Summary
A well-known supply chain management company, Systemcare Limited, identified the opportunity in 1999 to create a business requisition management portal which would serve the small to medium enterprise community (SME).

Earlier, with the help of ECC, Systemcare had created a working online environment for one of its prestigious integrated supplier clients as a foundation for a more extensive service offering. ECC was contracted to work closely with Systemcare executives to create the new business model. Within two months the team had mapped out the system requirements and completed the specification which would build a world-leading online procurement service.

The first full portal service was delivered in June 2000. The portal, serving both the demand and supply communities, is now supporting over 2,000 users with a £30 million annual portal bandwidth.

The Company
Systemcare Limited is part of the Freeminster Group. Various business units have been created as a result of its evolution into online provision including B2B solutions. The core product of the company is Mfour, a supply chain management solution.

The Business Need and Potential
With the advent of portals such as Ariba and I2, Systemcare identified the need for a requisitioning management system which could be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The portal was to be a true business-to-business service which would bring together the supply and demand communities of the mid-tier market. The demand for lower cost and greater choice was seen as the Holy Grail for business purchasing. Systemcare had the infrastructure, experience, core tools and partnerships to deliver this.

The base goals were to:

The Solution
Founded on Gestalt theory, the Requisitions.com web site adopts characteristics similar to aspects of human psychology. The idea behind Gestalt (German for 'shape') is that the whole is more than the sum of its parts. Another key Gestalt concept is that what happens to any part of the whole may be determined by the laws of the inner structure of the whole. In simple terms, people are comfortable with a staged process – so the solution adopted that strategy.

The seven elements of the business process are represented by the inner ring in the following diagram which is the basis of Requisitions.com.

The execution is straightforward. Deliver more value through the 'Learn' module which provides the personalisation to re-attract customers. This will lead to further 'Transactions'. The 'Deliver' and 'Support' modules then provide the feedback so often missing during a supply cycle. This is where there are important added-value opportunities beyond simple purchase.

The Technology
The e-procurement portal operates within an application service provider (ASP) model. This is a rentable online application running from a browser and it is similar to conventional business software. The tools included ASP programming using Java.

This removed the barriers to e-procurement for the expected demand community by providing a pay-as-you-go, ready-to-use service. Systemcare understands the transition from traditional procurement to online procurement. With ECC it created a 'transition framework' which provided the comfort and control required for new members, supply or demand, to join with ease.

The Value and Benefit
Although the media and economy are promoting the general change of mind-set needed for survival within the e-business market, the portal offers particular benefits to the online supplier and customer communities.

These are:

Systemcare can now boast a growing 2,000-user community, worldwide connections and expansion opportunities. It is exploring business opportunities in Australasia and South Africa and has laid the foundation of a much wider fulfilment service.

With the help of ECC, Systemcare has reinvented itself to realise the opportunities available through the adoption of new technology.