News and Updates

At Mercell, we’re working hard to make the bidding process easier, always improving our products and services to help you work smarter, not harder. In April, we rolled out some new updates for Mercell Bidding, primarily around how you view and search for notices.Let’s dive into the updates: Find a Tender notices are now available in Notice Viewer You can now more easily search and filter opportunities in My Opportunities Discover the updates todayFind a Tender notices can be opened in Notice ViewerPreviously, we would show you Find a Tender notices in a specific format, and the original notice would be missing from our Notice Viewer. Now suppliers can see the full details of the original Find a Tender notices in Notice Viewer. This is how Mercell Bidding can help youClicking on a Find a Tender notice will open it, letting you see and read all the details as neededHere’s why it matters to youSuppliers can now more easily read information in notices and opportunities.Search and Filter options added to My OpportunitiesPreviously, suppliers were unable to search through and filter the items they had saved in My Opportunities. This made it difficult to find specific notices and information if you’d saved a lot of tenders and opportunities We’ve now enabled search and filter options in My Opportunities.This is how Mercell Bidding can help youOpen the My Opportunities page and click the Search & Filters button on the right hand side of the page. From the options that appear you can search for keywords, contracting authorities and others You can also filter by location, opportunity type, deadline, language, and CPV codes, to name a fewHere’s why it matters to youSuppliers can more easily find their saved opportunities in the My Opportunities page by using the new filtering and search options. Filter by deadlines to never miss out on an opportunity, or search for a specific keyword to find certain opportunities.Discover the updates todayExperience streamlined bidding. Log in now and explore the improvements. Discover the benefits for yourself.Do you have any feedback, help or questions? Join the conversation and share your thoughts

At Mercell, we’re working hard to make both the tendering and bidding processes easier, always improving our products and services to help you work smarter, not harder. In April, we rolled out new updates for Mercell Tendering, primarily around UK notices and our AI Profile Builders for suppliers.Let’s dive into the updates:Added support for new UK notices  UK1 - Pipeline notice UK5 - Transparency notice UK6 - Contract award notice UK7 - Contract details notice UK10 - Contract change notice UK11 - Contract termination notice UK12 - Procurement termination notice Added allowance for sequencing of UK formsAdded support for new UK noticesNew UK notices have become mandatory to use in public tenders from April 1st. With our latest update we have added support for several new UK notices to enable our buyers to publish all notices supported by the MeForms solution, ensuring compliance for all relevant forms. This is how Mercell Tendering can help youUK buyers will be able to open up a specific UK form, fill out the necessary fields, and publish the right information to the “Find a tender” page.Here’s why it matters to youBeing able to publish any form required by UK legislation will enable our buyers to publish all notices supported by the MeForms solution. This will make the solution compliant to offer a publication method for all relevant forms.Added sequencing of UK forms and noticesIn addition to support for the new UK notices, we’re also adding sequencing of these forms and notices to the platform. In practice, this means that only certain notices can be published after another, making it easier for you to create the correct notices in the same procurement. For this addition we are following guidance given by the UK government.This is how Mercell Tendering can help youAs you create notices for your procurement, you’ll only be able to create specific notices if the correct previous notice has also been created. You’ll be guided towards the proper forms and notices by the user interface in Mercell TenderingHere’s why it matters to youThanks to this new setup you will be prevented from making mistakes when choosing which forms and notices to publish for your procurement.Smaller improvement(s)Removed irrelevant banners for upgraded customersDiscover the updates todayExperience streamlined bidding. Log in now and explore the improvements. Discover the benefits for yourself.Do you have any feedback, help or questions? Join the conversation and share your thoughts.

At Mercell, we’re all about making the bidding process easier and we’re always improving to help you work smarter. This time, we’re introducing two updates: the Market Intelligence dashboard for deeper market insights and AI Budgets in Finland and Norway to identify early investment plans.Let’s dive into the updates: Stay ahead with the new Market Intelligence dashboard Say hello to AI Budgets in Finland and NorwayDiscover the updates todayStay ahead with the new Market Intelligence dashboardIf you don’t know what’s happening in your market, it’s hard to stay competitive. You risk missing out on contracts, can’t see who’s winning what, and don’t know how your competitors are performing. That changes with this release. With the new Market Intelligence dashboard, you align your strategy with market trends, evaluate your market position and identify key buyers effectively. This is how Mercell Bidding can help youGet a full overview of supplier wins, buyer activity, and contract trends.  Analyse data from different markets: Drill down into charts, graphs, and tables to get detailed insights about suppliers, contracts, and buyer relationships. Save your filters to quickly access the data you care about mostHere’s why it matters to youTo stay competitive and win more contracts, you need to understand what’s happening in your market. With the Market Intelligence dashboard, you can see who’s winning deals, how they’re performing, and where new opportunities are emerging. Knowing how competitors are doing and who buyers are working with helps you make smarter decisions, spot trends early, and focus your efforts where they count most.Say hello to AI Budgets in Finland and NorwayMunicipalities publish their budgets just once a year. These documents include valuable information about upcoming public investments. But finding the right documents and data can be challenging. Until now. With AI Budgets, Mercell Bidding does the heavy lifting for you. It finds the right documents and turns it into actionable insights. So no more scrolling through websites or opening one PDF after another.This is how Mercell Bidding can help youAI Budgets automatically scans municipal websites for new budget documents.  Identifies the relevant ‘investment budget’ section in each budget document and extracts key details.  Adds CPV codes to help match it to your business, so you easier identify if this is a relevant opportunity for you. The extracted data gets stored into a spreadsheet. Here’s why it matters to youWith this release, you’ll get a full view of public investments plans – all in one place. That means, it’s easier to spot new opportunities early, act fast, and no more missed chances. You can decide with more confidence whether it’s an opportunity worth bidding on. Smaller improvement(s)You’ll now get notified when someone replies or updates a comment on a business opportunity. You can also turn on e-mail notifications in the  Notification settings.Discover the updates todayExperience streamlined bidding. Log in now and explore the improvements. Discover the benefits for yourself.Do you have any feedback, help or questions? Join the conversation and share your thoughts.    

This release helps you stay focused and move faster. From tracking tenders to collaborating with your team. With a new homepage, improved monitoring email, and real-time search, you’ll find and manage the right opportunities with ease. Let’s dive into the updates: Streamlined collaboration by sharing and commenting on an opportunity  Brand-new homepage: all your opportunities in one place Track relevant business opportunities smarter Smaller improvement(s) Discover the updates todayStreamlined collaboration by sharing and commenting on an opportunityNow, when an interesting business opportunity appears, you can comment and share it directly with your colleagues in Mercell Bidding. No more scattered emails or external documents. Your team can comment, discuss, and collaborate in one place, ensuring a faster, more organised collaboration.This is how Mercell Bidding can help youSharing and discussing business opportunities just got easier. With the new collaboration features in Mercell Bidding, your team can stay aligned right inside the platform.Easily share a business opportunity with colleagues using their email address or by selecting them from the user list in Mercell Bidding. Receive notifications when someone shares or comments on an opportunity. All published comments are visible to your organisation. You can create, edit, or delete your own comments at any time.Here’s why it matters to youInstead of juggling emails, chats, or external documents, your entire team can now share, comment, and align directly within Mercell Bidding when a relevant business opportunity appears. You’ll stay organised, reduce miscommunication, and speed up decision-making, so you can focus on identifying and winning the right opportunities, together.Brand-new homepage: all your opportunities in one placeLog into Mercell Bidding and discover your brand-new homepage. Designed to keep you focused on the relevant business opportunities for you. Get a clear overview of the opportunities that matter and instantly access saved tenders, invitations, active bids, and past submissions. This is how Mercell Bidding can help youThe new homepage is your go-to hub for managing opportunities with ease. It’s designed for keeps everything organised in four clear tabs:Saved: All the opportunities you’ve saved from the Explore page or Monitoring Inbox. Invitations: Buyer invitations to tenders you still need to accept or reject. Active Bids: Tenders you’re monitoring for the outcome or planning to submit your bid.  Past Bids: Full history of your previous bids, ready to revisit when needed.Here’s why it matters to youThis brand-new homepage puts the most relevant business opportunities at your fingertips. Quickly review, take action, and track progress of various opportunities without searching through emails or lists. All in one place. Track relevant business opportunities smarter Spotting the right opportunities is now easier than ever thanks to an improved monitoring e-mail and enhanced search functionality in your monitoring inbox. The new email layout is clearer and better aligned with the platform, making it easy to scan and prioritise. And with a real-time view and instant results in your inbox, you can now search, filter, and revisit tenders the moment they match.This is how Mercell Bidding can help youWith a clearer structure and better tools, you can quickly find, filter, and act on what matters most.Improved monitoring e-mailMatches grouped by profile and sorted by nearest deadline Clearly split into Tenders, Upcoming, Investments, and Expiring Contracts Direct links to full profiles or specific opportunities Up to 100 relevant matches per emailReal-time view in monitoring inbox: Easily search in your monitoring inbox through the search bar.  Quickly filter opportunities by date or refine your results with ‘More filters’ for a tailored view.Here’s why it matters to youWith a clearer monitoring email and real-time search in your inbox, you get a faster, more organised way to track the opportunities that matter. Instantly filter, scan, and act—so you never miss a match and stay one step ahead in your tendering process.Smaller improvement(s)New users can now build their monitoring profiles faster with the help of an AI-powered profile builder suggesting relevant keywords and CPV codes before signing up. A smoother user experience with improved font size and visualisation of tables.  Support pages are now available in Finnish and Baltic languages, making it to get help in your language. Updated Swedish and Norwegian translations offer a clearer, smoother experience in Mercell Bidding. Admins now have better visibility into user roles with a new column added to the organisation management overview.Discover the updates todayExperience streamlined bidding. Log in now and explore the improvements. Discover the benefits for yourself.Do you have any feedback, help or questions? Join the conversation and share your thoughts

From the Procura+ website:The Procura+ Awards highlight sustainable, circular and innovation procurements and tender procedures and give visibility to the most dynamic, forward-looking and innovative public authorities and their initiatives.Former winners include the Norwegian Central Procurement Body for Sustainable Procurement of the Year, in addition to Malmö, Lisbon and Utrecht for innovation and sustainability.Applications for this year’s awards are now open, but you’ll have to be quick: the deadline for applying expires March 31st at 23:59 CET. Any public or semi-public authority can apply (within the meaning of Directive 2014/24/EC or Contracting Entity within the meaning of Directive 2014/25/EC, located in any EU Member State, EEA country or EU candidate or accession country and worldwide for category 3). You do not need to be a Procura+ participant to enter the competition.You can read more about the Procura+ Awards and how to apply by heading to procuraplus.org.

