Webinar recording: Intelligent price analyses & AI-based tips: How data-driven procurement enables maximum savings potential

Rising procurement costs, volatile markets and new regulatory requirements are making Procurement more complex than ever. Is Excel or an ERP system still enough to manage supplier prices efficiently? Many companies are reaching their limits here - too many manual processes, too little transparency. Yet enormous savings potential lies hidden in purchasing data.

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These potentials can be systematically leveraged with intelligent price analyses and AI-supported recommendations for action. But how does this work in practice? Our experts at Tacto show how companies can use a data-driven purchasing strategy to optimize their costs, gain better negotiating arguments and transform Procurement in the long term.

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Optimizing purchasing costs is a key challenge for companies in the industrial SME sector. In times of geopolitical uncertainty, rising procurement costs and increasing regulatory requirements, data-driven purchasing management is gaining in importance. Traditional methods such as Excel-based evaluations or purely ERP-supported analyses are reaching their limits. A new generation of purchasing software relies on intelligent price analyses and AI-based information to reveal potential savings and improve purchasing strategies in a targeted manner.

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But what does this mean in concrete terms? And how can companies use these technologies to their advantage? 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 Procurement: the balancing act between savings and securing the future

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

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Increasing demands on Procurement

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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 are increasing the complexity of supply chains.

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

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• Demographic change & skills shortage: buyers are increasingly confronted with staff shortages.

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

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

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Lack of digital support makes cost optimization difficult

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Many companies are still working with outdated methods of price monitoring that involve manual analyses in Excel or rudimentary reports from the ERP system. The biggest challenges here 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 development: 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 merged.

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Intelligent price analyses and AI-supported purchasing strategies are essential to solve these problems.

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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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Functions and advantages of intelligent price analyses

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1. recognize price changes at a glance

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• The software displays price trends for articles, suppliers and Categories in real time.
• Noticeable price fluctuations are automatically highlighted.

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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 of 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 volumes, constant prices or supplier changes.
• Consideration of external influencing factors (e.g. commodity prices, exchange rates).

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4. automated reporting for management

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• Purchasing managers receive preconfigured reports on potential savings.
• Export functions allow the analyses to be used directly in negotiations.

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These functions enable Procurement to react proactively to price developments instead of only recording price adjustments retrospectively.

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AI-based advice: How artificial intelligence is transforming Procurement

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Artificial intelligence (AI) in Procurement means that algorithms automatically identify optimization potential and make 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 & volume trends

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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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• Price increases between two orders are highlighted → Note: Comparison with alternative suppliers.

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3. detection of 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 management of purchasing. Instead of laboriously carrying out manual analyses, companies can use Tacto to automatically identify potential savings, conduct more informed negotiations and optimize purchasing processes.

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The advantages at a glance:

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✔️ Transparency on price trends and cost drivers

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✔️ Automated analyses for efficient decision-making

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✔️ Better negotiation skills 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: The Procurement of the future

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

Companies that rely on intelligent procurement software at an early stage benefit in the long term from better conditions, lower costs and a more resilient supply chain.

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In the live webinar "Intelligent price analysis & AI-based tips: How data-driven Procurement enables maximum savings potential", Robert Kaiser (Head of Customer Experience at Tacto) and Constantin Blome (Product Development at Tacto) will show why data-driven price analyses and AI-supported recommendations for action are essential for identifying savings potential at an early stage, gaining better negotiating arguments and optimizing purchasing processes in the long term.