More news09 August 2001 | Robin Parker
A new online service claims to enable purchasers to make informed calculations of the potential savings to be made through e-procurement and to build long-term procurement best practice.
The free self-diagnosis toolkit, Independent Savings Analysis Verification and Evaluation (I-Save), has been developed by software supplier Oracle following a survey of procurement staff from the Bristol Business School.
Purchasers compared the expectations and realities of cost savings. The 120 respondents said the implementation of competent purchasing practices, supported by any electronic system, reduced costs by an average of 7.8 per cent. Computer consumables was an area of highest savings, nearing 20 per cent.
On I-Save, users key in estimated spend by industry or commodity, or a series of commodities, for a specific contract or for their ongoing spend. Using the average savings quoted by respondents, I-Save calculates the likely savings. Each of the 80 commodity types listed represents around 70 responses.
The CIPS-supported toolkit aims to cut maverick spending and create reliable expectations of spend, enabling purchasers to make stronger business cases to financial managers.
A second phase of the research will involve an in-depth analysis of the 20 firms that identified the greatest and smallest savings.
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www.oracle.com/uk/start/isaveSMaug2001