At Mercell, we’re committed to making tendering easier and more efficient for you. In this release, we’ve focused on ensuring UK regulation compliance and enhancing your user experience through several improvements. Let’s dive into the updates:UK: Publishing your notices to Find a Tender Service and Contracts Finder Smaller improvement(s) Discover the updates todayUK: Publishing your notices to Find a Tender Service and Contracts FinderIn February 2025, the UK will introduce new procurement regulations. However, procedures like Dynamic Purchasing Systems and Framework Agreements that were created under the old rules, notices must still comply with the previous regulations.With this release, we’ve created an interim solution. When creating a notice in Mercell Tendering, you can choose to publish these notices to Find a Tender (FTS) and optionally Contracts Finder depending on the value (above or below the threshold).This is how Mercell Tendering can help youWhen creating a notice, you’ll see options based on the contract value: Above the threshold: Publish the notice to FTS and optionally to Contracts Finder. Below the threshold: Publish the notice exclusively on Contracts Finder. The form’s editor includes additional non-mandatory sections that only apply to Contracts Finder. The rest of the information that you’ll need to fill out is the same for both FTS and Contracts Finder.  Once published, notices move to the ‘Active’ folder. Edits in the notice are simple, and any updates automatically create a modification notice. The information will be changed accordingly on FTS and Contracts Finder. Here’s why it matters to you Write notices with confidence, knowing they will comply with the correct regulations. Mercell Tendering’s single form approach saves you time while ensuring compliance with both FTS and Contracts Finder requirements. With this release, you are enabled to prepare, submit and publish your procurement notices more efficiently.Smaller improvement(s)UK: Improved translations throughout Mercell Tendering to make your experience more intuitive and user-friendly. Translation updates for the Swedish and Norwegian languages are also on their way.  With this update, you’ll find direct links when you log in, giving you easier access to Mercell Tendering and other modules you use. The ‘Get help’ button leads you directly to the support page in your local language for assistance. In Mercell Bidding, suppliers can now find German tenders with low value and national tenders published in Öffentliche Vergabe.  Discover the updates todayExperience streamlined tendering. Log in now to explore the improvements. Discover the benefits for yourself. Do you have any feedback, help or questions? Join the conversation and share your thoughts.

At Mercell, we’re simplifying your bidding process so you can focus on opportunities that matter. With pre-selected options for monitoring profiles and expanded access to tenders in Germany and Denmark, finding the right opportunities has never been easier. Let’s dive into the updates:Quick and easy setting up your monitoring profile with pre-selected opportunity types Smaller improvement(s) Discover the updates todayQuick and easy setting up your monitoring profile with pre-selected opportunity typesSetting up your monitoring profile in Mercell Bidding just got easier. With so many opportunity types, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. That’s why we have simplified the process.This is how Mercell Bidding can help you  In the ‘Opportunity types’ section, we have already pre-selected all relevant options for your profile based on your permissions and/or subscriptions. Here’s why it matters to you The pre-selected opportunities will save you time and remove any guesswork. By pre-selecting the opportunity types, you are ensured to get all the business opportunities that matter - without missing a thing.Smaller improvement(s)In Mercell Bidding, it’s now possible to find all low value and national tenders published in Öffentliche Vergabe, in addition to German EU tenders.    Denmark’s new public procurement platform, MitUdbud, is now integrated with Mercell Bidding. Notices published on MitUdbud are also accessible in Mercell Bidding. Now, you’ll be able to see all the business opportunities in one place. After admins have acquired a subscription or add on that includes Scope, they can now effortlessly select the specific geographical regions for Tender Discovery they want to add to their subscription. This update lets you tailor your regions to monitor, search, and discover tenders yourself.Discover the updates todayExperience streamlined bidding. Log in now and explore the improvements. Discover the benefits for yourself.Do you have any feedback, help or questions? Join the conversation and share your thoughts.

Happy Little Christmas Eve, Connectors!Welcome back to the Mercell Advent Calendar, where we share valuable information and best practices from us here at Mercell.This week, we’ll be sharing a summary of our 24 Days of Mercell from LinkedIn. If you didn’t know, we’ve been posting a daily dose of insights and tips from Mercell on our LinkedIn page during the month of December. Today we’re sharing the very best of these to keep you informed about public procurement trends and set you up for business success.As the end of the year is coming up, now is the perfect time to prepare for next year’s procurements. According to our data, March is usually the busiest month for public procurement in Scandinavia. Around 13% of all tenders published happen around March. December is a great time to strategically plan next year’s public sales but checking public contracts ending in 2025.And speaking of next year: did you know that summer is not as quiet as you might think! Although July and August are vacation months for a lot of companies, they also account for around 7% of annual tenders published each month. It might be worth keeping an eye out during the summer to avoid missed opportunities.Our data also shows that proactive suppliers win more business. Over 40% of public tenders received just a single bid in the year of 2021. We’ve also seen that the average number of bidders per tender halved during the ten year span between 2011 and 2021, dropping from 5.7 to 3.2 average number of bidders per tender. This means there’s now less competition, not to mention a greater chance for your bids to stand out. There’s also greater opportunities for new suppliers to enter the market!Another thing we’ve noticed is that public buys will often reuse the same tender criteria. If you’re a supplier, you can start preparing for upcoming tenders by reviewing past tender documents on platforms like Mercell. This will not only increase your chances of success, but also help you save time in the future.Finally, it’s important to note that nearly 50% of tenders focus on the best quality-price ratio, and not just the lowest price. This is something we’ve seen after analyzing over 100,000 tender evaluation criteria across the Nordics over the last 3 years.So how to take advantage of all these insights? Right now, you can find over 1000+ below-threshold tenders across Mercell platforms. Most public business happens below national threshold and so aren’t required to be published. These hidden opportunities can be difficult to find, but can be explored with Mercell!A lot of tenders lack critical details, making it difficult for suppliers to find the right opportunities. Our data ensures Mercell customers discover the right tenders, creating more opportunities for both buyers and suppliers. In 2024, Mercell enriched tenders with over 1,000,000 data points to help buyers and suppliers achieve better matching. Mercell’s embedded AI can also help you assess which tenders are relevant to you and your business. With this new feature you can save time to focus on writing great bids instead of sifting through complicated tenders.That’s it for the Mercell Advent Calendar this year! We hope you’ve gained some valuable knowledge from this series of articles that you can use in your future procurements. Don’t forget you can also check out our previous articles in the Mercell Community.

Hello Connectors,Welcome back to the Mercell Advent Calendar! It is the second Monday of December so we’re back with another article where we’re sharing valuable information and best practices from us here at Mercell. This week we’ll be highlighting some of the tools and collaboration features in Mercell Tendering that allow you to collaborate with other users.Mercell Tendering offers many different tools and features you can share with other users within your company or organization. These are building blocks such as pre-saved texts, documents and templates that let other users create and run their notices. Administrators can manage these for their organization.TemplatesWhen using Mercell Tendering you can create templates from existing notices, to use as the basis for new notices. These can be used within your own procurement unit or shared with other procurement units, giving you greater flexibility and control when setting up a shared template.More information on templates, and how to create them, can be found in the Mercell Knowledge Base.Criteria LibraryIn the criteria library you can create and group criteria templates for use in both procurement and suitability requirements. You can select these criteria groups for any request for quotation. The criteria library is accessible to other users in your organization for use in your own notices.You can learn more about the Criteria Library and how it works in our Knowledge Base.Pre-saved TextsYou can create pre-saved texts for use in tender requests, procurement decisions, contracts, protocols and auctions. We recommend using this to create standardised copy templates or canned answers that can be re-used multiple times. All pre-saved copy is available to all procurement personnel in the organisation.Pre-saved copy can be used in appropriate text fields in notices, and can even be edited when added to a notice. Any edits will then only apply to the specific document and won’t affect the original copy in your library.You can read more about this in our Knowledge Base.Internal DiscussionsBy selecting “Internal discussions” users within the same organization can leave internal comments and messages in connection with competitions. You can even attach attachments to your messages from your computer, or subscribe to email updates related to the conversation. Please note that discussions are tied to each Request for Proposal and won’t be copied to new tenders.For the full breakdown of the internal discussions functionality, check out our Knowledge Base.That’s it for this week’s advent calendar article. Please let us know below if you have any questions or comments. We would love to hear from you! Check back again next week for our final article

