posted on 12/15/2011 4:49:11 PM
IBM will acquire Emptoris, a maker of supply chain analytics software, to strengthen its contract negotiation, spend analysis, and supplier relationship management offerings.
On the heels of its acquisition of retail analytics company DemandTec, IBM has announced this week that it will buy Emptoris, a provider of supply chain analytics software.
According to IBM, both companies will strengthen its Smarter Commerce initiative, launched in March, which focuses on helping organizations deal with new customer buying patterns that have emerged from mobile and social networks.
Last week’s $440 million DemandTec deal added cloud-based promotion, merchandising, and marketing analytics to the Smarter Commerce portfolio. DemandTec helps companies define the best price points and product mix based on customer buying trends.
This week’s Emptoris acquisition, terms of which were not disclosed, brings in supply chain intelligence technology. Emptoris’ analytics give C-suite executives the tools to help make business decisions that affect key corporate objectives, IBM said. These include managing global growth, enforcing compliance, mitigating volatility and risk, and reducing and controlling costs.
Procurement and sourcing professionals increasingly need better supplier relationship management processes, spend analysis, and contract management solutions to lower sourcing costs and risks, IBM said. The Emptoris software helps in this effort by automating vendor selection, negotiations, management, and compliance, the company added.
Emptoris’ spend management solutions complement the existing B2B integration and supply chain management capabilities IBM acquired through the purchase of Sterling Commerce in 2010. IBM can now deliver more systems focused on the needs of sourcing and procurement managers.
“IBM is continuing to deliver innovative solutions to help organizations put the customer at the center of their business operations,” said Craig Hayman, IBM general manager of industry solutions, in a statement. “Procurement is being asked to show how it can deliver value to the organization. Adding Emptoris…enables IBM to meet the specific needs of chief procurement officers.”
In addition, IBM said that the Emptoris acquisition, which is expected to close in the first quarter of 2012, will complement its Business Process Outsourcing capabilities for supply chain management within the company’s Global Process Services organization.