For over 120 years, ZAHORANSKY has stood for precision, quality, and innovation in machinery and plant engineering. From its base in the Black Forest, the family-owned company serves customers worldwide – from leading toothbrush manufacturers to partners in medical technology. Even a traditional company like ZAHORANSKY now faces new challenges: increasing market volatility, fragile supply chains, and limited resources make it clear that digitalization in procurement for mid-sized companies is no longer just a future topic.
How can procurement evolve from an operational ordering function into a strategic value driver while making meaningful use of digital technologies? In this interview, Marcel Daniel, Head of Procurement at ZAHORANSKY , speaks with Nicolas Neubauer, Co-Founder & Managing Director of ivoflow, about the shift to strategic procurement, the role of AI in procurement, and pragmatic ways to successfully implement digitalization in procurement for mid-sized companies.
Strategic Procurement in Mid-Sized Companies: Current Situation and Challenges Nicolas Neubauer, Co-Founder & Managing Director, ivoflow:
Hello Marcel, we often meet at relevant procurement events and frequently exchange ideas about strategic procurement in mid-sized companies and digitalization in procurement. Thank you for taking the time to dive a bit deeper into the topic today. Could you briefly introduce yourself and ZAHORANSKY?
Marcel Daniel:
My pleasure, and thank you for the invitation and the opportunity to exchange ideas. My name is Marcel Daniel, and I have been working in procurement for almost 20 years in various companies and industries. ZAHORANSKY operates purely in mechanical engineering and is a market leader in toothbrush machinery. Our customers include, for example, Dr. Best and other well-known manufacturers. Accordingly, our requirements are very diverse in terms of the products and suppliers that go into such machines.
My focus is on two areas: digitalization in procurement and the strategic orientation of procurement. For me, digitalization is not just an efficiency topic but also a question of capacity – in other words: How can I work strategically in a mid-sized company if I am heavily involved in operational tasks?
Operational Routine vs. Strategic Ambition in Procurement Nicolas Neubauer:
What are currently the biggest issues occupying strategic procurement in mid-sized companies? Where do the main pain points and challenges lie?
Marcel Daniel:
Speaking from the perspective of mid-sized companies, which is close to my heart: about 80% of day-to-day procurement work is still operational – writing orders, setting up framework agreements, etc. Strategic tasks such as procurement risk management, compliance, or category strategies often take a back seat. These topics usually end up in the “20% in the evening,” when no one is in the office anymore.
Category Management as a Key Lever for Value Creation Nicolas Neubauer:
You mentioned category management in procurement. How important are category strategies for you – and would you like to have more time for them?
Marcel Daniel:
Absolutely. This is ultimately the area that creates real value for the company. Writing an order faster doesn’t provide an advantage – but a good category strategy does. It involves supply strategies, supplier management, risk diversification, dual sourcing, etc.
I see procurement as a moderator here: we provide numbers, data, facts – for example, which suppliers we have, volumes, which products are affected – and then discuss together whether we should consolidate or diversify.
What often gets overlooked is supplier analysis in procurement: How are they structured? How many employees do they have, what is their financial situation, what is their future viability? These aspects are essential.
Cost Savings, Supply Security, and New KPIs Nicolas Neubauer:
Cost savings used to be the top KPI. How relevant is cost savings in procurement today? And are you already using digital tools to support this?
Marcel Daniel:
Of course, cost efficiency remains central – it’s our classic value contribution. But I always say: the most expensive part is the one that isn’t there. If a machine is down, it doesn’t matter how cheap the procurement was.
We are currently working on automating operational procurement processes to free up capacity for strategic topics. At ZAHORANSKY, we are gradually transforming procurement from operational to strategic.
Specifically, we plan to:
Use AI agents in procurement to support operational tasks such as invoice verification or order confirmations. Implement spend analysis tools in procurement to provide transparency on volumes and savings potential. Deploy AI-based pricing and risk management systems that automatically detect deviations and trends. The goal is to automate operational work as much as possible to create space for strategic tasks.
Digital Tools in Procurement: Selection and Decision-Making Nicolas Neubauer:
The procurement landscape has changed significantly in recent years. How do you keep track of new digital solutions and decide which ones are relevant for you?
Marcel Daniel:
That is actually one of my specialties. I regularly attend industry events, exchange ideas within my network, and conduct so-called “beauty contests” with providers. This means the solutions are presented to us, ideally with trial access, so that employees can try them out – not just me as the head of procurement. This way, we quickly see whether a tool is practical for mid-sized companies or not.
Pragmatism over PowerPoint: Success Factors in Tool Selection Nicolas Neubauer:
What would be a red flag for you when selecting a tool – and what do you see as particularly positive?
Marcel Daniel:
I like pragmatic approaches. Rather than PowerPoint battles, I prefer to get straight to doing – look & feel matters more than slides.
A “green flag” for me is low IT dependency. The fewer complicated interfaces and long IT processes required, the better. In mid-sized companies, procurement departments are often low on IT prioritization. Tools should therefore be easy to integrate and flexible in exchanging data.
Data Quality in Procurement: Perfection as a Roadblock? Nicolas Neubauer:
Data quality is always a big topic. Are you more of a “clean up data first, then implement tools” or “start now and improve along the way” type?
Marcel Daniel:
Definitely: better 80% now than 100% never.
If you only start when all data is perfect, you never start. I prefer a “fail fast” approach – learn quickly, improve quickly.
Of course, data must be maintained, but tools can help with that. Every strategic purchaser in our company is required to keep price lists, country of origin, HS codes, etc., up to date. This is part of daily business – but perfection should not be a prerequisite.
Conclusion: Success Factors for Digitalization in Procurement Nicolas Neubauer:
Finally, what advice would you give to other procurement managers facing similar challenges – digitalization, limited IT resources, budgets?
Marcel Daniel:
First, identify the biggest pain points. In my case, it was too much operational work. I focused there, freed up capacity, and created space for value-adding topics.
Then: involve IT early, explain the vision, stay in dialogue. And: don’t forget stakeholder management – find supporters in the company to gain backing.
And very importantly: don’t search forever for the perfect solution. Compare two or three tools, choose the best one – and start. It may not be the ideal system, but you learn and can adjust later. Waiting too long means losing touch with the market.
About the Interview: This interview illustrates how strategic procurement in mid-sized companies can be implemented practically through digitalization, automation, and targeted use of AI – without theoretical overload, but with a clear focus on added value and practical applicability.