Hello Connectors,Welcome back to the Mercell Advent Calendar! Today is the third Monday of December, so we are back with another article. If you’re new here, the advent calendar is where we share valuable information, helpful tips and best practices from us here at Mercell.This week we’ll be discussing your Mercell account and what to do if you get stuck while logging into it.No matter which Mercell product or service you’re using, it all begins by logging into your account. If you don’t have an account, there’s usually a registration option somewhere on the page where you log in. Today we’re assuming you already have an account and are using Mercell’s products and services.If you’re unable to log in, make sure you’re trying to log into the correct platform. Mercell has many different products under its umbrella, so it is possible to get things mixed up. Try again just to be safe, and make sure you’re using the right username and password.If the issue persists and you’re not getting access to your account, the next move is to request a password reset. There will usually be a link on the login page to begin this process. If you already have an account registered with Mercell you should get an email with instructions for how to reset your password.Once you’ve created a new password you can then log in using your new details!In some cases when you request a password reset, you might get a message saying your account doesn’t exist, or you might not get a reset email. In that case you may be trying to log into the wrong account, the wrong platform, or you’ll have to create a new account.When creating a new account, there may be situations where you get an error message stating “a company with the same company name, organization number or administrator already exists”. If this happens you have to reach out to our customer service team or a customer success manager via email - you can’t share this kind of company information over the phone.Remember, you can always head to our Knowledge Base to look up additional information, or ask questions in the Mercell Community if you need help with logging in.That’s it for this week’s advent calendar article. Please let us know below if you have any questions or comments. We would love to hear from you! Check back again next week for our final article

It’s the first Monday of December and we are delighted to be kicking off the first part of our Mercell Advent Calendar.This is a series of articles where we’ll be sharing valuable information, good to know tips and best practices from us here at Mercell. We’ll be posting a new article every Monday throughout December until Christmas Eve, so don’t forget to check back every week!This week we’ll be highlighting our Knowledge Base of support articles and how you can find them when you need them.How to Find Support Articles in the Knowledge BaseOur support team here at Mercell have put together a plethora of support articles that live in the Knowledge Base. These explain everything from how to optimally use our products and services to how to solve or overcome potential issues.This repository of knowledge is conveniently located on a single page: support.mercell.com. In this hub you will find support pages listed by product and country. Click on your specific product and country to get started!From here you have three options: you can head to the Mercell Community (which is where you’re reading this article, hi!). You can contact our support team directly, or you can access the Knowledge Base. In this particular case we’re heading to the English language Knowledge Base for Mercell Tendering and Bidding. From here you’ll see an overview of all the different support articles available in this particular part of the Knowledge Base. The articles will usually be grouped by categories on the left side of the screen. You can also use the search feature to look for the specific articles you need. Just start typing in a keyword in the search bar and the search engine will handle the rest.Once you’ve found the article you’re looking for, simply click it to get started.How to Find Support Articles in the Mercell CommunityThe Mercell Community has a direct connection to the Knowledge Base, letting you quickly find support articles from the Community. While using the Mercell Community, locate the search bar at the top of the page. Type in a specific product or keyword and the federated search will automatically pick out the most relevant articles and display them in the dropdown menu. If you hit the Enter key after typing in your search (or clicking “VIEW ALL”) you will be redirected to a new page where you can see even more articles. You can then find the relevant article from the list. Easy peasy!And there you have it! You should now know how to find our Knowledge Base and how to access its support articles, both from the Knowledge Base and the Mercell Community.Don’t forget to check back in next week for another advent calendar update.

Dear Connectors,We are very happy to announce that you can now keep up with Mercell’s products and services through our brand new Status Page!This status page will live on the Mercell Community and can be access through the link above, or by clicking “Status page” in the banner at the top of the page. From here you can see the response time and current operational status of our Mercell products and services. We will also use the page to post manual updates in case anything happens. You can also go to status.mercell.com to head there directly.If you want to, you can subscribe to Status Page updates by clicking the “Subscribe” button. When subscribed you will be updated by email whenever there changes to the status page.Please let us know what you think and if you have any feedback!

Do everything right from the startIn public procurement, there is no room for delay. You are not given the opportunity to submit additional information. The deadline for submitting a bid is a strict deadline. If you are even one minute late, you have missed your chance. In other words, it's important that you get everything right from the start. So when you start planning to submit your bid, it's important to double-check the tender documents several times, so you don't miss any crucial information. There can be a lot to think about, so we've put it all together in a checklist for you.Good luck now! Step 1. Go through the procurement documents several timesRead through the procurement documents calmly, several times. Feel free to make notes of relevant information requested, must-have requirements or anything else that is good to know right away. There are many details, criteria and requirements that are important not to miss in your tender. What is the purpose of the tender?  Is there anything that stands out, that is particularly important to answer in the clearest possible way?  What do you, as a supplier, need to talk about and support with documentation?  Requirements and wishes may be scattered in the documentation, make sure you go through everything carefully and write down what the buyer wants to know. Make your own checklist of the requirements that need to be answered in the tender documents, which you can then easily tick off to ensure you don't miss anything important that needs to be included. Step 2: Start early and make a timetableSubmitting a tender can be time-consuming, so make sure you start well in advance. Make your own timetable, planning for important dates and when different documents need to be ready. Some tenders require third-party documentation, so it may take extra time to get everything in place. In the procurement documents you will usually find the following elements: Administrative conditions Requirements for the supplier Requirements for the subject of the procurement Basis for evaluation Contract terms and conditions Contract monitoring For your own convenience, you may want to use these as headings and then summarise under the headings important details that you should not miss in the tender. Step 3. Tender deadline - when is the deadline for submitting your tender?We cannot remind you enough to start on time. The deadline for submission is a strict deadline. If the contracting authority is to consider your tender at all, the minimum requirement is that it is submitted on time. As a general rule, tenders must be submitted no later than 23:59 on the last day of the deadline.It may be that the contracting organization has chosen a longer deadline than the legal minimum, in which case there is no obstacle to specifying a different time. Make sure to double-check the deadline several times, so that you don't spend all your time and effort creating your tender unnecessarily - which it will be if you submit it late.  Step 4. Ask questions early in the processDo you have any questions about the documentation? Make sure to ask questions early in the procurement process if there is anything you are unsure about and need clarification on, so that the buyer has time to answer.Contact the buyer in the way you want, usually via the Q&A function in the procurement system, to get answers to your questions. Pay attention to when the deadline is for asking questions.Remember that the general rule is that the questions asked by a tenderer and the answers given by the contracting organisation during the procurement procedure should be made available to all tenderers and other stakeholders.Do not confuse questions during the procurement with a pre-procurement dialogue. A proactive pre-procurement dialogue with the procuring entity takes place in the way you/you want and has no formal requirements. This means that other potential suppliers do not automatically have access to your dialogue. Step 5. Make it as easy as possible for the buyerThe buyer should review your tender and the tenders of others, i.e. your competitors, at the same time. It is important that you write a clear and easily understandable tender. Do what you can to make it easier for the buyer to get a clear overview. Clarify any terms and abbreviations. Answer what is asked for, avoid unnecessarily long and complicated explanations.  Do not refer to external sources and web links, but make sure that the buyer gets all the information directly in your tender. It may seem unnecessarily strict with the structure, but it is incredibly frustrating for the buyer to have to search for relevant information in a mess. Many suppliers neglect this, even if you are not judged on how structured you are as a supplier, it gives good signals to the contracting organization about how you are to work with.  Step 6. Be clear that your company meets all requirementsYou need to be thorough, clear and not sloppy when answering all the questions in the procurement documents. Make sure it is clear that your company meets all the requirements, and clearly describe how you meet all the must-haves, should-haves and other evaluation criteria to get the best possible result. Pay particular attention to your compliance with the 'shall' requirements, which are mandatory.It is important to remember that regardless of the evaluation basis of the tender, there are always mandatory requirements to be met. There may also be criteria relating to quality, environmental characteristics, competence, delivery time, guarantee, service and follow-up, etc. By highlighting how well your company meets these criteria in the tender, there is a chance that your tender will win even if you do not have the lowest price. Therefore, value all the requirements in the tender equally, whether they are mandatory or not. Step 7. Double-check all information before submitting your tenderMake sure that your tender meets all the requirements and conditions set out in the procurement documents. An incomplete tender is unlikely to win the tender, so make sure that all elements are included. If you are answering questions in a stand-alone document, make sure you are clear about which question you are answering. Go through your own checklist you wrote at the beginning and make sure to double-check all the details, like:  Are all the contact details for you at the company correct? Have you provided the correct contact details for the references? Are you submitting the tender in the required language? Is the correct company representative signing as the sender? Have you attached all the annexes requested by the contracting authority? Are they the right annexes? Do you answer all the requirements? You are well on your wayAs you have probably gathered from this checklist, preparation and systematic work are essential before submitting a tender. Work in a structured way and double-check that all details are included. If you work in a procurement system such as Mercell Tendering, it is easier to get an overview and see that all parts are included.

Dear Connectors,We are incredibly excited to announce that the early testing stages of the Mercell Community have finished and its doors are open to all Mercell customers! The Mercell Community is an online space where you can connect with other Mercell users through creating and engaging in discussions related to all things procurement and tendering. Click here to register or login with your Tendering and Bidding account. Start your first topic on our discussion forums or introduce yourself to the community.The discussion forums are divided into categories based on countries and products. Feel free to use your native language in the appropriate categories. You can also connect with Mercell directly by sharing your feedback with us!In addition to the discussion forums, you can access our extensive Mercell Knowledge Base directly from the community. Use the search bar at the top of the page to get started! The search feature will look up articles from both the Knowledge Base and the Community, making it easier for you to find what you’re looking for.We can’t wait to see what sort of discussions you create, and we’re greatly looking forward to seeing the community grow in the coming weeks and months.

