Glossary
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Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) - is a form of outsourcing which involves the contracting of the operations and responsibilities of a specific business function to a third-party service provider.
Business to Business (B2B) - describes commerce transactions between businesses, such as between a manufacturer and a wholesaler, or between a wholesaler and a retailer. Contrasting terms are business-to-consumer (B2C) and business-to-government (B2G).
Buyers - A buyer is any person or organisation who contracts to acquire an asset in return for some form of consideration. When someone gets characterised by their role as buyer of certain assets, the term "buyer" gets new meaning: A "merchandiser" or buyer is a person who purchases finished goods, typically for resale, for a firm, government, or organization. (A person who purchases material used to make goods is sometimes called a purchasing agent.)
Catalogue - the complete range of a company's products and services available online.
Catalogue Management - Catalogue Management in the electronic marketplace is concerned with Business to Business (B2B) suppliers making an electronic catalogue of their products available for buyers to purchase from online.
Catalogue Search Engine - the underlying software that allows for buyers utilising an electronic marketplace to search the catalogue of goods and services using a variety of means. Typically a Search Engine will allow for keyword searches as well as pre-defined search terms.
Change Management - is a structured approach to transitioning individuals, teams, and organizations from a current state to a desired future state. The current definition of Change Management includes both organizational change management processes and individual change management models, which together are used to manage the people side of change.
CIPS (The Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply) - CIPS is an international organisation, based in the UK, serving the purchasing and supply profession. www.cips.org
Connectivity - in the context of eProcurement, refers to the use of computer networks to link different Procurement and Finance System to one another, and provide information resources between computer systems and their final users.
Contract - An agreement between a buying organisation and respective supplier. Transparency between a buyer and a supplier means that each can plan their business and know where they stand in the buying relationship.
Contract Management - Contract management or contract administration is the management of contracts made with customers, vendors, partners, or employees. Contract management includes negotiating the terms and conditions in contracts and ensuring compliance with the terms and conditions, as well as documenting and agreeing any changes that may arise during its implementation or execution. It can be summarized as the process of systematically and efficiently managing contract creating, execution, and analysis for the purpose of maximizing financial and operational performance and minimizing risk.
Document Management - relates to the storage and retrieval of paper and electronic documents.
Electronic Catalogues - the complete range of a company's products and services available online.
Electronic Commerce or eCommerce - consists of the buying and selling of products or services over electronic systems such as the Internet or other computer networks. Simply explained it is described as doing business electronically.
Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) - The exchange of documents/information between computers using telephone lines.
Electronic Hub or eHub - a commercial website that provides coordination and synchronisation services to eCommerce, its users or partners.
Electronic Invoicing or eInvoicing - the issuing of invoices by email or by other electronic means directly to a purchaser.
Electronic Marketplace or eMarketplace - This is a virtual area that enables companies and individuals to offer their goods or services for sale and enables people to purchase goods and services electronically. The Electronic Marketplace encompasses every type of purchase, from an individual buying a book, new clothes or a holiday online, to a council or government tender for a new building or motorway.
Electronic Trading - Electronic trading utilises information technology and the internet to bring buyers and sellers together. Traditionally buyers and sellers had to ring up and order, or post or fax purchase orders halfway across the world. Nowadays, commerce can be carried out all over the world, at any time of day or night, thanks to electronic trading.
Electronic Trading Network or Electronic Trading Community - Companies/individuals that make their goods or services available electronically, participating in a marketplace such as Zanzibar.
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) - Refers to any software that enables companies/organisations to integrate various functions and programs so that they are all interconnected and have the ability to ‘talk' to each other. The ProcServe Trading Network is software agnostic and can integrate with virtually any ERP system (e.g. SAP, Oracle...)
eProcurement - eProcurement (or Electronic Procurement) is the business to business (b2b) process of buying and supplying goods and services electronically using dedicated software, Enterprise Resource Planning, Electronic Data Interchange or via the internet.
FTR - Free Text Requisitions
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Interface - Connections between two systems (e.g., system-to-system)
Integration - Real-time data transfer between systems
Invoice - An invoice or bill is a commercial document issued by a seller to the buyer, indicating the products, quantities, and agreed prices for products or services the seller has provided the buyer.
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Management Information - in eProcurement is the collection and provision in various reports of the underlying Spend Data for an organisation.
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OPEN - OPEN (Online Procurement for Educational Needs) is the national programme that delivers better procurement in schools. OPEN is managed by the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) and delivered by ProcServe.
Open Catalogue Interface (OCI) - the xml format that SAP supports for punchout to catalogues
Oracle Application Group (OAG) - the xml format that Oracle systems support.
Buying Solutions is the trading arm of the Office of Government Commerce, which is itself an office of HM Treasury.
It provides public sector procurement professionals with a route to the products and services they need to maximise procurement efficiency and value for money. Its contracts and framework agreements offer substantial savings through significant buying power, economies of scale and strategic partnerships.
Rigorous tendering and evaluation processes ensure that products and services are checked for quality, price competitiveness, fitness for purpose and compliance with statutory requirements. These products and services are available through Buying Solutions framework agreements, managed services and other procurement arrangements.
