Webinar recording: Intelligent price analysis & AI-based advice: How data-driven purchasing enables maximum savings potential

Optimizing purchasing costs is a key challenge for medium-sized industrial companies. In times of geopolitical uncertainty, rising procurement costs and increasing regulatory requirements, data-driven purchasing management is becoming increasingly important. Classic methods such as Excel-based evaluations or purely ERP-based analyses are reaching their limits. A new generation of purchasing software relies on intelligent price analyses and AI-based tips to make savings potential visible and specifically improve purchasing strategies.

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But what does that mean in concrete terms? And how can companies use these technologies effectively? Our experts Robert Kaiser (Head of Customer Experience at Tacto) and Constantin Blome (Product Development at Tacto) show how Tacto's SRM software offers an innovative approach to optimizing costs, automating processes and making data-based decisions.

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Challenges in purchasing: The balancing act between savings and future security

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Purchasing is under more pressure today than ever before: cost reduction and strategic future security must be ensured at the same time. While companies have to react to volatile procurement costs, inflation and supply bottlenecks on the one hand, they are also forced to invest in the digitalization and resilience of their supply chains.

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Increasing demands on purchasing

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Numerous external factors make cost control and long-term planning difficult:

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• Geopolitical uncertainties: Trade wars, sanctions and deglobalization trends increase the complexity of supply chains.

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• Volatile raw material prices & energy crises: Production costs rise, suppliers pass on cost increases.

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• Demographic change & shortage of skilled workers: Buyers are increasingly confronted with staff shortages.

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• Regulatory requirements & sustainability requirements: Laws such as the Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (LkSG) and Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) require increased supplier management

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These developments mean that purchasing must take on more and more tasks that go beyond simply negotiating prices. At the same time, purchasing is expected to have a positive impact on the company's profitability through cost savings.

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Lack of digital support complicates cost optimization

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Many companies still use outdated methods for price monitoring that involve manual analysis in Excel or rudimentary reports from the ERP system. The biggest challenges are:

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• Lack of data availability & quality: Purchasing data is often unstructured or difficult to access.

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• Lack of transparency in price developments: There is a lack of continuous monitoring of supplier prices.

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• High manual effort: Detailed price analyses cost time and tie up resources.

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• Limited comparability: Data from different sources (orders, invoices, external market data) are not systematically combined.

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To solve these problems, intelligent pricing analysis and AI-powered purchasing strategies are essential.

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How do intelligent price analyses work in practice?
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Intelligent price analyses use automated data evaluation and visual dashboards to create transparency about price developments. Historical price changes, supplier conditions and market developments are systematically recorded and analyzed.

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Features and Benefits of Intelligent Price Analysis

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1. Recognize price changes at a glance

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• The software displays price developments for items, suppliers and product groups in real time.
• Noticeable price fluctuations are automatically marked.

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2. Detailed comparison options for better negotiation arguments

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• Prices from different suppliers can be compared with just a few clicks.
• Price increases by a supplier can be evaluated in the context of the overall market development.

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3. Analysis of the causes of price changes

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• Identification of trends such as increasing quantities, stable prices or changes in suppliers .
• Consideration of external influencing factors (e.g. raw material prices, exchange rates).

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4. Automated reporting for management

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• Purchasing managers receive preconfigured reports on savings potential.
• Export functions enable direct use of the analyses in negotiations.

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These functions enable purchasing to respond proactively to price developments instead of just recording price adjustments retrospectively.

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AI-based tips: How artificial intelligence is transforming purchasing

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Artificial intelligence (AI) in purchasing means that algorithms automatically recognize optimization potential and provide recommendations for action based on this.

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Tacto uses various AI levers to analyze purchasing data and generate targeted suggestions for cost savings.

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1. Recognition of patterns in price and quantity developments

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• The software recognizes when the order quantity increases but the price remains constant → Note: Negotiation of a framework agreement.

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2. Identification of price jumps

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• Sudden price increases between two orders are marked → Note: Comparison with alternative suppliers.

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3. Identifying inefficiencies in ordering behavior

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• Frequent small orders cause high process costs → Note: Order bundling to reduce procurement costs.

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Conclusion: More efficient purchasing strategies through data-driven decisions

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The use of intelligent price analyses and AI-based purchasing solutions enables strategic control of purchasing. Instead of carrying out laborious manual analyses, companies can use Tacto to automatically identify potential savings, conduct more informed negotiations and optimise purchasing processes .

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The advantages at a glance:

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✔️ Transparency about price developments and cost drivers

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✔️ Automated analyses for efficient decision-making

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✔️ Better negotiation through data-based arguments

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✔️ Realize savings potential in a targeted manner with AI-based recommendations for action

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Outlook: Purchasing of the Future

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As digitalization progresses, purchasing is increasingly determined by data-driven processes. In the coming years, AI models will provide even more precise forecasts of price developments and help purchasing teams react even faster and more efficiently to market fluctuations .

Companies that implement intelligent purchasing software early on benefit in the long term from better conditions, lower costs and a more resilient supply chain.

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