A Critical Review of the PayStream Navigator: Our Interview with Coupa
Anna Barnett 9 Sep 2015As many of our readers know, we recently released the 2015 PayStream Advisors Invoice Automation Navigator report. This publication is the first of its kind—that is, an in-depth, completely unbiased comparative review of several leading AP automation providers and their solutions. This report not only summarizes and scores the invoice solutions’ functionalities, it also summarizes strengths and advisements for each solution.
Our research team put a lot of hard work and careful analysis into creating this new tool, and we are very proud of the end product. However, as we continue to improve the PayStream Navigator, we want to present our readers with some other, unbiased reviews.
Related: You can download a complimentary copy of the 2015 Invoice Workflow Automation Navigator Report here.
This interview is with Coupa’s Vice President of Strategy and Market Development, Gabe Perez. Coupa was one of the participants in the Navigator, and they are excited about the possibilities that the Navigator has to offer for both vendors and potential customers alike. Here’s what Mr. Perez had to say about Coupa’s experience in the Invoice Automation Navigator process.
What did you think about the Navigator report overall?
It’s very refreshing to have another viable, 3rd-party report on invoice automation. It’s big for Coupa because it’s another point of validation from a respected analyst firm. I think the most important thing is its methods of official scoring and representation. It’s one thing to be mentioned in a paper or to sponsor the paper, but to be able to look at a report and to see how different vendors stack up, their strengths and weaknesses—it’s great to be included.
What value do you think it delivers to readers looking for a solution?
There definitely needs to be more space in the market around helping people evaluate vendors. This is because, at the end of the day, the organizations that have to choose a solution don’t do that for a living. They come in and see three demos and all the demos probably look OK, or some may look better than others. It’s very hard to really delineate the truth behind what’s being demonstrated by the vendor in a controlled situation. This report offers another point of validation that would help an organization to decide between vendor A, B, and C—and it also presents those organizations with a reliable source that they can contact for extra help.
How do you think our report differs from other analyst firms’ ranking models?
I think there are not enough analyst firms working out there that break a solution’s value down to a quantifiable and measurable representation. Outside of Forrester and Gartner, and maybe G2 Crowd, there isn’t really anywhere for a buying organization to go. I think this is a really good tool for someone who is evaluating software.
We’re also very excited about the upcoming Travel and Expense Navigator report you guys are doing. To my knowledge, there are no other analyst models that comparatively evaluate expense management solutions. You guys may be the first 3rd-party, analyst-driven evaluation for this, and I think it’s going to be a very valuable report.
What are some of the report’s weaknesses?
One of the things I really like about the Navigator is the individual representation and scoring per vendor. I can take the scoring models for Vendors A, B, and C and compare them, customizing the report to my software evaluation needs. It’s a nice thing that the model is so visual, and that it offers a clear look at the providers’ strength, differentiators, and advisements.
That being said, I do think an opportunity for PayStream is to expand on this format beyond the main “pizza” wheel that displays all the vendors together. I think people do like to see a market overview, but the pizza wheel is busy and doesn’t easily help me pick the top vendors. For example, if I were trying to select vendors for an RFP, it would take me a while to determine which providers you guys say are the top 3. I think it would be good to have a visual or overall ranking diagram, or score chart, or something along those lines.
Would you like to add anything else?
It is a very powerful report, especially for your first one, and it’s a very good one. You should build on it, and if you do, I think it will continue to gain creditability and relevance in the market.
You can download a complimentary copy of the 2015 Invoice Workflow Automation Navigator Report here.
Suggested Resources
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