Reinventing procurement together in a single day
On 3 June, we organised the Smart Procurement event for five local authorities. It was not a traditional meeting, but an intensive day during which local authorities, experts and technology came together to work in a practical way towards smarter and more efficient procurement processes.
It was inspiring to see how the municipalities of Pijnacker-Nootdorp, Leiden, Schiedam, Delft and Zoetermeer set to work with such enthusiasm and openness, together with our partners. Because the entire chain was represented – from information management and IT consultancy to procurement and contract management – insights emerged that rarely come to the fore in a regular setting. And as a surprising interlude in the programme, participants even had the chance to take part in a sword-fighting workshop.
What characterised this day? Not lecturing, but collaboration; not off-the-shelf solutions, but bespoke approaches rooted in real-world practice; not lengthy processes, but immediate results.
That is precisely where Protinus’s strength lies. We bring organisations, knowledge and technology together and make innovation immediately applicable. Through our role as a connector, we ensure that disciplines collaborate effectively, that challenges are quickly translated into concrete solutions, and that technologies such as AI, data and low-code genuinely add value.
The day began with a key challenge:
“How can local authorities collaborate within the IT procurement chain so that they can look ahead together, anticipate better and save time and costs, without compromising on quality or autonomy?”
A familiar issue, with no standard answer. That is precisely why the day was dedicated to discovering, developing and experimenting together.
Valuable insights emerged during the sessions and pitches. For instance, we see that collaboration between local authorities often stalls as soon as it requires extra effort, whilst the need remains significant. At the same time, it became clear that there are considerable opportunities for improvement in thestructure of contracts and procurement processes.
The closing pitches yielded concrete solutions, underpinned by clear business cases. The winning solution: a portal where procurement requests from local authorities are matched in real time. This immediately highlights where demand is concentrated, making joint and more attractive procurement easier.
“If I had to describe today in three words, they would be useful, informative and very innovative” – Sabrina ter Heijden, Schiedam Council
The Smart Procurement service demonstrates how quickly an impact can be achieved when the right people, knowledge and expertise come together: from idea to working solution, from bottleneck to business case, within a single day.
That is what Protinus stands for: accelerating collaboration, turning innovation into reality and delivering immediate value for public sector organisations.
Would you like to know more about this approach? Are you curious about the possibilities within your organisation? Then please contact your account manager or send an email to marketing@protinus.nl.
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