With these release notes, we share how to manage participants in follow-up rounds and more. In this release, we’re introducing the ability to manage participants in a multi-round tender. With this new feature, you can now add and remove suppliers in the current round.Curious about all the new features we have added to the system? Read on!Manage Round ParticipantsWhen you’ve set out a multi-round tender, you couldn't previously add suppliers from a previous round unless they were marked as awarded. Now, buyers can add and remove suppliers in the current round.💡Please ensure that the following setting is enabled in the Business Process Management: Features > Mini competitions: Enable Selection of Admitted suppliers > YesThis feature is useful when, for example, you have awarded the suppliers to participate in the next round of the tender, but you forgot to add the suppliers from the previous round. Now, it is possible to go to the Supplier tab in the next round and to click on “Add suppliers from previous round”. 👇Within this page, you can select the suppliers that were participating in the previous round and add them to the current round.In order to do so, you’ll need to describe a reason, which is only visible for you (and not the supplier). 💡 Both when adding and removing suppliers to the current round, you will see a pop-up. Here, you will need to describe why you added or removed the supplier.The notes can be found in the three-dot menu, next to every supplier in the Suppliers tab: These notes are part of the Tender ZIP export in the folder <Round name> 🡪 Supplier notes.Multiple offersWhen a supplier has submitted multiple offers, it is only possible to add one offer to the current round.  Deleting suppliersYou can remove a supplier from the current round in the three-dot menu. The supplier will not be deleted from the tender. When deleting, you again need to provide a reason which is only visible to you. 💡Please note that this feature is not implemented for multi-lot tenders. Small changesReports: The parent tender field (Tender ID + Tender name of the parent fx DPS tender) has been added to the Offer Report and Award Report New Mercell logos: Our rebranded logos have been updated in Source-to-Contract and emails sent from the platform.Fixed bugsSupplier submitting question: Suppliers can now submit questions with angle brackets (<) followed by text. This issue has been resolved. Adding Questionnaires – When adding additional Questionnaires in a tender, the checkboxes are now properly aligned.  eForms – After adding validation on the TenderNed number in the Form selector, you got stuck and couldn’t create a notice. With this release, we’ve fixed the issue.

Hello Connectors,We’re thrilled to announce that the Mercell Community has undergone an exciting transformation! Our newly restructured Community now features country and product-specific categories, making it easier than ever to connect, share, and discuss topics tailored to your unique needs and services. Whether you're navigating local regulations or diving into specific product discussions, there's now a dedicated space for you!While English remains the default language, you’re welcome to discuss in your native language within these new categories. We’ll continue to post articles, blogs, and updates in English, and we encourage English use in General Discussions and the Mercell Tendering and Bidding Groups.Dive in, explore the new structure, and let us know what you think in the comments! Your feedback is key to making the Mercell Community a central part of your procurement journey.Happy connecting

Hello Connectors,I come bearing good news for everyone! Starting today you can use your Mercell Bidding and Mercell Tendering credentials to easily log in to the Mercell Community!After you click the “Login” button in the top right of the Community page, you will now see a button that reads “Use Mercell Credentials” under “Login with SSO”. Clicking it will bring you to a new page where you can input your login. You’ll then be taken back to the Community page, fully logged in! If you haven’t created a Mercell Community account, this process will create one for you. If you already have an account then you can use your existing login credentials. Please be aware that this process only works for users of the Mercell Bidding/Tendering platforms. If you haven’t been upgraded to the new platforms you can’t use your credentials in this way.If you have any questions about logging in to the Mercell Community, don’t hesitate to reach out or leave a comment down below.

Discover how analytics empower new suppliers in public procurement for strategic success Currently navigating the public procurement landscape? You should know that data and analytics is your secret weapon. It's not just numbers - it's a powerful tool that can increase your competitive edge and drive your business strategies forward. And for new suppliers entering the world of procurement, fully understanding the data at your disposal can be transformative.Because by effectively using this data, you can make more data-driven, informed decisions. It also helps you tailor your strategies to today’s market conditions, plus identify emerging trends before they become evident. That way you’ll position yourself to compete much more effectively, and you’ll seize opportunities that others overlook. In this article, we’ll discuss how analytics from platforms like Mercell can redefine your approach to public procurement, helping you thrive in the landscape.In this article:Tackling the challenges of public procurement data 4 key analytics use cases for public procurement ConclusionTackling the challenges of complex public procurement dataFor new suppliers on the scene, the public procurement market can be overwhelming - largely due to the amount of complex data. It’s in many ways a whole different ballgame compared to the private sector, where huge volumes of data aren't always at your fingertips.The deal is: Public tender data is usually more transparent and accessible. Government bodies, from local municipalities to national agencies, must openly share tender notices, contract awards, and other relevant details. This all stems from a few key principles:There’s legal obligations: Public entities are bound by law to operate transparently and ensure all potential suppliers have a fair shot. Accountability and openness: With transparency as the foundation, this kind of open system promotes fairness, minimizes corruption, and lets citizens keep an eye on how public funds are actually being spent. Centralized platforms: To simplify access, a lot of countries have centralized all public tenders on special portals and websites. Great for visibility but automatically means there’s a lot (too much) to go through.Without a clear way of understanding and analyzing this data to use it efficiently, suppliers risk missing valuable opportunities. Not to mention misusing resources and creating strategies that don’t align with the realities of the market. The result?Poor performance compared to competitors that know how to use data effectively Inefficient bidding, where suppliers either underestimate or overestimate their bids based on f.ex misunderstood data Struggling to anticipate new regulatory changes and market trends. Reactive strategies: A lot of suppliers miss out on opportunities by reacting rather than planning their bids with clear timelines, like knowing when contracts end. This reactive approach reduces their chances of securing new opportunities and building strong customer relationships. That’s why succeeding in this market means suppliers should look for more efficient ways and tools to access the vast amounts of data available in the public market. Understanding how to interpret and strategically apply this data is crucial.4 key analytics use cases for public procurementUnderstanding and effectively using data is key when navigating the public procurement landscape, as it can streamline and improve your overall strategy. Let’s take a look at four data analytics use cases from Mercell, each showing how to effectively leverage data insights: 1. Market potential and procurement activityUsing platforms like Mercell with advanced analytics gives you comprehensive insights into the volume of procurement opportunities within your sector.What are the main benefits?Strategic growth: Access to detailed procurement data helps identify growth trends and seasonal changes, enabling quicker and more accurate strategic adjustments to align with market dynamics. Better resource management: Analyzing procurement peaks allows for optimal resource allocation during high-demand periods and improves internal operations during quieter times, enhancing cost efficiency and operational effectiveness. Finding hidden opportunities: Transparency in public sector procurement data uncovers overlooked business opportunities across various industries, helping suppliers extend their reach and impact.Say a supplier observes an annual increase in procurements towards the fiscal year-end, they can strategically increase inventory or allocate additional staff to meet the rising demand. Similarly, if service demands peak in the first quarter, adjusting budgets and employee allocation can accommodate the increased workload.(Prognosis of upcoming tenders in the construction sector)What’s the overall outcome? Precise market targeting and effective risk management. Alignment of operations with market dynamics.All in all, these insights provide a competitive edge that ensures suppliers are well-prepared to meet market demands efficiently, turning data into actionable strategies.2. Competitor insightsUnderstanding your competitors' position in the procurement market is beneficial. Especially because the biggest players in the private sector vary from those that are leading in public contracts.Data analytics from platforms like Mercell give you the tools you need to take a deeper dive into the activities of your competitors, giving you insights that could reshape your competitive strategies.What are the biggest advantages?In-depth competitive analysis: Platforms like Mercell provide insights into your competitors' activity, including the number of tenders they enter, their win rates, and the bids they've lost. This "bird's eye view" helps you quickly identify both longstanding and new competitors in your market. Strategic advantage: Understanding where competitors succeed and fail allows you to tailor your approach effectively. Pinpoint areas where you can offer unique value or improve on existing market offerings. Benefits for newcomers: These analytics simplify navigating the sector’s complexities, helping newcomers strategically position their businesses for increased success.3. Tender requirements and historical documentsMercell’s platform allows you to explore historical tender documents, revealing specific past requirements such as certifications, financial criteria, and environmental policies.That way you can identify recurring requirements in procurement documents, helping you prepare effectively for future bids. This is particularly beneficial because many buyers tend to request similar qualifications repeatedly.By reviewing past procurement documents, you can:Spot patterns: Recognize frequently requested credentials, such as environmental certifications or specific turnover levels. Prepare in advance: Obtain these credentials ahead of time to avoid last-minute scrambles. For instance, if high IT security is commonly required, you can enhance your tech infrastructure before bidding.This proactive approach ensures you're well-prepared and positions you as a reliable and forward-thinking supplier. Instead of reacting to requirements, you're anticipating and meeting them head-on.4. Contract timelines and future opportunitiesMercell's analytics let you track contract expiration dates, crucial for seizing new opportunities. Set alerts for contracts ending in the next 6 to 12 months, which helps position yourself for upcoming tenders swiftly. Here’s why this matters:Get the perfect timing: Know exactly when contracts expire to time your market entry with new tender releases, especially in industries with regularly renewed contracts. Engage in more proactive planning: Engage with procurement officers early by knowing contract end dates. Tailor your proposals to upcoming tender requirements before they're announced.(Contract timelines within the construction sector)And the overall impact?Make smarter decisions, align with real opportunities, and enhance client interactions. This proactive approach boosts your chances of winning contracts and marks you as a ready, forward-thinking market participant.ConclusionThrough analytics from platforms like Mercell, complex data is turned into understandable and actionable insights. These insights equip suppliers with the information they need for competitive and strategic planning.In other words: A transformative approach for new suppliers entering public procurementExplore how Mercell's platform can enhance your procurement strategy by signing up for a free trial, which lets you experience firsthand how effective analytics can help grow your business and support your business decisions. 

