CONTRACT MANAGEMENT
The gap between a signed contract and a realised KPI can often become a void of administrative friction. For Accor Group, a world-renowned hospitality conglomerate, the challenge of managing a diversifying product portfolio across hundreds of locations eventually outpaced the capabilities of its legacy systems.
As noted in analysis from IBM, procurement contracts define the terms that govern buyer-supplier relationships and support long-term partnerships, including pricing, delivery obligations, performance expectations and dispute resolution. Because these agreements directly influence costs and services, effective contract management plays a central role in helping ensure that procurement activities deliver the value that was intended.
Overcoming the manual refresh trap Before its digital overhaul, Accor utilised a Contract Lifecycle Management( CLM) solution that struggled to keep pace with the group’ s expansion. The team was burdened by a manual refresh requirement for every contract, a process that invited data inconsistencies and costly operational bottlenecks.
Richard Dudley, Legal Digitisation Manager at Accor, noted that the gaps in their previous system were extensive. When asked about the failings of the legacy setup, he remarked:“ We came up with a list of 100 things, and we could’ ve gone on but 100 was enough.”
116 May 2026