Increasing contract compliance at PON thanks to ISPnext

Providing insight into spend at various suppliers was the initial impetus for Pon to use ISPnext. Martijn initially wanted to map the spend for his own department, Pon's Automobielhandel. He also wanted to check that the suppliers receiving the highest payments were properly contracted.

In addition, ISPnext was also the solution to bundle the many administrative systems. "Precisely because we are such a decentralised company, there was no single system that could be used Pon-wide. We needed one system in which information from various administrative systems could be integrated to provide insights," Martijn explains.

Before Pon started using ISPnext, the company was using another, similar system. '’We eventually switched to ISPnext because of what we saw as better functionalities and better value for the price. This is a choice we are very happy with to this day."

Within ISPnext, Pon uses Contract Management, Spend Management and Vendor Rating. "Spend Management is something we set up Pon-wide," Martijn points out. Each Pon company can then specify whether it also wants to use Contract Management or Vendor Rating. It very much depends on the kind of Pon company as to whether it needs these features. Within Pon's Automobile Dealership, we use two functionalities."

Six years ago, Pon's Automobielhandel started Vendor Rating in ISPnext. "A different path than most organisations, which often start with gaining insight into spend or contracts first," Martijn says. "It was very interesting for us to gain insight into the performance of suppliers and to be able to come to better contract agreements with (new) suppliers based on these insights. In addition, our OEMs and factories also require a certain system for assessing suppliers and for us to act accordingly. That is exactly one of the reasons why we were the first to implement Vendor Rating at the time."

Implementing a new software solution is an intensive process, "Especially in an organisation like Pon that has to deal with so many accounting and administrative systems," Martijn says. "The implementation of ISPnext involved many people from each Pon company. A number of IT managers, a controller who can validate the data, you name it. Moreover, the implementation of new software is an activity to be completed in addition to normal operations. It was quite a challenge to keep up the speed in the implementation process and keep our people - despite their full schedules, of course - involved in the process."

Martijn is enthusiastic about the cooperation with ISPnext: "The cooperation with ISPnext is going very well and I am very satisfied. Projects are well managed, and the people who work there are very dedicated. They are always there for you, easily accessible and very involved in the project."

Now that Pon also wants to connect its bicycle group to ISPnext, Martijn realises again how involved ISPnext actually is. "ISPnext is giving great input for connecting this new group to our software. We come with a wish list and have indicated, for example, that we want specific and deeper insight at the product level. ISPnext is now working very hard to set that up properly. At Pon, we are very happy with the tool and the insight we have now."

Pon is an international trade and service organisation with several A-brands in its portfolio such as Volkswagen, Gazelle, Continental, MAN and Caterpillar. Pon has more than 450 branches in more than 32 countries. Pon employs more than 13,000 people.

Martijn ten Kroode joined Pon in 2011 as Procurement Manager at Pon's Automobielhandel in Leusden, one of Pon's business units. “Within Pon's Automobielhandel, I am responsible for all purchasing besides cars,” Martijn says. “This concerns items such as support services, parts and accessories to eventually sell cars. For example, we spend a lot of money on media and advertising agencies, IT services and external hiring. I also coordinate Pon's Procurement Board. This is a consultative body in which we meet with the various procurement managers of other Pon companies. From this board, we carry out Pon-wide processes through which we bundle our procurement needs, thereby increasing our purchasing power due to the greater volume."