Automation of procure-to-pay process proposed by Patni, helped the world's leading stock exchange to check maverick buying, consolidate supplier base, reduce duplication in procurement, and squeeze administration costs from the purchasing process.
The Client
The client is the world's leading and one of the most technologically advanced stock exchanges. Over the years, the stock exchange has built its reputation by being the most competitive venue for trading listed stocks and providing investors with the lowest transaction costs, and increased liquidity.
The Challenge
The client has consciously leveraged technology to improve all the critical aspects of its business. However, the rapid growth posed its set of challenges especially in the procurement process.
The requisitioning and procurement of all articles ranging from office supplies to other business critical items or services did not conform to a standard process. Different departments followed different processes and placed orders with suppliers of their choice. The existing system lacked the capability to consolidate and track the purchases made across the organization. The non-availability of purchase history and off-contract purchasing prevented the client from availing volume-linked discounts, despite having the purchasing volumes of a mega corporation.
The deficiencies in the procurement process fueled the need to transform the traditional ways of requisitioning and purchasing into a seamless Webbased procurement. The need for a Web-based platform was also necessary for the consolidation and analysis of information pertaining to enterprisewide procurement. Transformation, both in process and IT capabilities was inevitable as the client wanted to improve efficiencies in the purchasing process.
The Solution
Patni worked closely with the IT as well as non-IT staff of the client to gain an understanding of existing processes, and identify easy-to-use enhancements that would significantly reduce the manual efforts and simplify the process. Furthermore, the feedback from the suppliers was also considered while finalizing the specifications of the solution.
Patni recommended the client to use a self-service requisitioning capability with a user-friendly web-shopping interface and workflow-based approval mechanism. In addition, Patni suggested that the new solution be made compatible with the existing systems and transactions with online marketplaces or consortia be carried out using native integration capabilities of Oracle.
Oracle iProcurement formed the central part of Patni's solution, so that the client could leverage its existing investments in Oracle applications. Patni configured all the existing processes e.g. catalog management, online requisitioning, purchase order approval, receipts creation etc. as per the iProcurement solution. It also enabled punch-out to a supplier's web store like OfficeMax as well as marketplaces and consortia.
The Benefits
The solution facilitated localized purchasing by different business units while allowing centralized control and monitoring. The solution also enabled the client to:
Ensure tighter control over spending and authorization
Reduce the time for processing requisitions from 20 days to 3 days
Avoid duplication of requisitions by consolidating the purchase information across the enterprise
Eliminate the need for paper-based requisitions and the delays that usually accompanied such transactions
Improve relationship with the suppliers as their payments were speeded up due to faster approval
Leverage the combined purchases of all its business units for negotiating better discounts
Participate in transactions with a large number of web stores or online marketplaces, as the solution was compliant with technology standards like XML for document exchange and UNSPSC for catalogue content
Enforce consistent practices in procurement across the organization through checks and controls.
The Technology