Introduction

In todays vibrant competitive commercial setting, technology-based facility

has ceased to be an afterthought; rather a necessity for public and private
establishments. This is now essential for businesses to deliver to customers costeffective overall result and improved customer fulfillment with inventive ideas and
techniques. By way of the development of Information and Communication
Technology (ICT), establishments are required to change their operations from
traditional style to e-trade, e-procurement and e-supply chain idea for the purpose
of sustainability (Lee et al., 2007). Over the past, both private and public
establishments have been making use of Information Technology (IT) to modernize
and automate their purchasing and further practices (Croom et al., 2001)
Question 1: Alterations in nature of skills and understanding requisite for
supply management individual?
Learning on supply chain administration and e-procurement practices is
imperative for establishments successes as well as the continued existence and
development of the business.
Largely and in agreement is that successful e-procurement enterprise is
based on suitable adoption of methodology as well as system existing mutually
amid seller and buyer. Therefore, in dire need is skill achievement in order to have
personnel to function efficiently. It is thus anticipated that establishment looking at
the adoption of e-procurement methods and is lacking sufficient teachings will nosedive
A good example is in my previous place of employment where the Purchasing
and Logistics Manager was engaged from outside the background of their intended
job role; which appears to be on the rise amid establishments today due to reasons
of cheap labor etc...Hence, it is suitable to reexamine the jurisdiction of training in
this new epoch and in milieu of present shifting environment
Croom (2000) found out that, advantages of e-procurement approach
requisite being appraised in complexity, which embraces several objectives like
streamlining internal expenses, decline in organizational budget, and nurturing a
well-organized and effective model. This is called support tool to establishments
network visualization and involvement in technical cooperation with supply chain
associates. The establishment is likewise anticipated to invest in training and

enrichment of employee skills as this serves an enabling element for the realization
benefits with e-procurement adoption which will in future improve understanding
amid users.
Furthermore is in the aspect of communication. The importance of this cannot
be over emphasized. It is a must and a requirement for e-procurement personnels
to have decent mixture of diverse abilities in communication, methodological, and
fiscal. The use of automated methods will develop and strengthen their
communication capability effectively thus enabling them to evade the traditional
techniques of face- to- face method which could likely contain unnecessary
expertise lacking methodological experiences. The adoption of e-procurement
system will also involve diverse styles of discernment so as to attain and maintain
the required skills bearing in mind that many of such skills are not obtainable
markets. This will demand training for the readiness of challenges the establishment
might be vulnerable to. Information dissemination and control is imperative for
supply managers for the reason that measureable flow and exchange of money are
commonly caused by information movements Giunipero, Handfield and Eltantawy
(2006).
Also, is that the E-procurement must be enhanced by establishment likewise
is the training personnel in this fields to be highly valued rendering the fact that the
training will at the end be advantageous to the company. The skills attained from
the training can serve as a tool for both the market and electronic businesses as
this is measured as transition from early traditional and transactional operational
approaches.
Mabert et al (2003) identified that several challenges confronting the
improvement of abilities and awareness of e-procurement team is evident in cultural
influences which are external and internal especially once personnel displays
opposition concerning the use of e- procurement which is not involved with
negotiations when transacting with steady supplier, and anxiety for loss of job due
to automated processes. At hand are certain influences which poses as hindrance to
training and user adaptation to the system which are poor description of system
with functions that marks it unpleasant, impulsive alterations in procurement order,
and deficiency in support from executives for the enforcement of system
compliance and practice.

