Tailored P2P advice within a month: how Royal Kaak got a grip on the purchasing process
Imagine: you're in the middle of preparing an ERP implementation. Then you discover that the new system does not offer all the purchasing functionalities that your organization needs. What do you do then? Royal Kaak faced exactly this challenge. Together with S2P & More, they identified the requirements, scenarios and the best software solution in less than a month. Below you can read what that process looked like.
Who is Royal Kaak?
For over 175 years, Royal Kaak has been one of the largest machine builders in the world in the bakery industry. This Dutch company - with offices in the Achterhoek and Brabant - designs and supplies complete production lines for large industrial bakeries worldwide. From silo to truck: Kaak has the right machine for every step in the production process.
What was Royal Kaak's challenge?
During the preparation phase of an ERP implementation, Royal Kaak encountered a bottleneck. Ewald Schaap, S2P Specialist at S2P & More, explains: “The Finance Department had just selected a new application for processing invoices. At the same time, Procurement concluded that the new ERP system did not have all the necessary functions. For example, communication with suppliers about purchase orders and order confirmations was too limited.”
This led to a series of concrete questions within the organization:
- Do we need to work with separate Procurement and Finance applications?
- Or do we set up as much as possible within the ERP system?
- What are our actual requirements?
- And which scenario best suits our organization?
Several Kaak entities were involved in the decision, which further increased the complexity. Flexibility and speed were therefore essential.
“The great thing about S2P & More is that we were able to switch quickly. The consultants have in-depth knowledge of P2P Best Practices and know the software solution market inside out. They delivered exactly what we were looking for. Where necessary, they made valuable interventions that noticeably improved cooperation within our team.”
How did S2P & More approach that?
S2P & More got to work right away. Within one month, appropriate advice was provided, based on a structured approach:
Retrieving requirements from everyone involved
Together with Procurement, Finance, Planning and IT employees, the consultants drew up a complete requirements document. In this way, all the needs of the organization became clear, including those of departments that normally do not sit at the table during a software selection.
Providing insight into P2P software opportunities
S2P & More identified what functionalities Purchase-to-Pay software offers and showed which solutions are in line with Royal Kaak's specific situation as a machine builder in the manufacturing industry.
Mapping and assessing IT scenarios
The possible scenarios — from a fully ERP-driven setup to a hybrid solution with a separate P2P application — were developed and weighed based on requirements, complexity and future-proofing.
What did the advice provide?
Through the advisory process, Royal Kaak got a clear and substantiated picture of what they needed. After targeted discussions with relevant market parties, the organization was able to confidently choose the most appropriate software support — without unnecessary delays in the wider ERP implementation.
The result: more control over the purchasing process, clarity about the IT architecture and a solid basis for further optimization of the Purchase-to-Pay chain.
Plan an introduction
Whether you're in the middle of an ERP implementation, or just want to know if your current purchasing process is still future-proof, S2P & More will help you out. From baseline measurement and requirements analysis to market orientation, software selection and implementation. Feel free to contact Ewald.
