How we work
In this section you will learn how we organise our function in terms of structure and resources, the steps that we follow in our end-to-end process and what are the main goals of our sustainable procurement program.
People
Our spend is managed by our Lead Buyers organized in three teams:
- The Direct Materials team: They buy goods and services related to materials used for the manufacturing process (API’s, excipients, intermediates, starting materials and packaging).
- The R&D team: They buy goods and services related to the R&D Area (ie. preclinical and clinical services, regulatory services, discovery services, etc.).
- The Indirect team: they manage the rest of the spend related to goods and general services not related to production (ie. IT, Sales and Marketing, HR, Facilities).
Besides, we have other transversal functions that contribute and foster the proper functioning of the area as a whole, as follows:
Procure-to-pay (P2P) team
In charge of the requisition-to-receipt process from the operational management perspective (including technical tasks' as well as tools support) to the continuous improvement tasks to gain process efficiency, mitigate internal and external compliance risks and ensuring an adequate supplier's enablement and management.
Center of Excellence
In charge of the risk management and supplier relationship management programs, including also guidance on best practices related to spend analysis, competitive biddings, contract negotiations, as well as continuous training on procurement trends and technology.
Controlling function
In charge of the performance analysis of the Global Procurement function, consolidating key performance indicators, as well as the follow up, hand to hand with the Lead Buyers, and on a project-by-project basis, of the quantifications of the savings achieved, identifying deviations from budget.
Digitalization
As part of our global digital strategy, the Global Procurement area accomplished a major transformation during 2019 as a result of deploying five different solutions to digitalise the whole procurement process.
Our digital transformation project with the P2P solution of SAP Ariba was awarded the SAP Quality Award 2019 for having been developed in only 12 weeks, involving 800 users and 4000 suppliers from 13 countries. These awards recognize the excellence and quality of the project, both in the implementation and use of SAP technology, and show Almirall's clear progress towards its digitalization.
espendSpend analysis
eportalSuppliers’ homologation, segmentation and performance management
esourcingTenders management
econtractContract life-cycle management
ebuyPurchase-to-pay
Sustainable Procurement
In line with our Noble Purpose, we have a Supplier Relationship Management program to evaluate, among others, the Sustainable Procurement practices and responsibilities, as well as the contractual commitments undertaken by our suppliers.
The program defines our relationship with suppliers and fosters collaboration with key partners that we have assessed, and who are at the forefront of the pharmaceutical industry.
We assess and certify our key suppliers through an independent global rating agency that uses the strictest CSR criteria, and implement individual action plans according to the results of each supplier's scorecard and the potential risks identified during the assessment. As part of this program, suppliers are also required to acknowledge and apply the principles set forth in the Almirall Suppliers’ Code of Conduct in their own activities.
Processes
The sourcing standard operating procedure of Global Procurement is based on best practice reference models. Its principles are contained within a structured 9-steps process that enables stakeholders involvement, and covers the project planning and approach definition, supplier market and data analysis, savings analysis, tender and contract, implementation as well as supplier monitoring.
eportal, esourcing & econtract
The competitive biddings and the contract negotiations are done online in esourcing and econtract, respectively, two modules integrated in eportal, our cloud-based procurement platform. We also use DocuSign to sign contracts electronically. Awards are conditioned to the qualification of suppliers through eportal. Depending on the services to be provided or goods to be purchased, as well as other criteria -such as the suppliers’ industry or location- the requirements and the information to be provided by the supplier may vary.
ebuy
ebuy is the space where suppliers can access and manage their invoices and related purchase orders (POs). All invoices sent by suppliers rendering services to our companies based in Spain, Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, Austria, Switzerland and USA must be electronic invoices through ebuy. Some benefits of using this system are: reduction of incidences (higher quality of invoices), improved on-time payments, reduction of paper, and more visibility of invoices status from supplier’s perspective.
The above said procedures do not apply in case we engage Health Care Professionals (consultancy services, speakers in events, etc.).
If you are a Health Care Professional, please visit our HCP section.