Author

Andrew Woods

Published

25 November 2025

Estimated Read time

3Mins

Guests at Zip’s AI Summit – The Future Of Agentic Orchestration, CPOstrategy hears from Zip co-founder Lu Cheng, Director, Enterprise…

Guests at Zip’s AI Summit – The Future Of Agentic Orchestration, CPOstrategy hears from Zip co-founder Lu Cheng, Director, Enterprise Advisory, Michael Rooney, and their customers from Lighthouse and Flow Traders

When Lu Cheng, Zip’s Co-Founder and CTO, takes to Amsterdam’s TOBACCO Theater stage, there’s a sense of conviction that comes from having built something genuinely unique. Founded in 2020, Zip didn’t simply build another procurement tool. It created a brand-new category.

“My Co-Founder Rujul (Zaparde) and I started Zip around the premise that spend had decentralised,” Cheng explains to the sold-out crowd. “There were more requesters in purchasing than ever before, and procurement had become one of the most complex workflows in any business. We wanted to create one front door for employees to engage with procurement, giving visibility and control across the entire purchasing process.”

That vision became the foundation of procurement orchestration – a central layer that connects procurement, finance, legal, compliance, IT and other business functions through a single intake process. It’s a design that has since helped hundreds of enterprises simplify complexity, accelerate decision-making and drive measurable outcomes – attracting large enterprise customers across a range of industries, from AI leaders like OpenAI and Anthropic, to Prudential, Arm, AMD, and more

Across Zip’s customer base, the platform has delivered average annual savings of 3.6%, reduced cycle times by over 5%, and doubled compliant purchases. But for Cheng, the true differentiator lies in Zip’s approach to user experience and scalability. “We’ve seen over 50 million comments posted within Zip in the past year,” he notes. “That shows us it’s become a true collaboration space for procurement.”

The AI orchestration frontier

Zip’s next frontier is artificial intelligence and Cheng’s enthusiasm is palpable when he describes the company’s ambitions. “The orchestration layer is the perfect place to embed AI,” he tells us backstage, following his presentation. “All the data, systems and people are connected in one place, so our AI can make better, faster decisions.” Read the full story here!

Author

Andrew Woods

Published

Estimated Read time

2Mins

At the forefront of procurement transformation, Zip is pioneering a new era of orchestration and AI-driven efficiency. Co-founder and CEO…

At the forefront of procurement transformation, Zip is pioneering a new era of orchestration and AI-driven efficiency. Co-founder and CEO Rujul Zaparde speaks to CPOstrategy about redefining intake-to-pay workflows, empowering procurement to focus on strategic value, and the company’s bold ambition to process one billion AI-assisted reviews by 2030…

When Rujul Zaparde, Co-Founder and CEO of Zip, reflects on his time at Airbnb, he remembers the frustrations that sparked a new category in procurement technology. “Lu (Cheng) and I were both in engineering and product,” he recalls, “and every time we needed to make a request, we had to go through a fragmented procurement process – legal, IT, risk, privacy, and so on. It was a black box.” 

That “black box” became the inspiration for Zip, a platform designed to orchestrate procurement intake and automate the complex workflows that sit between departments and systems.

Founded just five years ago, Zip has grown at lightning speed, now serving over 600 enterprise customers across industries from tech and financial services to oil and gas and manufacturing. For Zaparde, that diversity is proof of how universal the problem really is: “Every enterprise in the world has this challenge.”

The depth beneath the surface

While the concept of orchestration might seem simple, Zaparde stresses that the success of Zip lies in its depth. “The challenge is everything under the iceberg,” he says. “It’s all the details – auditability, user management, permissioning – that have to work perfectly to make orchestration successful.”

He points out that many procurement leaders underestimate the technical and organisational complexity involved. “To get value from orchestration, you need to deploy it across a broad base of employees. It’s a high-impact, high-risk change. So when you do it, it has to really work.”

Zip’s uniqueness, he explains, lies in its enterprise scalability and end-to-end capability. “We’re the only company in the world that does intake to procure to pay – and can actually handle the downstream for you over time.” Read the full story here!

Author

Andrew Woods

Published

Estimated Read time

2Mins

Unite’s enterprise sales manager, Bob Van de Laar, on transforming indirect procurement through transparency, efficiency and trust… As European procurement…

Unite’s enterprise sales manager, Bob Van de Laar, on transforming indirect procurement through transparency, efficiency and trust…

As European procurement faces unprecedented complexity, indirect spend remains one of its toughest challenges. Fragmented supplier bases, compliance pressures and the growing weight of sustainability reporting continue to stretch teams already asked to do more with less. 

