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Marko Väisänen, CPO (Chief Procurement Officer) at Eltel Networks Finland, details his roadmap for the digitalisation of the company’s procurement and logistics function. Written by Anna McMahon Produced by Jennifer Davies
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7,200 EMPLOYEES
OF NET SALES
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LOCATIONS ACROSS FINLAND
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ELTEL NETWORKS IS A LEADING NORTHERN EUROPEAN PROVIDER OF TECHNICAL SERVICES FOR POWER AND COMMUNICATION NETWORKS, DELIVERING A COMPREHENSIVE RANGE OF SOLUTIONS, FROM MAINTENANCE AND UPGRADE SERVICES, TO PROJECT DELIVERY. ith operations in Finland, Denmark, Germany, Lithuania, Norway, Poland and Sweden, CPO, Marko Väisänen, is responsible for the company’s procurement function across Finland. He explains, “The group was founded in 2001. In 2018, the net sales were EURO 1.2billion, with a total of around 7,200 employees. We have two major business lines at group level – power and communications. Our customers include the main electric companies, so when they are building networks, we act as contractor, while also maintaining the networks, operating across both mobile and fixed networks. Our customers are the biggest
service providers here in the Nordics.” In Finland itself, there are two further business lines – build (handling all big projects for both power and communications) and smart solutions (including solar panels, electric car chargers and street lights). There are 1,500 employees working in over 60 locations across the whole of the country. Marko says, “We are present everywhere in Finland, as it is our responsibility to maintain the networks. We have to be there in order to give the best service to our customers.” As CPO of Eltel Networks Finland, Marko says the company has very little group-level function
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“DIGITALISATION OF PROCUREMENT HAS BEEN THE DRIVING FACTOR IN ENSURING CONTRACT-LEVEL SPECIFICATIONS AND DETAILS, AS AGREED WITH SUPPLIERS, ARE ACCURATE”
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because the business is local by definition. He explains, “We have what we would describe as local organisations in all countries. I am responsible for the procurement function here in Finland, but I have colleagues doing the same thing in Sweden, Norway and Denmark.” When it comes to procurement, the organisation is centralised, however. Marko says, “As a centralised function, we are giving this service to all business lines. Of course, we try to provide value, by, for example, combining suppliers for different business lines. In this way, we can generate more revenue, increase volume for purchases and reduce unit prices. If we are lowering costs, this, in turn, is good for the business lines.” By having locations all over Finland, this presents a challenge
for Marko and his team. He explains, “We have a small to mid-enterprise function for procurement. This means we are not present in every location. To service each and every one of them is therefore challenging. The centralised procurement function is in its early stages, so the business lines are still learning how to use it. Without this, if an agreement with a local supplier has been made, how do you get it centrally to see what has been agreed and that it is valid?” Digitalisation of procurement has been the driving factor in ensuring contract-level specifications and details, as agreed with suppliers, are accurate. Marko adds, “Digitalisation is one of my favourite topics. I started in 2019 at Eltel. What I found when I came here is that there was very little digitalisation of procurement. In the planning phase, agreements 7
MARKO SET ABOUT DE FOR THE DIGITALISATIO AND LOGISTICS AT ELT
FOUR MAIN C
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CONTRACT MANAGEMENT
SPEND MANAGEMENT
EVISING A ROADMAP ON OF PROCUREMENT TEL, DIVIDING IT INTO
CATEGORIES:
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SUPPLIER MANAGEMENT
PURCHASING
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were stored in an archive. Knowing where to store them was part of phase one. Having digitalised agreements in one place so you can see what has been agreed is very important.”
It is also easy to store them and makes the process so much faster. We did our calculations and the estimated employee time savings are 15 minutes per document.”
In addition, Eltel implemented Adobe e-signature platform Adobe Sign last year for the first time. Marko explains, “Being across many different locations, we had the problem of how to get signatures for contracts. We tested e-signatures for six months last year and found that is suits us very well. It is the simplest way of getting a signature for an agreement without having to copy, scan and send documents by email.
But, the path has not been plain-sailing. Marko says, “The work is ongoing. When I was creating the roadmap, the challenge was to see what we have and what kind of digital services and information we really need. We have to convince business lines that it is a good idea to have a solution as they are usually funding it, so we have to be sure that the applications or services add value.”
ELTEL IMPLEMENTED ADOBE E-SIGNATURE PLATFORM ADOBE SIGN LAST YEAR FOR THE FIRST TIME
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For supplier management, Marko plans to combine Eltel’s internal data with external data to offer one clear view. He says, “If you can see that a supplier is losing revenue and not making a profit anymore, but we are still buying from them, it should ring a bell that something is going wrong. We can then act and react
beforehand, not after the business has collapsed. These insights can help to protect the business. We are building the supplier dashboard to have one view of how our suppliers are doing.” And in terms of a timetable for the roadmap, Marko says he is taking a step-by-step approach.
“SUSTAINABILITY IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT. IN SECURING THE OPERATION OF POWER AND COMMUNICATION NETWORKS FOR A MORE SUSTAINABLE AND CONNECTED WORLD TODAY FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS, WE CAN MAKE A BIG IMPACT IN OUR BUSINESS”
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“TALKING ABOUT ELECTRIC CAR CHARGERS, THERE IS NO POINT IN HAVING ELECTRIC CARS WITHOUT CHARGERS. WE ARE TAKING STEPS AT SOCIETAL LEVEL, AS WELL AS LOOKING AT THE PRODUCTION CARS IN OUR OWN BUSINESS” Marko Väisänen, CPO
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The contract management part is in ready phase, so he is now moving towards the spend and supplier management phases. Marko explains, “For the procurement side, we are starting e-purchasing for installation material. We already have e-purchasing for indirect material, but we are now starting the planning and implementation for our projects and direct material. We hope we will fully implement this during Q3-Q4 2020.” As for the future, automation is a potential topic of
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conversation for Eltel Networks Finland. Marko says, “Everybody is talking about AI. If there is something we can use that will absolutely add value, only then are we interested. That is the next step for us.” Eltel Networks is partnering with ProSave for the e-purchasing of installation material, but when it comes to Eltel’s supplier management and dashboard, that is something they are building themselves. Marko adds, “One big reason for building it internally is we are utilising the software we are
ELTEL NETWORKS IS PARTNERING WITH PROSAVE FOR THE E-PURCHASING OF INSTALLATION MATERIAL
Streamline procurement in construction Want to reduce spend and improve procurement operations? ProSave streamlines procurement in construction by connecting field employees, back-office managers, suppliers and your ERP system. We look forward to serving you.
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“THERE ARE LOTS OF SUSTAINABLE ACTIONS WE ARE TAKING HERE AT ELTEL IN ANSWER TO OUR CUSTOMERS’ REQUIREMENTS”
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already using in other reporting. We are not bringing in any new reporting software.” As a final point, Marko is keen to stress Eltel Networks’ strong focus on sustainability. He concludes, “Sustainability is extremely important. In securing the operation of power and communication networks for a more sustainable and connected world today for future generations, we can make a big impact in our business. Talking about electric car chargers, there is no point in having electric cars without chargers. We are taking steps at societal level, as well as looking at the production cars in our own business. There are lots of sustainable actions we are taking here at Eltel in answer to our customers’ requirements.” For further information on Eltel Networks, visit www.eltelgroup.com
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Laturinkuja 8, 02650 ESPOO
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