Today Emptoris (acquired by IBM, sunset in 2017) finally announces what we’ve all known for a long time (see David’s post on e-Sourcing Forum back in February), that it has acquired MindFlow Technologies, a leader in inbound supply chain planning and sourcing optimization. I’m going to refrain from commenting at this time*, but say that I’m pleased that a North American company acquired MindFlow, because in today’s economy, brain-drain is a global phenomenon and I personally think that the last thing you want is your country’s best and brightest packing up and moving halfway around the globe after a merger or acquisition!
The press release should be up on their site by the time you read this, so you can check it out at your leisure. They are also announcing a new service offering, Overdrive, to help companies drive adoption and accelerate the business impact of Emptoris solutions. The offering includes assessment tools, adoption workshops, analytical reporting, and access to a knowledge sharing user community with benchmarking metrics. I’m sure my fellow blogger Jason Busch over at SpendMatters will have a few gems to offer on this last topic, as it’s part of his vision for next generation on-demand spend management solutions#, so I’d keep a close eye on his blog to see what he has to say.
Personally, I think Overdrive is a step in the right direction for Emptoris. They’ve done a great job acquiring companies with leading solutions in various areas of sourcing, and recently produced an integrated solution through SAP NetWeaver, but technology is only part of the solution. Knowing how to apply it for maximum benefit is the other half. I’m interested to see what happens next.
* However I did comment on Jason Busch’s take, Old News Keeps Flowing#, which I recommend you check out. (CombineNet, acquired by Jaggaer in 2013, has even chimed in!)
# Link no longer available. All posts pre-2012 disappeared with the site revamp in June 2023.