The digital transformation of procurement has become increasingly important in recent years, especially for SMEs. In a webinar, experts including Thomas Dieringer and representatives from Tacto discussed the success factors and challenges involved in implementing this transformation. Here is a summary of the most important points that are crucial for Procurement in SMEs.

Procurement as a central value driver

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The importance of procurement has changed significantly in recent years. While the focus used to be mainly on cost optimization and price negotiations, Procurement is now a strategic value driver for companies. This is mainly due to the fact that Procurement is strongly integrated into innovation processes and works closely with product development and research & development (R&D).

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Important tasks of purchasing in SMEs:
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• Ensure profitability: optimize costs without compromising quality or delivery capability.
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• Liquidity and risk management: Especially in times of rising interest rates or economic uncertainty, purchasing departments also need to keep an eye on payment terms.
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• Driving innovation: Procurement plays a key role by sourcing new technologies and materials and ensuring that suppliers can deliver innovative solutions.

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From operational to strategic Procurement

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Many medium-sized companies traditionally have a strongly operational Procurement function that focuses mainly on day-to-day order processing. However, in order to turn Procurement into a real value driver, companies need to take the next step towards strategic Procurement .

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The evolution of purchasing:
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1. Procurement and materials management: focus on operational efficiency, reducing procurement costs and bundling suppliers.
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2. Strategic Procurement: Introduction of methods for cost avoidance and supplier strategies.
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3. Value management: Proactive use of data and technologies to optimize the value chain and create long-term competitive advantages.
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It is clear that a clear database and transparent processes are crucial to successfully shaping this change. Companies that currently only work operationally can start with a hybrid approach and gradually implement strategic purchasing processes.

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Challenges and obstacles to digital transformation

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The path to digitalized Procurement is not without its challenges. SMEs in particular are often concerned about the expense and complexity of such projects. However, companies should take a pragmatic approach and digitalize their initial processes step by step. It is important not to wait for the "perfect" plan, but to start agilely and make successive improvements.
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Typical challenges:
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• Special cases and special processes: Many companies focus too much on exceptions instead of optimizing standard processes.
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• Change management: Transformation often requires a change in corporate culture and a willingness to embrace new technologies.

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Market changes: From a seller's to a buyer's market

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The last few years have been characterized by external disruptions: the pandemic, geopolitical conflicts and supply bottlenecks have had a major impact on the market. The focus in Procurement has often been on ensuring the availability of materials, while price negotiations have taken a back seat. Now that the markets are stabilizing and prices, especially for raw materials and energy, are falling again, priorities are shifting.

Companies are now in a transition from a seller's market to a buyer's market, which means that they can once again conduct more price negotiations and adapt supplier strategies. It is crucial to act proactively now and take advantage of new market opportunities to reduce costs and minimize supply chain risks.

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How software solutions support Procurement

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Digital solutions such as the software from Tacto enable companies to organize Procurement efficiently and make data-based decisions. Tacto offers a comprehensive tool that maps both operational and strategic procurement processes and helps companies to master the challenges of supply chain management.

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Functions of the Tacto software:

• Price and cost transparency: Automatic analyses that show where price outliers exist and which items should be renegotiated.
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• Risk management: transparency regarding supplier risks and the ability to react quickly to changes in the market.
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• Supplier management: Centralized management of supplier information, contracts and performance evaluations for optimal preparation of negotiations.

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Conclusion

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The digital transformation of procurement offers SMEs enormous potential to increase their competitiveness and optimize their supply chains. However, it is important to take a step-by-step approach, collect clear data and use digital tools to support procurement departments. Tacto offers the ideal platform for strategically transforming Procurement and establishing it as a long-term value driver within the company.

In our webinar "The digital transformation of procurement in SMEs: future-oriented Procurement as a value driver" with Thomas Dieringer, expert for Procurement and digitalization, and Richard Gansauge, Head of Business Development at Tacto, we will show you how you can successfully develop your Procurement from a purely operational approach to strategic value management. They will highlight the key levers and strategies for exploiting valuable potential.