How Be Connected Helps Procurement Teams Make Smarter, Data-Driven Decisions
Public sector procurement teams often face tight renewal deadlines, limited supplier options, and increasing pressure to deliver cost savings while ensuring service continuity. Without data-driven insights, organisations can find themselves locked into reactive procurement decisions, renewing contracts without fully exploring cost-effective alternatives.
This is where Be Connected transforms procurement strategies. By providing market intelligence, supplier benchmarking, and direct access to peer organisations, it empowers teams to make smarter decisions.
Case Study: Financial Management Software Renewal
Background
A UK council was approaching the renewal of its Unit4 Business World financial management software contract, valued at £183,000 annually. The contract covered:
- 1,009 users
- ERP Core, Finance, Procurement & People Platform Services
- Hosting, support, and maintenance
- 4-year term (2021-2025), with renewal due by March 2024
Faced with an impending renewal deadline, the council had little time to explore alternative options or negotiate better terms.
How Be Connected Helped
By using Be Connected, the procurement team was able to:
✅ Identify Similar Contract Renewals
- Discovered 82 other public sector organisations using Unit4, many with contracts expiring within the next 12 months.
✅ Benchmark Supplier Costs & Market Trends
- Compared financial management software spend across the public sector, uncovering variations in pricing, contract terms, and supplier performance.
✅ Enable Collaboration & Aggregated Procurement
- Instantly identified key contacts within other public sector bodies facing similar renewal challenges.
- Facilitated direct engagement for knowledge-sharing, strategic procurement discussions, and potential group negotiations.
✅ Improve Supplier Negotiation Leverage
- Accessed real-time procurement intelligence to engage Unit4 and alternative suppliers with data-driven insights, rather than relying solely on existing contract terms.
The Results: From Reactive Procurement to Strategic Decision-Making
🔹 Stronger Negotiation Position – With real-world spend comparisons and insights into how others approached renewals, the council was able to engage suppliers more strategically.
🔹 Potential for Aggregated Procurement – Identifying similar organisations paved the way for group purchasing discussions, improving value for money.
🔹 Better Market Understanding in 10 Minutes – By reviewing the Financial Management Dataset, the council quickly gained clarity on public sector-wide spending patterns and supplier trends.
🔹 Access to Peer Insights – The council connected with organisations that had already upgraded their software, learning from their procurement strategies.
Why This Matters for Public Sector Procurement
Traditionally, procurement teams have worked in silos, lacking access to real-time data on supplier pricing, contract renewal trends, and potential partners for aggregation. This leads to missed opportunities for cost savings and strategic procurement improvements.
By leveraging Be Connected, public sector organisations can:
✔ Identify cost-saving opportunities across similar contracts
✔ Collaborate with other organisations to strengthen procurement power
✔ Benchmark spend and supplier performance in minutes
✔ Transform renewals from reactive decisions to strategic opportunities
Want to See How Be Connected Can Help Your Procurement Strategy?
Be Connected is empowering procurement teams across the public sector with real-time contract insights, supplier benchmarking, and collaboration tools.