According to Ramayah et al., (2006), gaining of e-procurement is furthermore

motivated by establishments move towards a methodical use of this technology
with endless and evolutionary sum of automated procuring for significant volumes
of expenditure. Hence e-procurement increase in trainings is anticipated for so as to
realize its paybacks.
Question 2: E-Procurements contribution to organizations
The implementations of e-procurement structure have largely supported
establishment diverse ways. Some of the supports are focused to cost lessening in
purchasing procedures. Choices (Johnson, Leender, and Flynn, 2011), stresses that
price benefits could be attained via a specific competitive internet tools like eauctions. The advantages of e-procurement system pointers on facilitation process
through prompt ordering, Purchase order, and wider variety of choices (Johnson,
Leender, and Flynn, 2011). In 2008, the Aberdeen Group established in the US
conducted an investigation within 400 establishments for the determining of
advantages linked with e-procurement. From this investigation, partakers recounted
that introduction of e-procurement was facilitated by interest in improving visibility
to spend. Additional purpose for executing e-procurement was for the reduction in
cost of requisition-to-order cycle by 49% and increase in time was improved by
65%. E-procurement creates an extensive choice of supports to establishments
ranging from cost, time, and data linked supports. This method seeks to be one of
the widely adopted and effective methods for applications of electronic business
conducted by establishments extensively for the purpose of improved processes
(Aberdeen Group, 2011). Additional advantages liked include high effectiveness,
measurement, and distinct data entry. These 3 advantages pose as main catalysts
that determine growth in the process. E-procurement likewise supports association
of numerous businesses and accomplishments openly with suppliers concurrently
with the ability to manage all sorts of communications.
The adoption of an e-procurement will diminish operational costs acquired in trade,
lower information and searching costs, it permits swift entrance to broader supply
markets, boosts use of competitive markets in order to the costs of commodity
markets, diminishes the organizational burdens on employees, and enables them to
be involved with value added activities for the success of the establishment and
likewise goal attainment.

E-procurement also endorses an improved system of co-ordination with

immediate suppliers, accelerates communication for the improvement of buyerseller sensitivity, develops process and information uniformity, allows presence of
enhanced integration of procedure to pay cycle with its sellers, increases
tracing/locating of orders, and eases maverick buying. It further assist
establishments to improve monitoring and management of information, inventory
reductions, supports lean methodologies, efficient supplier management, shorter
requisition to order cycles, enhance data openness for the purpose of decision
making, increase data accurateness through decline/eradication of data record
inaccuracies, systems incorporation through departments and suppliers to buttress
production and materials planning, and finally to negate impacts that likely posing
as threats to the environment. The usage of an e-procurement system assists staff
to attain all basic skills to function effectively on the job. If staff is void of thus
ability and knowledge, this will lead to inability to function and will lead to difficulty
in performance leading to failure. Hence, the realization of this depends on user and
buyer making use of the new process and system. The system also has a tendency
to improve regularization of countless products as a result pointers to reduction in
costs associated with procurement and service.
E-procurement also supports efficiency in the sense that after system
implementation, employing staff engagement/ overheads reduces though they
needed for other tasks but at a reduced strength. The system also has the potential
to measure and screen orders as well as details such as duration to process orders,
statuses, estimated deliveries durations etc thus leading to a consistent, enhanced
processes and eradicating non value added occurrences. Another important aspect
is the accuracy of staff after being sponsored on training by the establishment. The
ability of not being able to put this in use to maximum capacity poses as a threat to
the establishment. Also is the ability of the establishment to train the staff with the
software that will be implemented and operational in order to boost effective
operations with the system.
In conclusion and rendering the work place example, at hand is a quick hightech transformation that establishments must embrace in order remaining relevant
in business. In addition is the improvement of right cultural recognition, investments
in trainings, constructing database, top managerial support, proper and appropriate

software deployment that supports full e-procurement process thus leading to

successful establishments goal attainment
References
Basheka, B., Oluka, P. and Mugurusi, G. (2012). Adopting new approaches for public
procurement efficiency: critical success factors (CSFs) for the implementation of eprocurement in Uganda's public sector.IJPM, 5(6), p.712.
Dimitri, N., Piga, G. and Spagnolo, G. (2006). Handbook of procurement. Cambridge,
UK: Cambridge University Press.
Giunipero, L. , Handfield R. B. and Eltantawy, R. (2006).Supply managements
evolution: key skill sets for the supply manager of the future International Journal
of Operations & Production Management 26 (7) pp. 822-844
Johnson, P.F., Leenders, M. & Flynn, A. (2011) Purchasing and supply management,
14th edition: McGraw-Hill Higher Education
Mabert, V. A., Soni, A., & Venkataramanan, M. A. (2003). Enterprise resource
planning: Managing the implementation process. European Journal of Operational
Research, 146(2), 302314.
Pani, A. and Agrahari, A. (2007). E-procurement in emerging economies. Hershey:
Idea Group Pub.
Turban, E., Lee, J., King, D. and Chung, M.H. (2000), Electronic Commerce, Prentice
Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