For Unite, formerly known as Mercateo, tackling those challenges has been its mission for over 25 years. Building on its roots in European procurement, Unite now enables compliant, ESG-driven, and audit-ready procurement aligned with EU frameworks, such as General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), German regulation for public procurement below the EU threshold (UVgO), and the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive(CSRD) – promoting responsible, transparent, and fair business practices. As a trusted European alternative to global marketplaces, Unite champions a model built on trust, compliance and long-term partnership.

Today, Unite marks its next evolution – from marketplace to procurement partner – empowering procurement teams to achieve measurable performance built on efficiency, transparency and trust.

Van de Laar explains that procurement teams are being asked to juggle multiple priorities and want to focus on strategic initiatives. Still, indirect procurement often takes up a disproportionate amount of their time. Unite’s role, he says, is to simplify that through one environment that delivers efficiency, transparency and compliance without compromising control.

From marketplace to procurement partner

Unite operates as a platform that combines a marketplace with procurement services. across 12 countries, serving over 40,000 customers with access to over 100+ million products from thousands of pre-vetted suppliers. This provides organisations with broad choice while enabling procurement teams to maintain full oversight.

Traditionally, Unite’s strength lay in creating a single, digital buying environment for catalogue-based goods. But as markets mature and digitalisation deepens, the company has evolved into something more sophisticated: a procurement performance partner. Read the full story here!

Author

Andrew Woods

Published

Estimated Read time

3Mins

Without accurate supplier data, even the most ambitious digital transformations are doomed to fail. At DPW Amsterdam, Boston Consulting Group’s…

Without accurate supplier data, even the most ambitious digital transformations are doomed to fail. At DPW Amsterdam, Boston Consulting Group’s Tyler Vigen and TealBook’s Alex Denomme discuss why getting the basics right is the smartest move a CPO can make…

At this year’s DPW Amsterdam, amid a sea of stands proclaiming the virtues of artificial intelligence, automation and digital transformation, two procurement experts made a simple but crucial point: none of it works without reliable supplier data.

For Tyler Vigen, Managing Director and Partner at Boston Consulting Group (BCG), and Alex Denomme, Solutions Engineer at TealBook, the message is clear. Procurement’s grand ambitions for AI and automation are meaningless unless the foundation – supplier data – is clean, connected and current.

Garbage in, garbage out

“Just about every booth downstairs has AI on the back of it,” says Vigen, “but you can’t do AI unless you have the right data to feed it.”

Within procurement, BCG advises global enterprises on optimising operating models, integrating digital tools, and creating sustainable value through advanced analytics and AI. With experts such as Tyler Vigen at the forefront of digital procurement strategy, BCG is shaping how large organisations reimagine source-to-pay in an era defined by data and automation. Vigen advises clients across the US on procurement operating models and digital transformation. He’s seen time and again how poor supplier data can quietly cripple progress. “When a procurement leader tells me their team spends 30% of their time manually fixing supplier records, that’s a clear sign there’s a breakdown in the process for collecting that data,” he reveals. “It means you’ve either expanded your scope without resetting your data foundations or you’re working with inconsistent processes.”

Those inconsistencies ripple through the business. “If you’re spending that much time on manual data entry, your process probably isn’t deterministic,” Vigen adds. “Different people are producing different results depending on how they interpret things. You end up with inconsistent records, which causes chaos down the line.”

Entity Resolution: A persistent blind spot

One of the most persistent issues in procurement data management is entity resolution — the process of accurately identifying and linking supplier records to the correct legal entity, even when names, identifiers, or formats vary across systems. “Most organisations can’t tell how many unique suppliers they’re doing business with, or which ones share the same legal entity,” says Vigen. “That creates huge challenges. If a supplier knows more about how much you’re spending with them across divisions than you do, they have more leverage in negotiations. You’re also missing opportunities for consolidation and risk management.”

Read the full story here!

Author

Andrew Woods

Published

Estimated Read time

2Mins

With their latest venture, Levelpath, Scout RFP founders Alex Yakubovich and Stan Garber are rebuilding procurement from the ground up….

With their latest venture, Levelpath, Scout RFP founders Alex Yakubovich and Stan Garber are rebuilding procurement from the ground up. Their mission? To make the buying experience not just faster and smarter, but genuinely delightful…

Alex Yakubovich and Stan Garber, co-founders of Levelpath, take their seat, sporting identical ‘Delightful procurement’ bomber jackets. They spar with each other like a well-versed double act. After all, between the pair, they’ve already built and sold one procurement success story. Their first company, Scout RFP, was acquired by Workday for nearly $540 million in 2019. And, after leading Workday’s procurement practice, they walked away with a clear mission: to start over and rebuild procurement for the AI era.

Rebuilding procurement from the ground up

“After Workday, we wanted to start from a clean slate,” CEO Yakubovich explains. “Everything we’d learnt pointed to one conclusion – the world needed a completely new procurement platform, built AI-native from day one.” Levelpath’s entire premise rests on that idea. Where others are layering AI onto legacy systems, Yakubovich and Garber built theirs around it. “We built it from the ground up,” details Yakubovich. “That means every workflow and every process has AI embedded from the start, not added later.”

