Putting the sizzle into summer

When it rains, the roof goes on at Wimbledon … but when EGS go on the roof … the rain stops!

That was the happy outcome when the E-Procurement Guru joined the EGS Group team for their summer barbecue on the roof terrace at 26 Bar, Smithfield.

We watched the sun go down over London … just as the capital prepares for possibly its largest-ever influx of visitors, bringing in billions of pounds of commerce linked to the Olympics.

But, on this occasion, the team took time out to relax – away from figures and day-to-day business. We enjoyed some great food, wonderful company and the opportunity to reflect on an excellent first half of the year – and another exciting six months to come.

Shopping trolley innovation never stops

The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee has prompted some understandable looking back over previous decades. The BBC has been involved too, with its series The New Elizabethans on Radio 4.

Here, James Naughtie examines the lives and impact of the men and women that gave the second Elizabethan age its character. The episode on Alan Sainsbury is well worth a listen.

While we may look back with warm nostalgia at the high street full of independent stores, it was Alan Sainsbury who helped to pioneer a shopping evolution with supermarket chains. ‘Counter service’ was replaced by ‘self-service’. It cost less to staff the stores. And, as it turned out, many people didn’t mind shopping for themselves. It saved them time too.

It many ways, a similar thing is happening with electronic procurement at the corporate level. Self-service is the norm online of course – and always has been. But instead of hopping from one kind of web site to the next in a clunky fashion, today’s corporate shopper can use one basket for everything – from multiple suppliers.    

Back in the early days for Alan Sainsbury, putting frozen chickens, apples and bread in the same basket must have seemed incredible.

But with the right corporate e-procurement system, there’s much more you can buy at the same time from the screen. Not just day-to-day products but complex services too. One company is breaking new ground in this area. Watch the EGS web site for more details in due course.

Whisper it: “Come on England. You can do it!”

The national team’s Euro campaign doesn’t have the usual pizzazz this time around. There’s a dearth of new, young talent, while some of the classier, older players are sidelined with injuries.

That said, there are a couple of big pluses.

Firstly, there’s less hype and unreal expectations to weigh heavily on the players.

And, secondly, there’s Roy Hodgson, who’s got a decent track record at getting great value from less-than-stellar teams – and securing results against the odds. Remember Fulham’s own Euro adventure? He’s possibly the perfect candidate as manager, given the circumstances.

Hopefully we won’t be eating our words in a couple of weeks. But you wonder if a few strokes of technical genius throughout each game could make all the difference? We’ll wait and see. 
  
In the world of procurement, there’s a similar point to be made. Budgets may be under more pressure than ever before.  But there’s the opportunity to do something quite remarkable, thanks to some behind-the-scenes genius.

The best purchase-to-pay solutions will sharpen end-to-end performance and maximise agility.  They’ll be robust too – and won’t go to sleep at pivotal moments.

Meanwhile, the view from the dugout is clearer than ever, allowing real-time insights into spending levels. Managers can influence buying behaviour directly – and monitor every contract to get the best value.

Ultimately, it’s about results: You get to keep more of the silverware.