When examining, implementing, or enhancing the configuration of your Vendor Management System, it’s imperative to understand the difference between “static” and “fluctuating” data. For example, the locations of an organization rarely change. Therefore that information can be loaded. However, in many organizations, the cost accounting information or purchase order for which contingent workers apply their time and invoices may frequently change; therefore, an integration would provide efficiencies and better alignment between the systems.
Involve your IT leadership, and they provide leadership, guidance, and counsel on all matters of systems integrations. Their role is to collaborate with the VMS Technology Partner Integration Specialist to facilitate and coordinate requirements gathering, specifications, and testing.
While a VMS system offer great efficiencies for a contingent workforce process, establishing integrations with an enterprise’s applications can provide
Cost Savings (i.e., consolidated invoicing, payment processing, and prompt pay discounts)
Greater Process Efficiencies (Decrease in error rates and improved task automation)
Increased Visibility
While VMS tools offer reporting as standard more organizations are exporting the data into their own data warehouses to marry the non-employee and employee data together, giving the organization better insights into their actual workforce costs and allow them
to plan for the total talent requirements of future initiatives more proactively.
As an example, a client with operations in New Jersey and Atlanta was able to look at their contractors and their employees in their IT organization. Out of habit, they were hiring lower-level IT support and helpdesk resources in the higher-priced labor market of New Jersey. Once they had that visibility, they could reallocate that work to Atlanta and reduced their costs by more than 10% in one group in one year.
In summary, utilizing your VMS system’s automation tool and integrating it with your enterprise systems can lead to process efficiencies that save time, money, and hassle.