Electronic invoicing: Good for the environment, good for business

Money doesn’t only make the world go round … it makes the big headlines too. The Libor rate scandal, involving the banks, dominated the news this week – following on from the last big money-related story … celebrities who avoid paying tax.  

It’s probably true to say that environmental issues don’t command the same news coverage since the world’s economic problems took centre stage. But there were two stories relevant to the green agenda that caught our eye this week.

Firstly, a group of people dressed as giant pandas invaded the London Underground to raise awareness about their plight. Great photos of course. (In those warm, furry suits, it was just as well we’re having some rotten summer weather. Also, good to avoid the Olympics when the tube will be even busier.)

The other story gleaned fewer column inches, as far as we can see. But it was significant.

A new report found that the number of single-use carrier bags handed out by UK supermarkets rose last year by 5.4% to almost eight billion. That’s an average of almost 11 a month for each person … and despite a whole stack of measures to encourage people to change habits. One theory is that more cash-strapped families are doing several small shops a week instead of one big trip – and using public transport too.

Whatever the reasons, it’s a blow for those focused on reducing waste and pollution to help the environment.

On a more positive note, there’s an ongoing environmental good news story about electronic invoicing that's heading firmly in the opposite direction.

Last year, Accountingweb reported the view that a complete conversion to e-invoicing across Europe would save 12 million trees a year. There’s some way to go in take-up of course, but more recent reports estimate the growth in electronic invoice (e-invoice) processing at 20-30% in the next few years, with over 4 billion e-invoices coming from Europe this year.

It’s not just the trees. There’s the energy saved on turning them into paper, the handling of waste paper at the other end – and the postage/travel costs of delivering invoices. (And that's without mentioning all the time-related, business efficiency savings, which are huge.)

So, despite not grabbing the headlines, e-invoicing is a big money story after all.

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.

The forecast is ... cloudy

IT trends can be difficult to predict. But the business barometer is pointing with even greater certainty towards cloud computing. Two recent surveys have confirmed this.

A study by Dell and Intel discovered that an overwhelming majority of IT and business people plan to "significantly or moderately increase use of cloud" in the next year. For the EMEA region, which includes Europe, the figure was an emphatic 78%, according to reports.

Meanwhile, analysts IDC have released a new report that indicates public and private spending in cloud computing will increase exponentially over the next few years (which will lead to a massive jobs boost world-wide and in the UK). More details here.

Companies are clear about the business drivers too. Nearly two thirds of those in the Dell/Intel study wanted to reduce their infrastructure costs, while improving IT organisational agility came next.

In the view of this column, cost reduction and agility are especially relevant when it comes to cloud-based, purchase-to-pay (P2P) systems. But the two are wrapped up closely together and the emphasis is slightly different.

With agility, it’s not so much about the IT organisation itself – but a transformation that can be achieved very quickly within the business. Organisations can do something radical about spend control and back-office efficiency through automating processes - within weeks rather than months. Processes accelerate, become more transparent and cost less to run.

Continuing with the costs theme … the ideal, state-of-the-art P2P system doesn’t add to capital expenditure because it’s cloud based and available from a browser. Cost savings arrive from those back-office efficiencies we mentioned as well as greater control and oversight of approved contracts that offer best value.

The other great news is that the best P2P systems will pay for themselves extremely quickly – which makes cloud-based solutions even more attractive.

How to avoid unexpected consequences

Are you planning to watch the Olympic torch relay pass by – or have you done so already?

Over coming weeks, the 8,000-mile relay will travel to all corners of the UK as we near the opening ceremony of the Olympics on 27 July.

There’s been a fuss about the torches. For one thing, bearers have been asked to pay £295 if they want to keep them. But now a mini furore has ignited over what happens to the thousands of torches afterwards … particularly the ones that have been ending up on eBay.

Bids are reaching thousands of pounds. And, apparently, there’s no restriction on bearers selling them. Some sellers are reported to simply be ‘needing the money’ to pay for household bills while others are generously donating the proceeds to charity.

Whether some of this goes against the Olympic spirit – or is simply a great way to ‘share the money around’ among everyday people – is another debate.

But what’s clear is that if you put people, money and commodities together, without clear rules, then unintended consequences sometimes occur!

In the world of procurement, this can happen with maverick spending. Without a single procurement system and a set of business rules, then the outcomes can be surprising and expensive if the wrong purchases are made at the wrong price from the wrong suppliers ... without people noticing until it’s too late.

However, with the right procurement solution, buyers are guided to authorised suppliers with agreed contracts. Their purchases are authorised by the right people in a clear and auditable way – and ultimately their organisation achieves best value, possibly saving substantial amounts along the way.

Fortunately, achieving this doesn’t have to be an Olympian struggle. Winning solutions are out there already.

Green light for automation – watch the video

And we’re off! This week the state of Nevada gave Google the go-ahead for its driverless car. The vehicle has already notched up 140,000 test miles but now it’s been granted a licence to travel on real roads.

Video cameras, lasers and radar help the car travel safely. But two people must always sit in at all times - to take control if its computer makes a blunder.

You can watch a video of the car here …



The news may thrill or alarm people in equal measure. BBC Top Gear’s analysis could be interesting - if and when it’s broadcast. And you wonder how the car could do against the Stig around the show’s test track?

But, either way, the breakthrough pushes the bounds of automation. And it makes you wonder what else is possible?

Where business processes are concerned, a lot is happening now with back-office automation – and has happened already. It won’t grab the same media attention as a robo-car. But it’s a quiet revolution paying a handsome return for those in-the-know.

If you take electronic invoicing, like the Google car, the process can become hands-free – and can work at lightning speed. But you don’t need massive upfront investment … or a government licence.