Public procurement serves as a driving force in Norway’s public sector, involving an annual expenditure of approximately NOK 742 billion. To ensure that this significant spending is managed efficiently and sustainably, the Norwegian Agency for Public and Financial Management (DFØ) conducts a bi-yearly survey to assess the market’s current state and development initiatives. This year’s 2024 survey offers a well-rounded, behind-the-scenes perspective on the procurement landscape. With a growing interest in participating in the benchmark, over 600 central and municipal agencies, responsible for everything from office supplies to infrastructure projects, accepted DFØ’s invitation.The survey dives into a series of key procurement areas, shedding light on both progress and areas of improvement. From governance, collaboration, competence, digitization, to environmental practices and innovation, DFØ offers valuable insights into procurement strategies and practices. But DFØ isn’t merely observing these changes. By offering tailored management panels, DFØ helps organisations in identifying their strengths and areas needing improvement.What did this annual check-up reveal? The survey highlights:  Streamlined Procurement Processes. A notable rise in strategic maturity, as more public agencies transform their routine operations into strategic powerhouses, with a focus on streamlining all procurement processes.   Environmental Work and Innovation. A keen emphasis on climate, environment, and innovation, with more companies adopting low-emission solutions and circular economy measures, reflecting a strong commitment to environmental sustainability. Digitalisation. The growing use of digital tools in procurement, indicating a shift towards more efficient and transparent processes. Contract follow-up remains a high priority, ensuring that procurement contracts are executed effectively and that the intended benefits are realised.  Looking ahead, it is clear that Norway's procurement sector is moving towards a more data-driven, unified, and sustainable approach, with a strong focus on regulatory compliance. The launch of our new platform, Mercell Tendering, aligns perfectly with the forward-looking prospects of the Norwegian public market. Let’s delve into the survey’s findings across key areas for a more advanced and responsive procurement system in the Norwegian market.1. Strategy Beyond DocumentationAlmost half of the DFØ respondents, about 48 percent, have a central unit handling purchases. A team that cares for commercial assessments, contract follow-up across the purchasing portfolio, and systematic reporting to management. Having a strategy in place, which goes beyond mere paperwork, is critical. It gives clear direction and implementation power for all procurement activities. It also helps keep everyone focused on purchasing goods and services through follow-up and measurement. Companies that have a procurement strategy have better senior management buy-in, as well as greater collaboration across the organisation. They are also generally more mature in all areas. About 62 percent of respondent companies have a procurement strategy, whereas 29 percent lack clear rules and governance documents. Strategic use of procurement requires management to do more with the resources they have and stay informed about all procurement key areas. Mercell enables public buyers to stay in control of the entire procurement process from planning to ordering and analysis. All modules are connected on a common architecture, ensuring seamless transfer of data and reducing time spent, manual effort and reuse of information, which in turn contributes to more and more efficient processes.2. Value-added Procurement PhasesLooking at the different procurement process stages, the Norwegian public agencies conduct the most value-added work in the requirements and planning phase, followed by the contract management one. Allocation of resources per procurement phase The Requirements Phase: A Foundation for Success Contract Follow-up: Ensuring Compliance and Efficacy Beginning with the requirements phase, companies invest a significant portion of their resources, with an average allocation of 40%. This phase covers the needs assessment and meticulous planning and lays the groundwork for successful procurement outcomes. In the contract follow-up phase, companies allocate approximately 20% of their resources. Here, the focus shifts towards ensuring compliance and efficacy in contract execution. However, strategic activities tend to take a backseat, raising questions about the optimal distribution of resources across different procurement stages.  Overall, buyers tend to prioritise operational tasks over strategic activities. Essential tasks like market and risk analyses are occasionally sidelined, while activities related to competition implementation (keeping up with deadlines) are diligently addressed. Moving forward, for optimal procurement outcomes, public agencies are advised to strike a balance between operational efficiency and strategic foresight.3. Expertise DeficitShockingly, only one in five contracting authorities feel adequately equipped in procurement to foster innovation and uphold human rights standards. This deficiency extends to areas like contract follow-up and market dialogue. Contract Follow-up: A Critical ComponentAmong the various procurement processes, contract follow-up emerges the weakest link, with a mere 46 percent reporting a satisfactory level of expertise. Adequate proficiency in contract follow-up is indispensable for the public sector's successful transition toward sustainability and careful resource use. Recognizing this, 1 in 2 companies plan to invest in a Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) tool in the next three years, according to PWC. More public organisations take a proactive approach to ensuring that wages, working conditions, and other critical factors are rigorously monitored and upheld throughout the contract lifetime. The evolution of contract follow-up and procurement strategies highlights the growing importance of ethical considerations in procurement.At Mercell, Contract Lifecycle Management is seen as a strategic tool that offers a clear overview of all contracts, which empowers public buyers to act proactively, minimise risks, and unlock potential savings from drafting to execution. Even the less experienced procurement professionals can create new contracts with templates and expedite the process with electronic signatures, reducing manual work and increasing process efficiency. With tools to monitor deadlines and address deviations through direct claims to suppliers, we offer dynamic follow-up within the system. Automatically alert suppliers about needed actions or quickly propose contract claims in case of violations or disputes. Analytical Skills: Bridging the GapAnalytics readiness remains another area of concern, with only 21 percent of procurement professionals indicating sufficient expertise. This poses a significant challenge in providing businesses with the analytical insights needed for informed decision-making and prioritisation.Public buyers are tasked with the critical role of allocating resources effectively, ensuring transparency, and delivering value for public funds. By leveraging data analytics, professionals within the purchasing unit can identify trends, anticipate market fluctuations, and prioritise purchasing decisions. Mercell recognizes the importance of integrating detailed cost analysis into procurement systems, leading to real-time data analysis, predictive analytics, and performance tracking. By connecting the invoice data, Mercell Spend Analysis empowers public buyers to track individual supplier spend, or track spending across suppliers.Positive Trends in Market DialogueWhile the market is posed by challenges, there are great positive developments. The Norwegian public space engages in more dialogue with its suppliers. This engagement enables a deeper understanding of current and future needs, competitive landscapes, and environmental considerations. Mercell Tendering provides a structured framework for supplier development and innovation. The platform includes tools for supplier follow-up, evaluation, and development, enabling agencies to build strong and effective supplier relationships.4. Environmental Work and InnovationAs per the DFØ survey, environmental goals are no longer an ‘elective subject’, but an area of high priority. Encouragingly, more public sector companies are introducing measures for the majority of prioritised categories, and with stricter climate and environmental requirements for public procurement set to take effect from January 1, 2024.Despite these advances:  Only 29% of businesses rigorously follow up on established environmental goals, with time and resources as the main barriers.  Just 14% believe their procurement practices have led to substantial reductions in climate and environmental impact.  While more companies are facilitating new products and services, only 27% actively explored this, in the past two years. The main reason for seeking innovation is to improve the quality of products and services, followed by the need for time-saving solutions. Achieving these climate and environmental goals requires adequate time, resources, and expertise. The Mercell Supplier Relationship Management module puts the public buyer in the driver's seat, providing the needed tools to set concrete sustainability goals, measure suppliers’ ability to deliver and, not least, establish KPIs that give the buyer confidence when reporting and documenting their sustainability efforts. Whether the main goal is to comply with the Transparency Act, the EU taxonomy or CSDDD, Mercell delivers. 5. DigitalisationThe aim of a fully digital process is to manage the source-to-payment cycle, ensuring buyers receive the correct products and prices as per agreements. Among the DFØ highly mature company respondents, 52 percent experienced significant simplification over the past two years due to digitization. They benefited from more efficient purchases, streamlined processes, fewer errors, and better regulatory compliance. According to PWC, the procurement space is projected to go 70% digital by 2027, with efficiency gains, transparency, and performance as the main drivers. While ICT and cloud services demand both technical and procurement expertise, only 5 percent of companies have a dedicated plan for procuring these services.At Mercell, our ambition is to take the procurement function out of Excel and Word and into the cloud. Mercell Tendering automates and digitises your procurement processes, from needs assessment, to internal dialogue and tendering, to contract follow-up, ensuring that all information is transferred seamlessly from one step to the next, reducing manual work and increasing process efficiency.The 2024 DFØ survey highlights the dynamic progress within Norway's public procurement sector. It reveals significant progress in streamlining processes, advancing environmental sustainability, and embracing digitalisation. ConclusionAs Norway continues to prioritise regulatory compliance and data-driven decision-making, the introduction of platforms like Mercell Tendering aligns seamlessly with these forward-looking initiatives. The insights from this survey are crucial for fostering an advanced and responsive procurement system in the Norwegian market.Let us know your thoughts on this survey in the comments!