More details are available on the website: http://online.ogcbuyingsolutions.gov.uk
ProcServe - ProcServe provides hosted managed solutions and services that enable customers to buy more effectively from their suppliers and suppliers to trade more efficiently with their customers. We deliver leading edge spend management, eProcurement and supply chain solutions that offer more flexible ways to deliver savings to a company's bottom line and gain control of all procurable spend.
ProcServe Trading Network - ProcServe provides of a portfolio of solutions and services that can be tailored to meet the needs of our customers. Whether you are looking to improve your procurement performance or enhance your customer facing supply chain, we can provide solutions that integrate with and add value to your existing investments and build your electronic trading network.
Procurement - Procurement is the process of obtaining the right goods or services at the right time at the right price. Procurement is usually carried out by organisations as a contract, and can be for small items that are bought regularly, such as stationery, or for long term partnerships such as a building project, or to implement a government policy.
Purchase to Pay - Purchase to Pay (P2P) is the term used to describe using internet based technology to pay for goods and services. It is the process of enabling buyers and suppliers in the electronic marketplace to take advantage of technology such as eProcurement and eInvoicing to make the buying and supplying processes more cost and time efficient.
Procure to Pay - is typically the name given to eProcurement Software that is used by an organisation to purchase their Goods and Services. In most cases a P2P System will utilise Purchase Orders and Invoices to take the process of purchasing up to the point of payment at which point there would exist some form of integration with a Finance System.
Procurement Outsourcing - is the transfer of specified key procurement activities relating to sourcing and supplier management to a third party - perhaps to reduce overall costs or maybe to tighten the company's focus on its core competencies. Procurement categorisation and vendor management of indirect materials and services are typically the most popular outsourced.
PunchOut (Including Double PunchOut) - Double PunchOut which gives buyers access to a suppliers website from the Marketplace and lets you bring back your shopping basket.
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Request for Quotation (RFQ) - is a standard business process whose purpose is to invite suppliers into a bidding process to bid on specific products or services. An RFQ typically involves more than the price per item. Information like payment terms, quality level per item or contract length are possible to be requested during the bidding process. In eProcurement an RFQ tool would allow for this process to be automated.
Request for Information (RFI) - is a standard business process whose purpose is to collect written information about the capabilities of various suppliers. Normally it follows a format that can be used for comparative purposes. An RFI is primarily used to gather information to help make a decision on what steps to take next. RFIs are therefore seldom the final stage and are instead often used in combination with the following: request for proposal (RFP), request for tender (RFT), and request for quotation (RFQ).
Request for Proposal (RFP) - is an invitation for suppliers, often through a bidding process, to submit a proposal on a specific commodity or service. A bidding process is one of the best methods for leveraging a company's negotiating ability and purchasing power with suppliers. The RFP process brings structure to the procurement decision and allows the risks and benefits to be identified clearly upfront. The RFP purchase process is lengthier than others, so it is used only where its many advantages outweigh any disadvantages and delays caused.
Shared Services - refers to the provision of a service by one part of an organization or group where that service had previously been found in more than one part of the organization or group. The key is the idea of 'sharing' within an organization or group. Shared Services is similar to collaboration which might take place between different organizations such as a Hospital Trust or a Police Force. For example adjacent Health Trusts might decide to collaborate by merging their HR or IT functions.
Strategic Sourcing - is an institutional procurement process that continuously improves and re-evaluates the purchasing activities of a company. It is one component of supply chain management.
Sourcing - refers to a number of procurement practices, aimed at finding, evaluating and engaging suppliers of goods and services.
Suppliers - A vendor, or a supplier, is a supply chain management term meaning anyone who provides goods or services to a company. A vendor often manufactures inventoriable items, and sells those items to a customer.
Supplier Adoption - Supplier Adoption is the process of overcoming buyers' and suppliers' barriers and objections to implementing eProcurement. As eProcurement and eInvoicing processes are adopted, the tangible benefits become more apparent to suppliers, and so the number of eProcurement objections is reduced.
Supplier Enablement - Supplier Enablement can be defined as the process of adding a supplier or other trading partner to the supply chain. For buyers, using Supplier Enablement ensures that suppliers can be effectively managed, and their performance assessed.
Trading Hubs - Trading Hubs, also known as Online Exchanges are websites where buyers and suppliers buy and sell goods and services online. Trading Hubs can be likened to an online shopping centre. They vary in size depending on the number of buyers and suppliers using them, and the products traded.
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UNSPSC - United Nations Standard Products and Services Code - A United Nations global standard that classifies products and services.
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xchangewales - The xchangewales (cyfnewidcymru in Welsh) programme, delivered by ProcServe and based on the Zanzibar Managed Service, will provide an all-Wales system that will allow every Welsh public sector organisation to find suppliers and order and pay for goods at a click of a button using eProcurement.
XML- eXtensible Mark-up Language - A language used to create syntaxes used as an international standard for passing data between applications, particularly those that communicate across the Internet.
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Zanzibar - Zanzibar Managed Service is the preferred UK public sector eProcurement solution. It is available under a framework agreement to all English, Wales and Northern Irish public sector organisations. For more information, please visit http://www.procserve.com/solutions-and-services/266/zanzibar.html
We are seeing a big change in the procurement process now. We are getting far better value for money from our purchases and orders are processed much faster and more effectively with the roll-out of Zanzibar across Imperial (formerly St. Mary's). 
Denis Kelliher , Associate Director of Purchasing, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust
