SOCIAL CONTRACTING: Answers to your questions about Selectica’s acquisition of b-pack
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Answers to your questions about Selectica’s acquisition of b-pack Written by David Bush Selectica has just announced the acquisition of b-pack, an industry leader in Purchase to Pay. Since the merger of Selectica and IASTA a year ago, it’s been our goal to provide customers with tailored end-to-end upstream and downstream supply management solutions integrated with enterprise-wide contract lifecycle management. With b-pack, it’s all now possible. We know this is an important step toward efficiency for global enterprises weary of managing multiple vendors in disconnected pieces.
As Chief Sales Officer responsible for global growth at Selectica, I get asked a lot of questions about the company’s strategy for supply management solutions. As part of the team working on this merger, we’ve had to answer many of our own questions. Here are a few of my answers. Q: What will this mean to Selectica’s ability to service new and current customers? A: We now have the capabilities to provide complete source-to-pay solutions to new customers as well as to over 350 existing client base. Conversely, we can now approach the b-pack base with sourcing and CLM—a winwin outcome for all parties. In fact, we are already discussing nearly a dozen joint opportunities with our current clients, as partners.
SOCIAL CONTRACTING: Answers to your questions about Selectica’s acquisition of b-pack
Page 2 Q. Does this impact how Selectica supports customers navigating the global marketplace? A: The b-pack presence across continental Europe complements the Selectica focus in North America and the UK. We’ll be able to provide coverage in additional time zones, languages and economies. Q. What additional capabilities does b-pack bring to Selectica? A: With the addition of downstream procurement into our portfolio, we now have even more opportunities to offer to our partner network on System Integration. Companies can choose Selectica as the single source for everything they need regarding enterprise contract lifecycle management, supply management, and the integration of the two. Or, they can choose a point solution to solve their immediate needs, then, add more functions in a phased-out approach. Q. Why acquire b-pack as your P2P procurement partner? A: Three things: First, they’re an industry leader; second, IASTA had a pre-existing partner relationship with them, prior to the merger with Selectica; and third, we share a common culture. As small, entrepreneurial companies we collectively possess a lot of innovation and mental toughness for getting things done. Selectica is a company in transition and having more talented and energetic people is a valuable addition. Q. Any final comments? A: I am personally looking forward to this addition to the Selectica family as an opportunity to get recommendations on wine and food from my new French colleagues. No offense to all the English people who I love knowing and working with, but let's say this is a quality addition to the menu choices. More details on the b-pack acquisition can be found here.