 Incorporating Sustainability into Your Public ProcurementWith Europe’s binding commitment to net-zero emissions by 2050, public procurement is seen as a crucial element in achieving these goals. In the European Union (EU), procurement is set to account for approximately 14% of the GDP, or around €2 trillion annually. With this kind of spending power, public buyers are in a unique position to drive market transformation, set standards, and equally, demand environmentally friendly products and services. By integrating sustainability, procurement processes can ultimately contribute to climate neutrality. But the power of public procurement doesn’t stop there – it’s a trendsetter too. When governments and public institutions lead by example, it becomes difficult to ignore. Their visible commitment in prioritising sustainability, showcasing it as economically feasible and socially beneficial, can inspire the private sector to jump on the green bandwagon. This not only mainstreams sustainable practices but also enables healthy competition and pushes the entire market towards a more eco-conscious mindset. This shift supports the long-term environmental goals outlined in the European Green Deal.While the benefits of sustainable procurement are clear, implementing these practices can pose challenges. Read on to uncover how you can lead the way to a climate-neutral Europe by turning your public procurement processes into sustainable ones.The European Green Deal: Blueprint for SustainabilityIn a circular, competitive economy, "economic growth is decoupled from resource use, while no person and no place are left behind". This core principle is the foundation of the European Green Deal, a framework for action, designed to make Europe the first climate-neutral continent by 2050.  Key components of the European Green Deal 42.5% New renewable energy target for 2030  -310Mt Net CO2 removals by 2030 -50% Less chemical pesticides for an eco-friendly food system SourceGreen energy, building renovation, and biodiversity are among the key areas that come to mind when discussing decarbonisation. Yet, public procurement is not to be forgotten. Accounting for around 14% of EU GDP, public procurement is a powerful instrument within the European Green Deal toolbox. The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) The EU comes to mandate more detailed disclosures on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) matters with the latest Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). Closely aligned with the European Green Deal and shaped for enhanced transparency and accountability, this directive holds profound implications for public procurement. Public buyers are now tasked to prioritise sustainability considerations when evaluating suppliers, such as carbon footprint, social responsibility, and resource efficiency.  Country-Specific Laws for a Better EnvironmentGlobally, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) chart the path towards a sustainable and inclusive future. Within the EU, 23 member states have up-to-date plans and specific laws to advance sustainable procurement. Several European countries have enacted specific laws to support the EU environment-friendly goals and promote sustainable procurement. Here are some notable examples: Norway: Transparency Act Effective since July 2022, Norway’s Transparency Act mandates large companies to provide detailed reports on how they address human rights and environmental issues throughout their supply chains. Seen as a major step towards ethical and sustainable business practices in the country, the law promotes transparency and accountability, impacting more than 8,000 companies.   Netherlands: Sustainable Procurement Manifesto With purchasing power exceeding €73 billion annually, the Dutch government aligns its public procurement with the social goal of "commissioning with ambition and procuring with impact". Their Sustainable Procurement Manifesto mandates public buyers to consider environmental and social criteria when awarding contracts. This long-term, environmentally focused approach has already brought significant changes to public tenders.   France: Anti-Waste Law or Loi AGEC Every year, €630 million worth of unsold products are destroyed in France, generating significant waste per person and causing environmental damage that threatens biodiversity. In response, France initiated a transition towards a circular economy with the Anti-Waste Law enacted in 2020. Public procurement supports these efforts by prioritising durable, repairable, and recyclable products. Since the law's implementation, plastic waste has been reduced by 15%.      Germany: Federal Climate Change Act To accelerate its path to climate neutrality, Germany adopted a crucial reform known as the Federal Climate Change Act. This law sets legally binding targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. The Act outlines specific measures across various sectors, including transport, construction, and energy. How does this impact public procurement? Public Buyers now prioritise low-emission and energy-efficient products and services, thus supporting Germany's climate objectives. This shift ensures that procurement decisions align with the nation's ambitious environmental goals and contribute significantly to reducing the carbon footprint.Incorporating Sustainability into Your Public Procurement  With the European Green Deal and various national laws in mind, it's crucial to understand how to integrate sustainability into public procurement processes. This section will provide practical steps and strategies to help your procurement activities align with environmental goals and social responsibility. By exploring these actionable insights, you'll be equipped to make a meaningful impact on sustainability through your procurement decisions. 1. Sustainability Criteria in TendersIncorporating sustainability criteria into your tenders involves adjusting solicitation requirements to include environmental considerations. This implies specifying the use of eco-friendly materials, requiring energy-efficient services and products, and establishing clear weighted criteria in your evaluation metrics.Depending on procurement objectives, criteria such as local supplier recyclability, percentage of renewable energy use, and attention to worker well-being can be included. By applying these measures, sustainability is ensured throughout the procurement process, filtering suppliers with strong environmental credentials. 2. Life Cycle Costing (LCC)Consider Life-Cycle Costing (LCC) when making procurement decisions. While the purchase price is important, it's just one part of the overall cost of owning and disposing of a product or service. LCC covers all expenses incurred throughout the product's lifetime, and the EU provides various sector-specific calculating tools to aid in this process.Sustainable options often prove to be more cost-effective in the long-term due to lower operating and disposal costs. To implement LCC effectively, start by conducting comprehensive analyses for major procurements. Additionally, ensure your procurement officers are trained in LCC methodologies, and use these calculations to inform your procurement decisions.  3. Eco-labels and CertificationsWith so many available product options, eco-labels and certifications simplify the process of finding sustainable alternatives to conventional ones. Eco-labels serve as beacons for sustainable choices, promoting the adoption of responsible product technologies and consumer behaviour while also benefiting the environment.Encourage your suppliers to acquire recognized eco-labels and integrate them into your selection criteria. By prioritising products with these certifications, you contribute to a greener and more sustainable procurement process.  4. Pre-Procurement Market ConsultationsInvolving suppliers and stakeholders early in the procurement process can unveil innovative and sustainable solutions. Organising pre-procurement market consultations provides a platform to communicate your sustainability objectives and gather valuable feedback from potential suppliers.By engaging with the market at this early stage, you foster collaboration and ensure alignment with your sustainability goals, ultimately leading to more effective procurement outcomes. These consultations serve as a vital step in cultivating partnerships and driving positive change within your procurement practices. 5. Monitoring Sustainability ProgressMost EU Public Procurement Units release annual sustainability reports to highlight the environmental and social effects of public contracts. Transparency in this process is vital, as it promotes accountability and allows stakeholders to observe the impact of sustainable procurement policies. This openness can drive continuous improvement and innovation, highlighting both successes and areas needing attention. Moreover, it ensures that procurement strategies are aligned with broader goals like reducing carbon emissions, minimising waste, and promoting social equity.Access to detailed sustainability performance metrics allows procurement managers to refine their strategies based on solid evidence rather than assumptions. This data helps identify which suppliers best meet sustainability objectives, spot potential risks, and find opportunities for more sustainable practices.  6.  Cultivating a Culture of SustainabilityCreating a culture of sustainable procurement demands dedication across all organisational levels. Integrating sustainability goals into your overarching strategy involves providing training and allocating resources for your procurement staff. By prioritising sustainability and empowering your team with the necessary tools and support, you lay the foundation for a culture that values ethical and green procurement practices. Encouraging open communication, fostering collaboration, and recognizing achievements in sustainable procurement further solidify this culture, ensuring lasting impact and positive change within your organisation. Embrace Sustainable Procurement with MercellTransitioning to sustainable public procurement is not just an obligation under the European Green Deal; it is an opportunity to lead by example and make a significant impact on the environment. Embracing sustainability in procurement processes requires the right tools to ensure efficiency and compliance. A robust, unified tender platform, like Mercell, can help you embed sustainability at every stage of the procurement lifecycle.  Procurement Planning: Embed sustainability right from the start by setting clear procurement goals aligned with your sustainability objectives. Your organisation can rank suppliers based on rigorous sustainability criteria and detailed questionnaires to ensure your procurement aligns with sustainable practices. Whether planning purchases per singular procurement or for entire categories, our platform ensures all internal purchasing needs are reported and managed according to your established sustainability goals.Sourcing & Tendering: Drive sustainable procurement by incorporating sustainability criteria into your sourcing and tendering processes. Prompt suppliers to submit proposals that address key ESG considerations. Benefit from a comprehensive library of default sustainability criteria, enabling all buyers to maintain high sustainability standards consistently.Contract Lifecycle Management: Ensure ongoing compliance and performance with robust contract management tools. Make sure that all contractual obligations are met with a focus on environmental and social impact, by monitoring key performance indicators (KPIs) that reflect your sustainability goals. Supplier Relationship Management: Build strong, sustainable partnerships with our advanced supplier relationship management tools. Set and monitor concrete sustainability goals, evaluate supplier performance, and establish KPIs to ensure transparency and accountability. Key performance indicators (KPIs) may include:  Percentage of contracts incorporating sustainability criteria. Reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from procured products. Volume of waste reduced or recycled through procurement efforts. Our platform helps you maintain up-to-date supplier certificates and compliance documents, streamlines pre-qualification, and ranks suppliers based on sustainability criteria. This transparency demonstrates your commitment to sustainability and provides valuable insights to improve your procurement strategies. With our platform, you can confidently report and document your suppliers' sustainability efforts, ensuring compliance with the Transparency Act, the EU taxonomy, or CSDD requirements.

