5 reasons to implement a purchasing management software
Purchasing management is a strategic issue for companies as they grow and restructure. Poor management of commitments can quickly become a cost centre in its own right. Yet the digital transformation of business management processes that has begun in recent years promises to save time and boost productivity. Taken as a whole, the purchasing process represents a succession of administrative steps that can slow down the running of an organisation. Yet it should be seen as a source of genuine strategic opportunities with visible benefits. That’s why the use of purchasing management software should be a real consideration for SMEs. Find out in this article 5 good reasons to implement purchasing software in your organisation.
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Management software to control the purchasing cycle
First of all, the management of orders placed with suppliers requires real attention, because it directly affects the financial management of the company. When a purchase order is placed, the company’s portfolio is used. This is why purchasing procedures are written to protect the company’s interests and ensure that the expenditure is justified by meeting a specific need.
With purchasing management software, you can be sure of controlling your expenditure in real time. The purchasing process is intrinsically collaborative, bringing together several players. Good purchasing software has an order validation workflow. From the issuing of internal customer requirements, with the levels of validation, to the receipt of supplier invoices, the management of the company’s requests must be administered from end to end on the software. This means you can identify and retrieve all your organisation’s purchasing files. The data is then cross-referenced with your supplier or catalogue management, so you can control your purchasing cycle.
All you need to do is find the right purchasing software to manage supplier orders as a whole. It must be involved in all the components of the purchasing process and the departments with which it interacts. Budget control, supplier contract management, accounting integration, etc. To be efficient, management software must be interoperable.
Keeping an eye on stock
As well as controlling the purchasing cycle, good stock management is also an issue, depending on the nature of your business. Uncontrolled stock levels can have an impact on your company’s production. It’s worth noting that good order management is a key factor in controlling costs. ERP software includes a stock module that is often sufficient for the needs of an SME. On the other hand, it is good practice to integrate a module capable of triggering a consultation or an order based on a stock alert.
Good stock management is always advantageous for a company. Dedicated software based on your catalogue management allows you to develop with peace of mind. For example, you can control the number of products you want, the limits you don’t want to exceed, or plan for future purchases. It’s fair to say that the organisation of your business and the management of supplies will be much smoother thanks to software.
Organising invoices with periodic reports
Purchasing management software also allows you to organise your invoices properly. Unlike accounting software, which only comes into play at the end of the process, invoice processing is improved here. The benefits are as follows:
- Fastersupplier payments,
- Better budget management thanks to real-time visibility of provisions,
- Rapid, even instantaneous,reconciliation ofpurchase orders and invoices.
In fact, checking invoices can be done much faster than you might think. Improving business productivity is the aim of digitising processes, especially when they involve a heavy administrative component. By using purchasing software, you can effectively monitor your suppliers and, in particular, check the volume of invoices over a given period. Managing invoices is an additional cost for an organisation. Acting on this item means helping to reduce the cost of placing orders. You will then know your indicators and know how to make the right decisions so that you no longer have to worry about managing your purchases with hidden costs.
If you need to, you can choose software capable of generating statistics. This mainly concerns the economic side of your company. Statistics can be replaced by graphs, if that’s what you prefer.
Manage your suppliers’ bids easily
Identifying and managing supplier bids is an essential point and meets the requirements of an audit. Keeping records of calls for tender and the evaluation of bids received is essential. Dematerialisation makes this task easier and also ensures traceability of the actions carried out.
Unlike catalogue management, you need to keep supplier bids on hand and be able to request them easily using software. Reverse auctions are also part of the existing technological specifications, with the advantage of helping you to compare all the offers you receive. This will make it easier for you to find your way around your purchases. Finally, punch-out catalogues offer an innovative management method, because supplier offers change in real time and the buying experience is innovative, similar to that of a consumer.
Simple and effective to use
Optimising purchasing with management software doesn’t stop there. You need to ensure that you invest in a product that is easy to use and ergonomic. Ideally, it shouldn’t take long to get the hang of, to encourage your users to adopt it. This aspect is of vital importance, as it ensures the successful short-term implementation of the management solution.
Opting for a cloud solution is another reason why you should be reassured aboutpurchasing a software solution. Cloud solutions offer significant advantages, such as the ability to update the product at no extra cost, the ability to evolve the product and the ease of connection. In fact, the word cloud in the Internet world means that the software requires no installation. More and more recent solutions are equipped with clouds, with significant differences that are better suited to the management of SMEs.
You now know thatusing purchasing management software can offer you considerable advantages. To help you in this process, Weproc is now digitising the purchasing processes of more and more companies and associations.
Want to learn more about our procurement management software Weproc? Contact us or request your free 15-minutes demo below!
Weproc is a SaaS software specialized in digitizing the procurement process of companies. From purchase requests to supplier invoicing, through the validation process, Weproc is designed to simplify the purchase management of SMEs and mid-sized companies by centralizing all purchase-related activities.