Designed to address different types of professionals, the solution proposed by CDS Group is fully adapted to the particularities and requirements of the public sector in terms of hotel reservations for business travel. In accordance with the provisions of the public procurement code, the purchasing strategy must comply with CSR criteria. Who is Apeca and why does it play a key role in public procurement? Why are Apeca and CDS key players in public procurement performance?

What do we mean by “responsible purchasing”?

Since 2006, the concept of responsible purchasing has been included in the public procurement code, which will be replaced in 2019 by the public order code. This notion is based on the broader concept of sustainable development. Implementing a responsible purchasing policy means, in particular, including a social clause and an environmental clause in public contracts, without neglecting economic performance or quality.

Why is this particularly important in public procurement?

The ability of suppliers to respond to public procurement contracts depends on the principles established in the sustainable procurement policy. Working on the concept of sustainable procurement is a way to give both public authorizers and suppliers the keys to understanding the subject and knowing what is and is not feasible. The process must be pragmatic. Let us not lose sight of the fact that public money must be used for the common good.

How is ACOA positioned to support buyers and companies in this regard?

Apeca (Association of European Purchasing Card and Paperless Transaction Professionals) proposes tohelp public procurement actors in the definition of their purchasing strategy. In order to teach companies and buyers to place responsible practices at the heart of their practices, Apeca supports its members and private actors to move forward on these issues and respond concretely to these challenges.

To promote these good practices, Xavier Lallement, a member of the Apeca Board of Directors, is leading a working group on social and environmental criteria in public procurement that started last July, as well as a training course that is divided into three stages:

• Knowledge: this involves integrating the fundamental principles that enable the development of a CSR policy (implementation of the policy, identification of customer needs, mobilization of teams, development of commitments, management and analysis of the effectiveness of the CSR policy);
• To understand: the training focuses on what CSR is in the field of public procurement (principles and issues, certifications and labels, life cycle, responsible management);
• act The objective is to learn how to enhance its practices on a commercial level (drafting a CSR manifesto, purchasing locally, respecting CSR criteria in the context of a contract, training the sales force to enhance the value of the CSR policy, making the most of life cycle analyses).

The association wants everyone to benefit from the expertise of all. Through actions focused on the reality of the field and operational practice, Apeca brings together public entities and suppliers to look in the same direction.

Why is CDS particularly well positioned to meet this demand?

Among the good practices encouraged by Apeca, the dematerialization of purchases is one of the actions encouraged to be part of a logic of responsible purchasing. CDS Group offers in this sense a solution completely adapted to the particularities of the public sector as regards professional travel of the public agents.

This privileged positioning of CDS in the context of public procurement can be explained in several ways:

• the existence of the CDS Group-DIMO Software partnership : it has given rise to the NotilusInOne software, which facilitates the dematerialized management of business travel;
• the design of solutions such as CDS SmartPay: it integrates all of the payment methods that the various players in the public sector may need to use;
• CDS’ expertise in public procurement.

While the issue of sustainability is becoming more and more important in all sectors and at all levels of the purchasing process, CDS Group is positioning itself as a key player in optimizing performance in terms of responsible purchasing within the framework of public procurement.