Dear Connectors, we have great news,Mercell’s embedded AI is now available for Mercell Tendering in Norway, Sweden, Finland and The Netherlands! Thanks to the fantastic efforts of our Tech team, Tender Summarisation and Better Tender Matching have been rolled out in the above countries This marks a significant milestone for our platforms that will bring a lot of value to you, our customer.Our new AI capabilities will break down the complexity of doing public business, and enable you to more easily qualify for tenders that match your services and profile. However, this is just the beginning! We are currently in the process of implementing Tender Summarisation and Better Tender Matching in our Mercell Bidding Platform. We’ll have more information about this implementation at a later date.For now, let’s go into more detail about the new embedded AI features:Tendering SummarisationMercell AI transforms complex tender documents into clear, concise summaries with Tender Summaries. You’ll get increased clarity on tender details, uncover hidden insights, and reduce the time needed to evaluate opportunities. With Mercell AI’s tendering summaries you will more easily understand provided business opportunities that come your way.Better Tender MatchingDiscover the most relevant business opportunities with access to our Better Tendering Matching AI. We will supply you with opportunities that you may have missed, and bring you closer to the tenders that matter the most. This is intended to increase your chances of winning and giving you a further competitive edge in your chosen market.We can’t wait to hear what you think about our new AI features! Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Public procurement, whether aimed at enhancing public services or addressing sustainability goals, involves extensive tender documentation. Meeting various requirements, certifications, and regulations leads to significant workload, negotiation rounds, data management, and cost control for both buyers and suppliers. Navigating these complexities in this dynamic environment requires careful management within tight deadlines and often limited resources. The public sector is gradually incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) into public procurement, introducing advanced tools and capabilities that streamline the tender process. AI effectively manages large volumes of data, mitigates errors, and improves efficiency, resulting in more effective and streamlined procurement processes. Mercell is a leading public tendering & bidding SaaS vendor leveraging AI to redefine how public procurement operates. In this interview, Ibrahim En-nali, CTO of Mercell, discusses the company’s AI vision, new AI capabilities, upcoming initiatives, and how AI creates benefits and efficiencies for both buyers and suppliers. Q: What are the latest AI trends shaping public procurement?The current AI trends in public procurement are both exciting and transformative. Generative AI is one of the most prominent trends. It assists in creating tenders and corresponding bids by leveraging accumulated knowledge from both buyers and suppliers. This can include suggestions and validations against a comprehensive knowledge base, significantly reducing the manual work involved. In fact, it’s estimated that 50-80% of current manual tasks in public procurement could be automated using AI, allowing a better focus on more strategic activities.In addition to generative AI, targeted AI applications are also on the rise. These applications are tailored to address unique challenges and requirements specific to procurement operations. By leveraging historical data, real-time information feeds, and predictive analytics, targeted AI can provide specialised procurement assistance, simulate bids, enhance analytics, and even predict future events. Q: Ibrahim, can you share Mercell’s vision in the context of AI and its role in public procurement?Absolutely. Mercell's overarching goal is to enhance public procurement processes, fostering transparency, efficiency, and innovation. AI aligns perfectly with our platform strategy, significantly enhancing its effectiveness. By automating tasks and providing actionable insights, AI simplifies interactions between buyers and suppliers throughout the tendering process. This approach ensures better outcomes for all parties involved. Our commitment is to continually support our customers by addressing critical pain points such as managing procurement specifications, overcoming language barriers, and identifying potential risks. Unlike competitors focusing on one market segment, Mercell caters to both buyers and suppliers, and we are investing in cutting-edge AI features and tools across our solutions. Q: Where is Mercell embedding AI across its solutions?At Mercell, we prioritise the integration of AI capabilities throughout our entire portfolio, covering every stage of the procurement lifecycle. Our initial focus is on incorporating AI into our Tender Discovery solution, designed to boost supplier engagement and enhance competition in public spending. Tender documentation is often intricate and extensive, with unique requirements and industry-specific terminology. By leveraging state-of-the-art AI technologies in Natural Language Processing (NLP) for semantic search capabilities, all Mercell supplier customers will have access to our new embedded Tender Summarisation AI capability. This empowers suppliers to distil lengthy documents into concise, easy-to-understand tender summaries. For example, a regular 50+ pages tender specification document can be condensed into a single page. Our advanced AI algorithms enable our customers to efficiently highlight and extract crucial details such as project descriptions, budget estimates, submission deadlines, supplier qualifications, and bid submission instructions.Additionally, we are also introducing Better Tender Matching, designed to help customers discover the most relevant opportunities with unparalleled accuracy. By analysing key aspects such as type of service or goods, location, and other relevant factors extracted from tenders, the AI algorithm accurately pairs eligible suppliers with new tender opportunities. Our algorithm calculates the degree of match based on the provided criterias.  This is just the beginning of our AI journey. We are committed to leveraging AI to address specific pain points that our customers face.   Q: You’ve mentioned competition in this space. How does Mercell  differentiate itself in terms of AI capabilities?Mercell stands out in several ways. Firstly, we recognize the importance of data quality in the performance, accuracy, and reliability of our new AI capabilities. Upholding high-quality practices across the data lifecycle is key for Mercell.With our extensive experience in the market, we ensure a trustworthy foundation of data entry integrity. This wealth of knowledge, enriched with historical tender data points, enables us to generate accurate, actionable insights, providing greater value for our customers. Our deep understanding of the market allows us to train AI models effectively, offer accurate and reliable predictions, and ensure the reliability and effectiveness of our solutions. This experience provides us with better insights for refining our AI capabilities, continually enhancing our ability to meet the needs of both buyers and suppliers.Additionally, Mercell differentiates itself by offering an end-to-end solution that spans the entire public procurement journey. As a leading provider in this business, we have the unique advantage of being able to seamlessly integrate both tender and bidding data in our AI models. This holistic approach ensures that actionable insights are extracted from the entire procurement process.  Q: Ethical considerations are at the forefront of AI development. How does Mercell ensure ethical procurement and regulatory compliance when deploying AI?Mercell places a strong emphasis on ethical considerations and regulatory compliance in the deployment of AI. We implement robust data privacy and security measures to safeguard information. Particularly noteworthy is our approach to using technologies that do not rely on customer data, reflecting our dedication to ethical and transparent practices. The data sources include publicly available data, such as government procurement websites and industry-specific tender platforms. These sources comply with relevant laws and regulations, operating under legal frameworks that ensure transparency, bias mitigation, and fairness. The processing of this data adheres to these legal standards, ensuring compliance with applicable legal framework. Q: Looking ahead, what future AI capabilities do you foresee being integrated into the Mercell platform?Our commitment of advancing the public sector into an AI-native environment is shown in the R&D resources we are allocating to our solution roadmap. In our pursuit of future AI capabilities, we are also considering partnerships with other companies, academia, and research organisations to stay at the forefront of innovation. Among our future AI enhancements, we are interested in improving how suppliers can monitor their market and identify opportunities with ease powered by AI. We want to limit friction and complexity related to monitoring procurement opportunities.All of the future AI capabilities that we have on our roadmap are poised to address all the core pain points our customers are facing, with the goal of reshaping procurement processes, and opening up new business opportunities.  Q: It’s clear that AI is here to transform public procurement.To conclude, what advice would you give to public buyers and suppliers alike interested in adopting AI technologies?In this era of AI-driven transformation, public sector organisations and suppliers stand to benefit greatly from the collaborative efforts of experienced partners like Mercell.By leveraging their deep understanding of AI technologies and extensive industry experience, these partners can provide tailored solutions that address specific procurement challenges and maximise the value of AI investments. Whether it's optimising tendering processes, enhancing supplier management, or ensuring regulatory compliance, the expertise and support offered by seasoned partners are indispensable in navigating the complexities of AI adoption and driving tangible results within public procurement.

OSLO, Norway, May 27, 2024 – Mercell, the European Leading tender and bidding platform, is thrilled to announce the upcoming launch of new capabilities designed to boost supplier engagement and enhance competition in public spending. Starting in June, Mercell will introduce new AI-powered features along with a new portal aimed at educating and supporting suppliers in their journey to succeed in public business.Background and RationaleCommenting on the need for these advancements, Terje Wibe, CEO of Mercell, stated, "We know from the European Court of Auditor’s report that there in general is too low competition in the public sector. Widely distributed tenders lead to fair and open competition which will often lead to more attractive offers as well as improved quality and service. Given that we are dealing with taxpayers' money, it is crucial for the public sector to maximise value. While we provide a digital platform for buyers and suppliers to do business, Mercell also plays a crucial role in helping suppliers discover and enter the  public sector business, which for most suppliers offers great opportunities to win attractive contracts with the public sector.”Introducing Mercell DealWise: A New Supplier PortalWith the commitment to foster supplier success, Mercell is proud to introduce DealWise, a new portal that offers certification for suppliers in public business and provides tips and advice on navigating the complexities of public procurement.This service is designed to empower suppliers with the knowledge and resources needed to compete more effectively.New AI-Powered FeaturesIn addition to DealWise, Mercell is launching AI into the monitoring services to all supplier customers. Customers will have access to tender summarisation, which converts complex procurement documents into clear, concise summaries.This capability provides immediate clarity on procurement details, uncovers hidden insights, and significantly reduces the time required to qualify each opportunity. Mercell is also introducing Better Tender Matching,  helping users discover the most relevant opportunities with unparalleled precision.These enhancements simplify the public procurement process, making it easier for businesses to qualify for tenders and increasing their chances of success.By embedding AI into our platform, we open up a world of tenders that might otherwise be overlooked, offering our customers unparalleled advantages in the tendering process.Terje Wibe, CEO at Mercell Exciting Prospects Ahead"We are excited to introduce these AI capabilities, and there is more to come, both for buyers and suppliers. We at Mercell focus strongly on being a leader in technological innovation that provides valuable support and clear benefits for our customers. " said Terje Wibe, CEO at Mercell. "By embedding AI into our platform, we open up a world of tenders that might otherwise be overlooked, offering our customers unparalleled advantages in the tendering process."About Mercell:Mercell is the leading European provider of public tendering and bidding technology, dedicated to enhancing connectivity between public buyers and suppliers. Its platform solutions effectively streamline the public procurement journey, fostering increased efficiency and collaboration throughout the tendering process. Covering both small and large procurement needs, Mercell assists customers in realising better opportunity matches and ensuring legislative compliance across all of Europe.  For more information, see www.mercell.com

