26th July 2010: What is contract management?

Recently, I’ve seen a lot of threads in various forums where individuals are discussing what their perception of contract management is. Here are a few snippets of what these individuals have proclaimed:

 “Contract management is the proactive management of the fulfilment of contract obligations from inception to contract closure”

“If you don't write down, track and manage the complex business relationships we deal with on a daily basis they risk becoming unclear, confused and costly. Contract Managers are embedded into new deal teams and accounts to be the eyes, ears and voice to minimise this risk”

“Contract Management consists of all the various tasks and activities that enable an organisation to maximise the value of its recorded relationships”

I’ll be honest and admit that I came from an advertising background, and before I joined Software Europe I was very naive to just how in depth contract management can go and how crucial good contract management is to organisations.

There are many reports and statistics out there that support this statement and one I particularly like is from the Gartner Group:

“Contractual agreements govern 80% of business to business transactions.”

This shows that a huge amount of money is tied up in these contracts even if you are an SME or a £multi million global organisation! Whilst most organisations recognise the importance of negotiation and securing a great deal for their company, I do wonder how many of them actually track these contracts post signature. Which is imperative in making sure a contract is still delivering against the service level agreement and is still a viable option for the organisation.

In my opinion, contract management is an extremely important role within a company, and whilst there are an infinite number of ways to describe the role of a contract manager I believe that the role involves:

• Sourcing the chosen supplier
• Negotiating a good deal
• Ensuring all legal aspects are covered
• Managing the supplier relationship
• Monitoring and adhering to contract clauses
• Updating policies/insurances/licences etc
• Dealing with non compliance issues, and the list goes on

But in its simplest form contract management could be surmised as to minimise risk and maximise service/delivery/profit, and I believe Murphy’s Law sums things up succinctly; "If anything can go wrong, it will”.

Rachel Watmore, Spend Management Consultant

12th July 2010: We have a risk indicator of 1!

Last week we received confirmation that we have achieved D&B Rating 1; which simply means if you're looking for a stable, profitable company to do business with, we're an ideal candidate:

Dear Nora,

Congratulations!

On 5th July 2010 Software (Europe) Ltd, DUNS Number 50-336-1693, was registered as "D&B Rating 1". A risk indicator of 1 indicates that your business has a low probability of failure. To have achieved this during one of the worst economic times in recent years is a fantastic accomplishment. Only 15% of all UK companies are in this category.

In recognition of this, I am delighted to send you a certificate confirming your "D&B Rating 1" status! Please feel free to use this certificate in any of your own internal or external communications.

Tracey Turton, Marketing Executive

07 July 2010: We develop as technology develops

The increased growth of the internet has seen smartphone platforms become standard tools for more and more business workers. Apple has taken this a step further by launching the iPad which attempts to do almost everything your laptop can, whilst offering almost everything your smartphone can do as well.

The demand for apps on the iPad is high, and will play an important role in its success. There are already over 9000 apps available and this figure has been boosted by the existing iPhone apps that can be run on the iPad.

However, here at Software Europe, because expenses2010 and framework are accessible through a web browser, we have ensured that browser compatibility is an important factor during development which ensures that the systems are available to the widest audience on all platforms.

The iPad uses its own built-in web browser Safari and we can proudly announce that the features and functions of both expenses2010 and framework are fully usable through the large Multi-Touch screen and advanced capabilities of the iPad.

You can continue to submit, check and approve expense claims using expenses2010 with simple fingertip contact, and contract managers can use the iPad to view contract information, and even use it to review huge stacks of contract related documents without physically carrying them with you; and this is available with sharp text at a size that’s actually readable.

The photos below show the usability of both expenses2010 and framework. Click on the thumbnails to see each photo in more detail:

Learn more about expenses2010, our employee expenses management solution

Adele Briggs, Customer & Marketing Manager