Can you present Alliance Global Procurement?
Alliance High Tech was originally born at the request of a large account that wanted to reduce its number of suppliers. Thus, in 2004 several SSII (engineering and computer services companies) were grouped together so that the purchasing department only has one point of contact. Alliance High Tech and Systemgie are now fully-fledged outsourced purchasing departments, which remain the sole interlocutors of the main account purchasing departments.
When I took over Alliance High Tech in 2011, I turned it into an outsourced purchasing department. It is no longer an economic interest group, but a commercial company. Therefore, we play the role of intermediary between large accounts and small companies.. Alliance High Tech manages the supplier panel, that is, we look for companies capable of working with these large contractors, for whom we are considered a trusted third party.
We support them in particular. in the management of their tenders, and in the management of their business (orders, invoices, collections and payments) and supplier compliance monitoring. As for them, we build a relationship of trust and collaboration with them. Digital tools are obviously necessary in our activities, but we put people at the center of our services, with equipment available to our contacts.
What types of key accounts and service providers are you targeting?
we cover a wide range of activities : aeronautics, automotive, banking, insurance, defense and security, energy, gaming, naval, telecommunications, transport… This diversity has allowed us stay the course in the last two years. And today, companies whose activity had been affected by the crisis now have their business books full.
Among these clients is various types of purchases. Intellectual services (IT, engineering, etc.) experienced very few drops in activity with our ESN partners, as digitization accelerated with Covid-19 and the various lockdowns. On the other hand, there was a slowdown in the purchase of goods, equipment and events. Nevertheless, activity has resumed well and we hope bright prospects for the future. Growth is here!
What support do you offer them?
After the Sourcing of suppliers, we ensure regular follow-ups with our clients, with reports of all the cases dealt with, regular steering committees. On the supplier side, our support starts with the sourcing part (ie during the first contact). We take the time to understand your business, its size and its geographical location, asking them, among other things, about their sector of activity and their business experience.
Our Key Account Managers are also called to take this first step. We need them to determine which large group a particular small business can target. Once selected, our partner is integrated into a supplier panel, managed by the AGP group Sourcing department. We then organize meetings for our partners with our sales team and our sourcing department, to help respond to calls for bids. It is essential that a supplier identifies the process and the needs of the client, to make an adequate and effective proposal.
The Alliance Global Procurement Group of course it assures its clients by paying great attention to the financial health of our suppliers/partners. If our analytics platform alerts us to an issue, for example, our Risk Manager deals with it immediately. Inform the sales representative and both work on the problem to be dealt with so as not to put the service(s) at risk. It’s a rare situation but we always knew how to find a solution.
At the same time, our goal is to help small businesses grow and connect with large groups, based on their ability to meet their needs. We are proud to support VSEs and SMEs in their growth. Consequently, both the partner and the key account get as much attention on our part, with fair hiring. As such, we are working to obtain the Label of Suppliers and Responsible Purchasing, created by the Business Mediator and the Ministry of Economy. We have already signed the letter!
What do you contribute in terms of CSR?
We contribute solutions to boost local employment. By helping large companies find resources near their sites, we contribute to the animation of the local ecosystem. In addition, this proximity is one of the criteria required by purchasing departments. It is synonymous with fewer trips, and therefore less pollution.
The rest, Alliance High Tech has been the southern branch of ObsAR, the Responsible Purchasing Observatory, for 10 years. Every year, this institution produces a barometer to measure the trends and evolution of responsible purchasing. ObsAR thus promotes the dissemination of good practices in responsible purchasing.
We have adapted this system for our part, trying monitor what VSEs are implementing in terms of CSR. This approach is part of a desire for continuous improvement. Without interfering with the company’s CSR policy, we encourage it to improve by being proactive. Our own group is working on its own points to improve internally. For example, we switched to electronic signatures more than 7 years ago..
Is there one topic more than another that complicates your daily tasks?
Financial problems are, of course, at the center of our concerns.. In addition, they are taken into account in the preparation of the Responsible Suppliers and Purchasing Label. It stops the settlement and late settlement of certain large accounts, which can then put small businesses in jeopardy. For our part, the group fortunately benefits from a solid financial capacity. We work to help the large account to organize faster processes so that the supplier gets paid on time. For these two worlds to work together, pedagogy and case-by-case support are essential..
Finally, do you see any particular changes?
Intellectual service, mainly IT, is a constantly evolving field, enriched by new technologies and new professions. For example, we have good relations with La Platform, a new digital school based in Marseille based on inclusion. We promote the school to our partners, so that they take study and work contracts in their company.
Finally, we have seen an evolution in the needs of our customers. More and more they want to entrust their purchases having a dynamic view of the entire business life cycle (the call for bids, the order, the follow-up, etc.). For this, digitization and dematerialization are essential. Our clients also have a very strong international vision, to which we respond by finding the most suitable service providers for them.
In a CSR plan, Responsible Digital is becoming the priority for companies. Thus, new functions of Responsible Digital Referent appear. Everyone’s goal is to fight for decarbonisation in our activities, with digital being a main issue at the heart of this problem.
This content was produced with SCRIBEO. The BFMBUSINESS editorial team was not involved in the production of this content.
Source: BFM TV
