E-procurement has experienced an interesting lifecycle, from hype to horror and finally to acceptance. During the tech boom of the late 1990’s, driven by the maturation of Internet technologies and the astronomical growth in the use of the Web to conduct business, every organization had “electronification” on its corporate radar. And e-procurement was one of the technologies under the spotlight. A plethora of e-procurement solutions cropped up in the marketplace and companies were rushing to implement these solutions in the hope of achieving huge cost savings and improving trading partner relationships. 

Unfortunately, the benefits did not materialize as expected. The biggest lesson organizations learned from this experience was that merely implementing an e-procurement solution is not enough.  A successful e-procurement program requires the redesign of the procurement process; melding automation with internal organizational change. Over the years, learning from early mistakes, organizations have taken a more pragmatic approach to e-procurement and are now reaping the numerous benefits of automation.

PayStream Advisors is preparing a vendor analysis report and buyers guide for Fortune 1000 Accounts Payables and Procurement professionals who are seeking information regarding eProcurement solutions. The report is targeted toward individuals who require detailed vendor and product information in order to identify and select an appropriate solution that meets the diverse needs of their organization. Beginning with an introduction to the benefits of automation and the emerging trends in the eProcurement marketplace, it describes the major players in this space and highlights the innovative programs that they offer. The report concludes with analytical insights that will help the reader compare and contrast across all of the vendors and solutions.