for the public sector was first introduced with the Directives 2004/17/EC and 2004/18/EC of 31 March 2004. These directives, which were subsequently revised in 2014, set up the framework for transparent and equal opportunities for public procurement including the mandatory use of electronic communication for publishing opportunities, the standardization of procurement processes, electronic tender submission procedures, handling of objections etc. for all public procurement made in the EU above certain thresholds. e-Informing E-Informing does not directly take part in the purchasing process, this process rather precedes the purchasing. It is the process of gathering and distributing purchasing information both from and to internal and external parties, using the internet technology. Information sharing refers to the extent to which critical and proprietary information is communicated to one's supply chain partner thus more efficiency and high performance of the supply chain. In information sharing, also information quality is considered. That includes accuracy, timeliness, adequacy, and credibility of information exchanged. This process occurs especially in Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP). e-Tendering Electronic tendering ("e-Tendering") is a process for sending and receiving tenders by electronic means, rather than the old paper-based method. Instead of inserting documents into an envelope and posting them, we - and you - will now exchange them securely via the Internet. p. 14.</ref> e-Auctioning E-auction is the process of conducting an auction to sell assets, natural resources or other goods through online competitive bidding. Compared to physical auction, electronic auction provides complete transparency and enables more parties to take part. Vendor management It occurs when contracting authority aims to control costs, drive service excellence and mitigate risks to gain increased value from their vendors throughout the procurement process. Contract management departments are often established in order to ensure the most effective deal. Catalogue management Catalogue management is a strategic process that starts when suppliers publish their product portfolio electronically and products are made available to buyers in order to procure goods and services electronically, and appears while managing the product catalog to ensure the quality of the product data across the sales channels. The product content can be hosted either by the supplier or buyer. e-Purchasing As opposed to e-Tendering, e-Purchasing is used in procurement of goods and services that are of low value and high volume. It electronically simplifies the purchasing process of such goods and services. For this type of procurement, catalogues are one of the key components that