Written by: Trade Interchange

Posted on: 25/06/21

National Picnic Week 2021

It’s National Picnic Week, which means the British public will be dusting down their baskets and getting out to the great outdoors for a good old-fashioned picnic – weather permitting, of course.

Since National Picnic Week was founded over a decade ago, the celebration has promoted the use of local open spaces over the warmer months of the year to enjoy one of the UK’s most enjoyable summer traditions. It seems to be working – it has been estimated that around 94 million picnics take place in the UK each year, and this accounts for just under £2.5 billion being spent on picnic food annually, according to the National Picnic Week website.

Not only are picnics a cost-effective way to meet with friends and family for a bite to eat in the great outdoors, but they are also a great opportunity to try a taste of something new and exciting. It can sometimes be a surprise to see what can be found at the bottom of a picnic basket! Much like the sandwiches and sausage rolls, suppliers can come in all shapes and sizes, and that is why it is vital to ensure compliance and undertake due diligence in your supply chain.

Paper-based supplier management is  no picnic

While picnics present people with the chance to chill out with some good food in the glorious (or not) sunshine, for procurement professionals, managing supplier information through a paper-based system or through spreadsheets is a demonstrably less relaxing experience.

A Trade Interchange survey revealed that 32% of businesses still use paper-based systems, while 33% are still using simple spreadsheets to manage their supplier information.

The is an obvious problem with these systems – it can be difficult to locate information when it is required, and there is no guarantee it will still be up to date.

Supplier Information Management software, such as ARCUS® SIM, allows users to collect, store, and manage all critical supplier information within a single cloud-based system. This provides a central, single source of supplier information, and this can be accessed remotely by all key stakeholders at any time and on any device.

Additionally, custom reminders can be configured to match each business’s requirements and timescales. These are automatically sent directly to the supplier to prompt an update to any information as required. If the information is not updated, ARCUS® SIM users can easily identify potential non-compliance in their supply chain.

ARCUS® SIM software ensures you are not one sandwich short of a picnic

There is no point in organising a picnic if you cannot make the time to actually attend it, but thanks to ARCUS® SIM, this will be no longer be a problem for procurement professionals. In Workmarket’s 2020 In(Sight) Report, 53% of employees believe that they can save up to 2 work hours a day through automation.

ARCUS® SIM automates the supplier on-boarding process by sending tailored questionnaires to each supplier to complete, and these can include intelligent branching questions and the ability to upload supporting documents.

This not only removes the need for procurement professionals to chase suppliers for this information but key industry documents are also scanned by artificial intelligence as they are uploaded.

This verifies that the information presented in the document matches the answers supplied in the tailored questionnaire and allows professionals to prioritise document checks.

ARCUS® SIM helps to make life a picnic, delivering supply base confidence through a streamlined solution.

What's In Your Picnic?

Picnics are a defining feature of a quintessentially British summer, but what supply chain risks are in your basket?

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SIM Factsheet

ARCUS® SIM allows all supplier information to be stored in a cloud-based system, with automated reminders that chase suppliers for incomplete or out-of-date information.

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SIM Video

Find out all you need to know about ARCUS® SIM in this short video.

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