Dear Connectors,Our Tech team has been hard at work on some new features that we are absolutely delighted to share with you. We are getting ready to launch AI capabilities in Mercell.This new development marks a significant milestone for our current and future platforms, bringing new value directly to you.What is Mercell AI?With embedded AI, we’re opening up a world of tenders that can sometimes be overlooked. But that’s not all! The new AI capabilities breaks down the complexity of doing public business and enables you to more easily qualify for tenders that match your services.Two new AI features will be available from June as part of your existing subscription: Tender Summarisation and Better Tender Matching.Tendering SummarisationMercell AI transforms complex tender documents into clear, concise summaries with Tender Summaries. You’ll get increased clarity on tender details, uncover hidden insights, and reduce the time needed to evaluate opportunities. With Mercell AI’s tendering summaries you will more easily understand provided business opportunities that come your way.Better Tender MatchingDiscover the most relevant business opportunities with access to our Better Tendering Matching AI. We will supply you with opportunities that you may have missed, and bring you closer to the tenders that matter the most. This is intended to increase your chances of winning and giving you a further competitive edge in your chosen market.Tender Summarisation will be available in Norway and Sweden from 20 June, 2024! We’ll have more information about additional rollouts at a later date.Mercell with embedded AI makes sure our customers miss nothing, but gain everything.Are you excited about Mercell AI? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

Public procurement is more than a quest for saving costs. It's about creating a competitive environment for suppliers that fosters innovation - all while maintaining fairness and transparency, (ultimately ensuring the best use of taxpayers' money).However, a recent revelation by the European Court of Auditors sheds light on a worrying shift: Over the past decade, the competitive edge in bidding processes has been declining. What does this mean? We’re inching us closer to a landscape dominated by a handful of familiar faces vying for contracts - which should lead us to rethink our procurement strategies.In this article, we’ll dive into the findings of the EU report, tackle the hurdles suppliers encounter, and, crucially, outline actionable steps buyers can take to breathe new life into supplier competition. In this article: Unpacking the European Court of Auditors' report Six supplier challenges in navigating public procurement How to revitalize supplier engagement: A strategic approach to procurementUnpacking the European Court of Auditors' reportThe European Court of Auditors' recent report on EU public procurement sheds light on significant trends over the last decade.Let’s break down the key findings: 1. Rising trend of direct awardsIn 2021, 15.8% of procurement was through direct awards, indicating a shift towards selecting from prequalified suppliers rather than open bidding. This method, known as 'direct award,' reflects buyers' preference for trusted, specialized suppliers, placing more focus on efficiency and established relationships over wider competitive processes.Direct invites and open competitions have maintained a steady equilibrium in the market. This consistent strategy limits the pool of suppliers, which could potentially lead to fewer project bids. Which then has a direct influence on the diversity and competitiveness of public expenditures. Interestingly, data from the ECA reveals that the rate of direct awards has consistently hovered around 17.5% since 2011, which underscores the stability of this kind of public procurement method.  2. Surge in single-bid proceduresFrom 2011 to 2021, procedures attracting only a single bid increased from 23.5% to 41.8%.This indicates a decline in buyer attractiveness. In other words, leading to fewer competitive tenders and, in some cases, eliminating competition entirely. Which results in less choice and potentially higher costs for the public sector. 3. There’s a reduction in bidder numbersThe average number of bidders per procedure has fallen sharply from 5.7 to 3.2.The effect? Limiting competition greatly affects how the B2G public procurement market works, leading to fewer suppliers in the field.This change could lead to lasting impacts on the market by making it tougher for new suppliers to enter and trade with the public sector, which might affect the quality and affordability of public contracts. 4. It varies across regions and sectorsThe report shows that competition levels vary, with sectors like construction experiencing more competition, while health services and transport see more single-bid situations.Which calls for the need for more sector-specific procurement strategies to boost competition. 5. There’s limited cross-border procurementOnly 5% of contracts are from direct buying across country borders. This opens up a chance for saving money by allowing more cross-border buying in EU procurement. Six supplier challenges in navigating public procurementExploring the public procurement field comes with major challenges for suppliers, particularly due to the high entry barriers that keep smaller SMEs from accessing public contracts.These challenges hold suppliers back from joining in and also dampen competition and innovation in the market. Here's a look at the 6 main hurdles suppliers face: 1. Navigating complex bidding processesSmall and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) frequently encounter high entry barriers and substantial costs when considering entering the public spending market, primarily due to the intricate bidding process. Detailed paperwork and strict administrative criteria can overwhelm these companies - keeping these smaller players from even trying.The EU report highlights a significant issue: The time it takes to decide on a contract award has notably increased, from 62.5 days in 2011 to 96.4 days in 2021. This doesn't even include the time spent on appeal procedures against award decisions. A lengthy process like that adds significantly to the workload and stress involved in bidding, especially for smaller businesses. It's not just about extra paperwork, it's about the uncertainty and financial pressure that disproportionately affect SMEs. 2. Meeting high certification standardsA lot of contracts require suppliers to hold specific certifications or meet high industry standards, which can be both expensive and time-consuming for SMEs to obtain, effectively limiting their market access. 3. Overcoming information gapsAnother obstacle for SMEs is simply being unaware of available procurement opportunities. This kind of information asymmetry favors larger enterprises that have more resources to dedicate to finding these opportunities.  4. Dealing with resource limitationsThe financial and human resource demands of preparing bids, conducting market research, and meeting compliance requirements can stretch SMEs thin. In other words, making it difficult for them to compete effectively. 5. Bridging the experience divideLess experienced SMEs can struggle with understanding the intricacies of procurement processes, evaluating risks accurately, and negotiating terms effectively. Which puts them at a disadvantage from the get-go.  6. Improving communicationLastly, poor communication between public sector buyers and suppliers can result in SMEs lacking the essential information to fulfill procurement criteria.  How to revitalize supplier engagement: A strategic approach to procurementIn the complex world of public procurement, improving supplier involvement requires a blend of understanding external market forces and internal company dynamics. That’s why it's essential for procurement officers to effectively manage and align with internal stakeholders. Why? Because this alignment ensures that procurement strategies are not only understood across the organization but also fully supported. Steering the procurement process in a direction that focuses on fostering competition, managing suppliers effectively, and choosing functional over technical requirements is key.How can procurement officers influence and align internal stakeholder dynamics for better outcomes?Procurement officers are at a critical junction, dealing with pressures from both outside the organization and within. A common challenge is the broad lack of understanding about procurement among internal teams.  Overcoming this challenge involves:Highlighting the importance of competition: It’s vital to show internal teams why a competitive market is essential for the best procurement outcomes.Focusing on supplier management: It's about persuading internal groups of the importance of strong supplier management to build beneficial relationships.Prioritizing any functional requirements: Highlighting their alignment with business goals and their flexibility over rigid technical specifications: Better overall business alignment: Functional requirements help procurement efforts support broad business objectives, improving supplier management and cost effectiveness. Adopting clear communication: Using simple language to describe needs helps everyone involved understand the project’s goals, bridging the gap between technical and non-technical stakeholders. Flexibility and adaptability: Focusing on what needs to be achieved at the time allows for easier changes as business needs grow. Vendor evaluation: Beginning with functional needs in vendor selection guarantees that solutions fulfill crucial requirements before delving into technical specifics.  Proactive communication: Stressing the importance of announcing tenders early can prepare both the market and internal teams, improving transparency and outreach.Strategies for enhancing procurement: Aligning business and market needsProcurement isn't just buying and selling; it's about addressing the bigger needs of departments. It’s about guiding departments to see the value in competition, manage suppliers well, and prioritize practical needs over technical details. The goal is to build a procurement process that’s not only competitive but also matches the strategic goals of departments.So, to keep competition healthy throughout the procurement process, especially during tender preparation, it’s crucial to:Ensure open and early communication to make the procurement process clearer for any potential suppliers. Carry out in-depth market research and outreach to understand and connect with the supplier community. Customize contract opportunities to fit a wide range of suppliers, from small businesses to large corporations, which helps encourage innovation and diversity. Keep evaluations fair and objective, and offer constructive feedback to help improve all future proposals.So by focusing on these strategies, procurement officers can create a dynamic, inclusive, and innovative procurement ecosystem. A system that both supports the organization's long-term goals — and the needs of its stakeholders. ConclusionAs we navigate the evolving terrain of public procurement, it's clear that a shift in strategies is crucial. By tuning into internal stakeholder expectations and focusing on essentials like competition, practical needs, and early market engagement, procurement officers are set to make the process of buying goods and services much more dynamic and appealing. This approach not only addresses any immediate business requirements - but also gears organizations up for more success in a dynamic, fast-paced market.  Prioritizing this change means we’ll create a lively, fair, and transparent space in public procurement. (This article was originally posted to mercell.com and has been republished here)