CPO Rising’s Technology Round-Up returns today with another assortment of supply management technology news and updates from the past month to share with our community. If you are a sourcing, procurement, or spend management solution provider and you have news to share with us, please drop us a note at editor at cporising dot com. Thanks, and enjoy!
Ivalua to Acquire DirectWorks, Move into Direct Materials Sourcing
We recently received word that Ivalua, the California and Paris-based spend management solutions provider, announced that it has acquired Directworks, the Pennsylvania-based sourcing and supplier management solutions provider for manufacturing organizations. Terms of the deal were not disclosed to us, but we were briefed on the larger strategy and the bigger picture of the deal. By acquiring Directworks, Ivalua intends to round out its cloud-based spend and sourcing solutions platform with a fellow cloud provider, one that specializes in direct materials sourcing for complex manufacturing organizations so that customers can better connect and collaborate internally and externally and manage both their spend and suppliers.
Rather than integrate Directworks solutions directly, Ivalua intends to incorporate relevant parts of Directworks’ applications within Ivalua’s cloud platform without disrupting its unified data model. In doing so, Ivalua intends to better serve the manufacturing industry and provide them with a cloud-based source-to-settle platform. Ivalua’s acquisition and move into direct materials sourcing reflects a growing demand for procurement organizations to place more spend under its management, both indirect and direct spend.
DCR Workforce and Allegis Global Solutions Partner on Smart Track VMS Integration
DCR Workforce, a Florida-based Managed Service Provider (MSP) and Vendor Management Systems (VMS) solution developer, recently announced a partnership with Maryland-based provider of talent acquisition and workforce management solutions, Allegis Global Solutions (AGS). Together, AGS will integrate its SIGMA and Enterprise MSP services within DCR’s Smart Track VMS solution to provide users with “a one stop-shop” for managing contingent labor, freelancers, and statement of work (SOW) projects globally. This ought to improve the user interface (UI) and overall user experience (UX) of managing a global contingent workforce that needs to be compliant across multiple regulatory environments.
Beeline Updates IQN VMS, Introduces “Credible” B2B Network Tool
Beeline, one of the world’s largest providers of VMS technology, recently announced that it has incorporated innovations from both Beeline and its newest acquisition, IQNavigator, as well as client needs to deliver an enhanced VMS tool under the IQN brand. As a result, the new IQN VMS tool features an updated Supplier Scorecard built on Beeline’s Horizon platform; an automated Rate, Time, and Expense Engine that is both configurable and rules based; and Background Check Integration with HireRight, which conducts employment, drug, health, and legal status checks on candidates. Other updates to the IQN VMS tool include video interviewing capabilities, enhanced security features, training and certification capabilities, integration support teams, and restructured client services and relationship management based on Beeline’s VMS model.
Late last month, Beeline also introduced a new business networking tool, Credible, that connects procurement, MSPs, and human resources personnel with staffing firms. Credible allows staffing agencies to upload candidate profiles, and it allows “buyers” (or personnel from procurement, MSPs, and HR) to anonymously search providers for talent based on a host of factors, like location, specialty, industry, minority or small-business designation, government security clearance level, etc. It follows a “freemium” model whereby it is free to use the basic service, but users can purchase a premium version that provides tailored reports, market analyses, and other advanced features.
LevaData Launches Leva, a Strategic Sourcing and Procurement Digital Assistant
Also late last month, LevaData, a California-based provider of cognitive or “smart” analytics technologies for procurement and sourcing, announced the release of Leva, a digital assistant for strategic sourcing and procurement teams. Leva leverages a number of modern innovations, like rapid ingestion of structured and unstructured data, machine learning, and crowd-sourced intelligence to provide sourcing and procurement users with a semi-autonomous digital assistant that has the potential to become fully autonomous. It can help users during sourcing negotiations where machine learning algorithms analyze thousands of historic sourcing events across 40 levers to give teams the best shot at getting the best price on a category. It can conduct predictive cost modeling for buyers, as well as evaluate the associated risks and opportunities. Leva can also leverage the power of collective experiences and learning and pull in crowd-sourced intelligence (similar to a network effect) to assist users in their projects. LevaData officials have dubbed Leva the “world’s first AI advisor for strategic sourcing and procurement.”
Jaggaer Partners with Chainalytics for Logistics Process Transformation
JAGGAER, the North Carolina-based source-to-settle solutions provider (formerly SciQuest), recently informed us that it has partnered with Atlanta-based Chainalytics, a supply chain consulting, analytics, and market intelligence provider, in a joint effort to transform their clients’ logistics processes. It is part of Jaggaer’s Select Partner Program, and will see the two companies combine Chainalytics’ supply chain and transportation industry expertise with Jaggaer’s Advanced Sourcing Optimizer solution which brings complex, automated sourcing capabilities and business strategies to bear. As a result, users get both automated sourcing optimization and deep supply chain and logistics expertise – a mix of quantitative and qualitative capabilities that clients can deploy.
ESM Solutions Partners with Paymerang on Procure-to-Pay
Finally, ESM Solutions, the Pennsylvania-based company that provides SaaS-based spend management, sourcing, and procurement solutions, announced that it has partnered with Paymerang, a Virginia-based provider of electronic payment (“ePayment”) solutions. Together, ESM will connect its eProcurement solution with Paymerang’s ePayements solution to streamline their clients’ procure-to-pay process and create a linked downstream process.
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