IMPAQ, a provider of supplier portals to eProcurement projects, has signed a partner agreement with PeopleTech Limited, which offers comprehensive resourcing services and business advice to SME companies. The partnership aims to enhance trading between SME suppliers and their customers.

The success of IMPAQ's supplier portal is driving the adoption and enablement of SME suppliers to trade online, which had previously been a major challenge to buying organisations. 

The portal enables suppliers to manage the bi-directional exchange of business critical documents such as catalogues, purchase orders and invoices electronically. Depending on their own circumstances, the supplier can choose to integrate this service with their back office system to ensure this process is totally automated. Working with IMPAQ, PeopleTech will supply the technical and project management skills to help suppliers achieve this integration.

Michael Bennett, Managing Director of IMPAQ, says: "A buying organisation can have several thousand suppliers and it is in the interest of all parties that everyone is quickly adopted and connected to the supplier portal. Having PeopleTech concentrating on managing the back-end integration work with the supplier community is a great benefit to the effectiveness of the overall service.

"Most suppliers in the UK are small or medium enterprises (SMEs) who do not always have the necessary expertise in-house to undertake this integration work. PeopleTech, through its network of consultants, will help them to understand, justify and potentially integrate with whatever accounting system they are using."

Alan Jeffries, Founder and Managing Director of PeopleTech, adds: "Fully integrated electronic procurement systems give great benefits in terms of speed, consistency and timeliness of the operation for both buyers and suppliers."