The current Covid-19-crisis has tested our readiness to manage the whole procurement process from the very beginning till the end and to cope in this disruptive and constantly changing business environment. The situation is changing rapidly and the spread of the virus around the world has created so many problems not only in this fields of activities.

Procurement specialists are constantly working to manage emergency procurement related to the COVID-19 pandemic. There are many challenges: limited transport and logistics, impossibility of personal action movement restrictions, lack of supply, furthermore, the need to work from home. Often to as well as working with kids and with who have limited access to technology. Transportation costs may rise due to government restrictions and contingency plans and employees are usually working overtime to fulfill orders.

If you say procurement, you mean think of an organizational process which should intend to ensure that the buyer receives goods, services, or works at the best possible price. Of course, when aspects such as quality, quantity, time, and location are compared.

And what about regular procurement work? It consists of managing sourcing projects, negotiating with suppliers and managing contracts and other ongoing tasks. These tasks must continue despite all the disruptions. It should focus mainly on reducing costs in order to ensure the sustainability and longevity of companies.

Big change in your way of work

Working from home or so-called home-office is becoming the standard for procurement teams. The situation is evolving rapidly. There can be is little doubt that we now live in an information-driven economy that not only runs 24/7, but which sees us having to anticipate and adjust to changes. More than ever, it is important to promote diversity in the workplace in search of new ways and approaches to address a particular situation.

Unfortunately, at present, trade routes are limited due to restrictions and may take some time to return it to pre Covid-19 time. Is becoming increasingly clear and important to have an efficient and stable software solutions. Despite all the recent debate on climate change management, sustainability and even supplier risk, the main key procurement indicator for most procurement professionals is continued cost reduction.

Digital solutions for procurement

Teams need real-time online platform for the procurement process. What do they need most?

• A system that is easy to learn – clever wizards and tools which help you to go thought all procurement process easily.
• A cloud-based system to be available 24/7/365 to manage suppliers, purchases, budgets and costs for operations anywhere in the world.
• A trusted central storage of potential suppliers, requests for proposals, supplier ratings and contract detail that is accessible.
• A method of tracking, controlling and reporting expenditure and measuring cost savings.

Cost compression as low as possible

As companies deal with the increased costs of doing business, cost optimization has to be top of mind priority in every transaction, whether it be dealing with indirect or direct spending. Reverse Auctions are now coming into much wider use as it has been demonstrated that this method of sourcing can save upwards of 15% per event. This method allows suppliers to compete with each other in a transparent, real-time secure bidding environment. The suppliers can easily identify the potential business opportunities and ask the bidders for an active participation in the bidding process. E-Auction software can be an appropriate online tool to realize carry out purchase of goods or services efficiently.

What should be the further steps?

The current situation where people are required to work remotely has worked well for companies that have already had adopted automated procurement solutions. Companies have the opportunity now for a digital a cloud-based software solution that is easy to implement and that will generate cost savings.

bestauction.com is a cloud-based application and there is no need to install any software. The only prerequisite to use it is to have an access to the Internet. It is the true SaaS-based online platform for the procurement process, available mainly to common users as well as to the small and medium enterprises, globally.

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