During the last edition of the CNA's Purchasing Universities, a workshop on the challenges of supplier relations and more generally the supply chain made it possible to clarify the role of digital solutions and collaborative platforms to animate the ecosystem more effectively.
Faced with disruptions such as those encountered over the past two years (supply disruptions, soaring prices, material shortages, etc.), anticipating critical situations and gaining agility has become a vital issue. A workshop of Universities 2022 Of National Purchasing Council (CNA) recalled "the importance of supplier relations in the supply chain" in such circumstances, with a cross look between a purchasing director of a large group (Enedis, management and development of the electricity distribution network in France, a subsidiary of EDF) and that of an ETI (Sercel, manufacture of geophysical equipment), complemented by the point of view of the leader in digital solutions for companies, Sap.
"With the onset of the current crises, we have moved from theory to practice, and communication has become crucial to prevent supply chains from collapsing," said Bertrand Pouilloux, Enedis' purchasing director, at the opening of the debate. While he shares this opinion, Jean-Denis Besnard, Sercel's purchasing director, notes that the opposite is happening: "There is mistrust, with a tendency to lose trust, and business partners talk less to each other. In addition, messaging and collaborative communication applications are quickly reaching their limits." By connecting companies and their suppliers, digital purchasing solutions and trade management platforms find all their interest. "A connected supply chain brings transparency and facilitates the flow of information," says Vincent de Poret, EMEA Business Development Director for SAP Ariba and Fieldglass at SAP. "This builds trust and supports each other in dealing with disruptions."
Beyond tools, the data is also becoming essential, the three speakers agreed. "This is all the more true since the supplier relationship is no longer limited to the purely contractual aspects of the purchasing process, starting with price negotiation, but also concerns social responsibility, decarbonization, risk management, etc. Ensuring the quality and traceability of data is becoming a real challenge," insisted Bertrand Pouilloux. "Purchasing departments now have powerful tools, but it is necessary to bring value and intelligence when using data, especially to anticipate situations according to several hypotheses," added Jean-Denis Besnard.
Type platforms Business networks would provide guarantees in this regard. "With accurate and up-to-date information, because it is provided directly by suppliers, it is a guarantee of security," says Vincent de Poret. Simply, while more and more companies are appreciating and adopting the model, providers complain that they have a significant number of platforms to connect to, almost as many as customers. "They would like less, more convergent and also interoperable," says Sercel's purchasing director. This is what the SAP Digital Supplier Network, which offers them a single connection for often several dozen customers. "These collaborative exchange management platforms also need to be intuitive, without the need for real training," added the SAP representative. Moreover, "like consumer e-commerce platforms, only the simplest and most effective will prevail," he concluded. The others will disappear."