Why are Universities switching to Mercell CTM (Complete Tender Management) eProcurement platform? Read on to find out.
We have been asking our customers who have started running live tenders on Mercell why they took the leap to change from their legacy system to Mercell CTM. They have come up with some interesting reasons:
Reason #1 - Easy to use
Before Mercell CTM
Many of our customers found the old incumbent legacy system challenging in their day-to-day work, e.g. when navigating through the complicated layout of the previous system. It was difficult to get move from one step to the next, especially when they were under time pressure.
Others highlighted the struggle to get new colleagues or temporary staff up to speed due to the convoluted system they used before.
After switching to Mercell CTM
With Mercell CTM you can predefine the desired process templates based on purchasing needs and policies for your team members to easily choose from.
You can associate predefined checklists to the templates that guide the user or users of a team through the process steps. This makes it very easy for new members to adopt quickly and effortlessly.
As Antonio Ramirez, Senior Category Manager at LUPC put it:
"You have total control over the design of the checklists which makes it easy to use even for people who do not use the system frequently. The checklists allow users to simply follow the natural flow of the procurement process and to pick up at any time where they left off."
Read the whole interview with Antonio HERE
Good news to you! If you are preparing for the changes in public procurement (current 7 procedures reduce to only 3), then it will be a relief to know that Mercell CTM already allows our customers to create bespoke procurement procedures to match their needs.
The on screen help text and information basically replaces the need to scroll through user guides which are also available but let's admit, who has time to dive deep into a user manual nowadays? The on screen help text gives an always relevant and at a glance overview and explanation of key areas to the user.
Reason #2 - All in one place
Before Mercell CTM
The biggest and most time consuming task appeared to be the disjointed process of publishing tenders on the national platforms as per regulations. They also had to worry about multiple logins. They had to use a combination of systems and tools to be able complete all necessary steps of publishing a tender or simply keeping in touch with the suppliers bidding for a contract opportunity.
After switching to Mercell CTM
After switching to Mercell CTM, our customers can now seamlessly publish to Contracts Finder, FTS (Find a Tender Service) or TED (where it's still applicable) all in Mercell CTM. They do not have to leave the system or wait for confirmation from one before publishing to the other. All these steps, including the wait time as per regulations are built into CTM so the user can simply click through the checklist and complete the publication in a matter of minutes.
Customers like the broadcasting messaging function. They find it easy to sort the messages by time, subject and supplier, as well as the word search function. They can quickly view who has read their message, when and monitor the suppliers’ engagement in the complete audit trail.
The seamless integration of additional modules like Contract Management and Public Contract Register allows them to establish a single source of truth across the various departments. A single platform empowering buyers and contract managers to take up a strategic position within the organisation and comply with transparency requirements.
Reason #3 - Great value for money
★ In the current climate of “austerity” and value for money, customers want an optimum blend of an easy to use system, an enriching user experience, functionality and price. The Mercell CTM platform, awarded as the single eSourcing platform on the Universities framework: “….had a quality score 21% higher than the next nearest rival and was by far the most technically advantageous system.”
Any successful deployment and rollout of an eProcurement system requires high quality support to users. Our customers agree that the transition to Mercell CTM was smoother than expected and the Service Desk was great - always easy to get through to a real person in no time without the hassle of listening to lengthy automated recordings.
Let us leave you with the thoughts of Chris Hallahan, Senior Procurement Coordinator at Jisc.
“We chose CTM as the best combination of user experience, functionality and price on the market. Looking at each aspect individually, we noted that there are competitive products on the market, but not all tied up in a single package.”
Read the whole story about Jisc's experiences with Mercell CTM HERE
As a summary, the top 3 reasons why Universities switch to Mercell CTM are:
- Easy to use
- All in one place
- Great value for money
If you would like to find out about the opportunities for your organisation, get in touch.
Mercell UK (EU Supply Limited) is the single supplier of eProcurement System on the LUPC Framework Agreement ITS5058 LU.
