP Ariba’s technology to perform contract management services not only for large enterprises, but for companies under $500 million in annual revenue. And in doing so, it aims to eliminate many of the barriers that prevent them from pursuing digital strategies such as a lack of resources to implement and manage software. “We can have them up and running in two to three weeks at a very cost-effective price point,” Buchanan said.

Ariba Contract Management Professional is the industry’s leading SaaS solution for contract management. Uniquely designed to eliminate the paper and ink from the creation, execution, and management of any type of contractual agreement, the offering enables companies of all sizes to efficiently:

  • Automate and accelerate the entire contract lifecycle
  • Standardize and control contract development
  • Collaborate with all stakeholders
  • Strengthen operational, contractual, and regulatory compliance

“Contracts are the lifeblood of any organization and managing them effectively can deliver strategic advantage,” said David Johnston, Senior Vice President, Partner Ecosystem, SAP Ariba. “With SAP Ariba’s technology and Premikati’s contract management expertise, companies of all sizes can get on the road to automation and drive an efficient process that lowers both their costs and risk.”

To learn more about SAP Ariba’s contract management solutions and the value they can deliver, visit: www.ariba.com. Learn More.

About Premikati

Premikati is a WBENC certified WBE Management Consulting and BPO firm that is specifically tailored to Contract Management and Procurement. Premikati helps its clients with all facets of contracting and procurement strategy as well as outsourced Contract Management Services including the drafting and negotiation of contracts.   They employ procurement executives, attorneys, contract management professionals, Six Sigma Black Belts, and certified Change Masters with extensive experience either inside or consulting with the world’s top companies.

About SAP Ariba

SAP® Ariba® is the marketplace for digital business, creating frictionless exchanges between millions of buyers and suppliers across the entire source-to-pay process. Our market-leading solutions enable companies to simplify collaboration with their trading partners, make smarter business decisions and extend their collaborative business processes with an open technology platform. More than two million companies use SAP Ariba solutions to connect and collaborate around nearly one trillion in commerce on an annual basis. To learn more about the company’s offerings and the transformation they are driving, visit www.ariba.com. Learn More.

About SAP

As market leader in enterprise application software, SAP (NYSE: SAP) helps companies of all sizes and industries run better. From back office to boardroom, warehouse to storefront, desktop to mobile device – SAP empowers people and organizations to work together more efficiently and use business insight more effectively to stay ahead of the competition. SAP applications and services enable approximately 335,000 customers to operate profitably, adapt continuously, and grow sustainably. For more information, visit www.sap.com. Learn More.

 

 

Any statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “predict,” “should” and “will” and similar expressions as they relate to SAP are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. SAP undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations. The factors that could affect SAP’s future financial results are discussed more fully in SAP’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including SAP’s most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates.

© 2016 SAP SE. All rights reserved.
SAP and other SAP products and services mentioned herein as well as their respective logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP SE in Germany and other countries. Please see http://www.sap.com/corporate-en/legal/copyright/index.epx#trademark for additional trademark information and notices.

Aug 21
why procurement is the best job in the world

Why Procurement is the Best Job in the World

By Procurement No Comments

When you pass someone on the street and mention procurement as a career, you’re likely to get blank stares and maybe even snores from the uninitiated. In reality though, procurement professionals have a whole host of opportunities to find joy and gratitude in their jobs as well as chances to make a real difference in the world. What makes this job so great? 

Friends In High Places… And All Places

When you’re in procurement, you’re constantly talking to people both in and outside of your company. You have the opportunity to form connections with suppliers all over the world (which can, in turSAP Procurement Softwaren, lead to even more opportunities) as well as folks from all manner of department within your own company. Procurement pros regularly interface with marketing, finance, PR, and everybody in between. If you play your cards right, this can result in real, meaningful interpersonal relationships just as it can career opportunities.

The Coolest Tech in the World

Procurement and technology go together like peanut butter and jelly. Especially at top, enterprise-level companies, the technology utilized in procurement departments can be staggering. Even in small and mid-sized businesses, though, it’s likely you’ll get to work with cool new tech like artificial intelligence and predictive analytics. This type of tech can be used for things like accurate supply and demand planning.

The Nomad Life If You Want It

Procurements pros can go literally anywhere if they’re good at their jobs. Have you always wanted to take the plunge and move to Costa Rica? France? Cambodia? There will be jobs ready and waiting to utilize your skills. Additionally, as with many other professions, lots of procurement workers are opting for the remote-work route, letting them work from coffee shops and shared workspaces in a new city every day of the week.

Life-Saving Superheroes

From avoiding environmental catastrophes brought on by poor human ethics to providing aid in the event of national disasters, procurement professionals are in the lineup to help save the world. In procurement, you get to help decide to utilize sustainable, environmentally- and socially-healthy suppliers over the ones who cut corners, pollute the planet, and take advantage of people through forced labor and other similarly heinous actions.

In the same vein, procurement pros step in too when humanitarian aid is needed, like in the event of hurricanes in Haiti.

Job Makers

We all know someone who has been passing resumes to everyone who will stop long enough to take one, but who still doesn’t have a job. It’s just the state of the economy sometimes, when skills and job openings don’t align, or the money simply isn’t there. By working in procurement, you get to help create jobs, allowing more people to sustain themselves and their families. In procurement, you impact business at a core level, opening opportunities to create more, sustainable, dignified jobs for the people who are happy to fill them.

Make Money, Spend Money

The name of the game in procurement is to spend other people’s money. You get the opportunity to learn all sorts of tactics for managing money, saving, budgeting, etc.—skills that can carry over to your personal financial life as well.

Speaking of personal finance, this is a job after all. In procurement, you can expect to get paid with some reliability and have a reasonable amount of job security. Luckily, procurement pros also tend to see decent raises and a growth in their value over time as they learn new skills—they may be less likely to stagnate on the income scale compared to other professions. And, with all your procurement skills, you’ll know how to negotiate and manage your money to get every bit of value out of each dollar you earn.

Are you a procurement professional who loves your job? Do you want to connect with suppliers who will make your day even brighter all the while getting great deals on the purchases you make for your business? Check out the Premikati Marketplace.

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