Interview with
Apleona Turkey Purchasing Director Mümin Tunaboylu:
COMPANIES SHOULD PRIORITIZE DIGITALIZATION IN PURCHASING
In our interview, Apleona's director of purchasing Mümin Tunaboylu raised the topic of digitalization in purchasing.
“Everyone I know in marketing has heard me say this: We need to purchase just like you need to sell a service or product. Meeting on common benefits is the most crucial factor.”
“We will now define it as a profession: Accurately purchasing a good or service entails doing it at the correct moment, at the correct location, with the correct amount, quality, strategies, and pricing. You can see that we have laid out a lot of facts in a logical order and last but not least included the pricing information.”
“You can't ask the other party to pay ten liras for a pen or anything else that's worth one lira. If you want to know where businesses really shine, the answer is when they figure out how to build this product while cutting costs as much as possible across the board, including for the raw materials, transportation, and labor.”
“Since the situation about the data is a catastrophe, I must admit that I am rather cynical about data in my role as a buyer. Why is this a catastrophe? So, I have always said this: Knowledge is power, and I have said that in every career and profession I have ever had. Getting one's hands on the data is a significant move, but what's really crucial now is not just getting the data, but processing it and making sense of it. “
“A customer who is smart about shopping will also be able to decline an offer. My request is quite pressing, mine is urgent.. Excuse me, but I need you to follow this specific procedure, rules etc. It would be great if procedures were present in every company, but alas, they are not. Because attempting to build certain things by oneself becomes necessary when digitization is not available.”
“Regarding the software and platforms you mentioned, I have used a few recently, and I have to say that we are pleased with them so far. However, we are actively looking for ways to improve them. Making the transition to digitalization and adapting businesses at this stage is, in my opinion, an issue that need immediate attention.”
“These systems can give me the data I need considerably more quickly the following day or the day after that. It has the potential to provide us with far more valuable data. In my mind, it works like this. Therefore, I believe that the most important thing is to give it a shot. In my opinion, with the help of these platforms, they can greatly enhance the value of their big data with no effort.”