a.s.r achieves full control of spend, with company-wide insight into expenditure and contracts

Executive overview

Profile

Sector
Financial Services

No. of employees
4,000

No. of invoices received
15,000 p/a

Customer since
2008

Operates in
Netherlands

Objectives

  • Full control of procurement processes, costs, risks and compliance.
  • Complete transparency throughout the Procurement process.
  • Insight into ongoing contracts.

How Proactis helped

  • a.s.r employees can place orders at any given time, from approved suppliers.
  • Procurement projects are conducted in a transparent and measurable way.
  • Month end reports are available in a couple of mouse clicks.

Benefits

  • Process costs of the P.O. invoices have been reduced by 90%..
  • Invoice processing is much quicker and more efficient due to approvals earlier in the process.
  • Substantial indirect cost savings.
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Profile

a.s.r is one of the largest insurance companies in the Netherlands, offering a wide range of financial products covering non-life, life and income protection insurance, group and individual pensions, and health, travel, leisure and funeral insurance. It employs around 4,000 people.

a.s.r prides itself on a focus on spend control and efficiency. However, more recently, there has been a lack of insight into ongoing contracts with an unmanageable increase in the number of suppliers it uses. This has made it more difficult to get a clear overview and control of total spend.

Objectives

The ultimate objective was to take control of its procurement processes, costs and risks. A project was set up, called ‘In control’. The aim of the project was to identify the best way of standardising and digitalising the entire purchasing process, including invoice processing with integration with the incumbent financial system.

Through the project team, a.s.r identified that one integrated platform to support central purchasing and finance functions, and which captures all contracts and commitments, would be the perfect option. Proactis’ Source-to-Pay functionality was selected.

How Proactis helped

Proactis provided access to key figures and commitments administration that was not previously available. The Procurement team is now in complete control and implementation was smooth, in time and in budget. The new working methods ensure that a.s.r employees can now place orders whenever they need to, from authorised catalogues, via order forms or smart forms. Additionally, hiring temporary staff is streamlined and straightforward through the platform, allowing reversed billing to be implemented.

The company manages the full range of procurement processes, from sourcing, to contract management, to accounts payable, through the platform. The solution ensures full visibility of its spend. Data is available via dashboards that provide transparency for management and staff. Financial reports at month end used to take several days to create, these are now available in a few clicks. This transparency ensures full compliance with current national and regional laws, regulations and corporate governance rules.

Benefits

The Procurement department now provides a vital contribution to a.s.r's business goals. The Proactis platform helps ensure that procurement projects are conducted in a transparent and measurable way, all while increasing efficiency. For example, online auctions are used to purchase items such as office furniture or paper, but also specialist help such as independent experts to assess damages and claims. This visibility helps the company as whole make more strategic purchasing decisions.

The company has full control of its purchasing and contracts. The number of invoices has dropped year-on-year due to the streamlining of approved suppliers and contracts. Invoice processing is now visible and the process has been vastly improved due to approvals often being given earlier in the process. This has saved the Accounts Payable department a substantial amount of administration work. The processing costs of purchase order invoices have been reduced by 90% as a result of using Proactis, providing substantial savings in indirect costs. Also, this means staff can concentrate on more strategic tasks.