How to Get 100% User Adoption of Your e-Procurement Solution

Welcome to #BasBites – your source for bite-size procurement info for your busy life. This blog tackles the most critical element to the success of an e-procurement project: getting 100% user adoption (without biting off more than you can chew in your procurement department).

Here’s the crux of the situation: if all your employees don’t use the e-procurement solution to order the goods and services they need to do their jobs, your solution is ineffective. 

Here’s the good news: It IS possible to get 100% user adoption across your enterprise, and it doesn’t involve biting off more than you can chew by trying to force an entire company of individuals into compliance. Enforcement does not work – people will only use the system because it is truly the easiest way to get what they need. You have to deliver a solution that fits into the way they already work – in the office and on-the-go – and supports their daily work life. Consider factors like:

• What steps in the process can be removed to save time and effort?

• How can processes be streamlined instead of simply adding automation to outdated, manual activities?

• What information does each user need within the workflow to make the right decision? (e.g. – other items available at lower prices; effect of a request on budget; opportunities to collaborate with colleagues on an order to save money; personal impact on company savings targets, etc.)

• Should the solution be configured for any industry or role-specific requirements? (e.g. – Field roles and healthcare workers have different needs than users in office locations).

• Is the user interface similar to ecommerce sites so that people will intuitively know how to navigate the solution?

Why user adoption is critical: When all indirect purchasing isn’t flowing through the system, it’s impossible to truly manage spending because of rogue buying behavior, surprise invoices and unexpected hits to budgets. That means you cannot produce savings and get the ROI from your e-procurement system that you were likely promised in the sales process. And worse, you’re continuing to police the organization instead of focusing on strategic procurement initiatives that drive business transformation.

How to get started: Read why Forrester says that “P2P specialists deliver rapid results by increasing user adoption” in The Forrester Wave™: eProcurement, Q2 2017, and learn how to achieve 100% user adoption in our eBook.