Garber, Levelpath’s President, adds: “It’s platform focused. We’re not a single app doing one job – sourcing, supplier management or contracting – we’re the framework that connects them all. The AI can tap into any part of the system at any time. That’s how software should work, but rarely does.”

The art of ‘delightful procurement’

Behind the technology lies a simple but powerful philosophy: procurement should be delightful, as endorsed by the branded bomber jackets. “Everything we do starts with that idea,” says Garber. “How do we make the experience delightful for everyone involved? The business user, the procurement professional, even the supplier.”

“We’ve had customers tell us they didn’t know procurement software could actually be enjoyable,” says Yakubovich with a grin. “That’s the whole point. The technology should get out of your way and let you focus on strategy.” Read the full story here!

Author

Andrew Woods

Published

Estimated Read time

3Mins

When BT Sourced’s procurement team took a closer look at tail spend, they found an ideal partner in Candex, aligned…


When BT Sourced’s procurement team took a closer look at tail spend, they found an ideal partner in Candex, aligned in their focus on simplicity and speed. Together, they’ve made buying, paying, and partnering smoother and more efficient, replacing complexity with digital ease. CPOstrategy took a chair with Diarmuid O’Donoghue, Head of the Digital Procurement Garage at BT Sourced, and Jeremy Lappin, Co-founder and CEO of Candex, to find out more…

Diarmuid O’Donoghue is Head of the Digital Procurement Garage at BT Sourced and his remit is clear: digitise procurement for one of the world’s most iconic technology companies. “My role involves scouting, piloting and implementing technologies across our ecosystem,” he reveals. “BT Sourced was set up to revolutionise how we do procurement. Building trust was vital – not just with our stakeholders, but with our suppliers too.”

When BT Sourced decided to reimagine how procurement operated across its global business, one of the earliest challenges it tackled was tail spend – that long, tangled list of low-value suppliers that quietly eats up time, energy and resources. This motivation led BT Sourced to Candex. “Tail spend management is messy,” O’Donoghue recalls. “It isn’t a true enabler for the business. We had thousands of small suppliers making up a small percentage of spend. We needed a solution that was compliant, simple for our users and global in nature. Candex ticked every box.”

A startup’s breakthrough

Since its founding in 2011, Candex has been redefining how enterprises manage their long tail of suppliers. What began as a solution to procurement’s long-standing challenge – handling countless small, low-value transactions – has evolved into a trusted platform for the Global 2000 that makes it effortless for companies to buy from any supplier, anywhere. Behind the vision are Co-founders Jeremy Lappin, CEO, and Shani Vaza-Wahrmann, Chief R&D Officer, who set out to bring simplicity and speed to every supplier relationship.

“We were out there hustling,” recalls Candex CEO and Co-Founder Jeremy Lappin. “We met with executives, searching for those first pilot partners who could help us prove the technology’s value. To BT Sourced’s credit, they’re an innovative team, and they recognised the potential and had the courage to take a chance on us.” Read the full story here!

Fotograaf: Daan Jeurens

Author

Andrew Woods

Published

Estimated Read time

2Mins

This month’s bumper edition is bursting with exclusive content from DPW Amsterdam 2025. The theme this year was ‘Put AI…

This month’s bumper edition is bursting with exclusive content from DPW Amsterdam 2025. The theme this year was ‘Put AI to work’ for what was an unforgettable week. 2025 was DPW Amsterdam’s biggest conference yet. More than 1,700 people from 65 different countries and 37 industries made their way through the Beurs van Berlage doors with 129 sponsors, over 100 speakers across 70+ sessions filling the expo space with lively discussion and invaluable insights. Every seat was filled, all tickets sold out. There is a demand for DPW unlike any procurement conference out there today.  

“People always say that it’s the most exciting time to be in procurement, but I truly believe it,” DPW Founder, Matthias Gutzmann tells us. “Armed with the amount of innovation coming through, the next generation of leaders are so inspiring. I believe the future of procurement is being written at DPW Amsterdam.” 

We were certainly busy out in Amsterdam, meeting procurement leaders and AI vendors from a whole host of big-name enterprises, including… Zip, Axiom, PepsiCo, Pactum, BT Sourced, Bridgestone, Candex, Boston Consulting Group, Valdera, Tonkean, Rolls Royce, Zeiss, True ValueHub, Unite, Nomia, Levelpath, HICX, Givaudan, Köse Advisory, Aptiv, Green Cabbage, TealBook, askLio, BeNeering and Resourcely.  

DPW to one side for a moment, we were also lucky enough to enjoy a chat with Andrea Sordi, SVP Global Procurement for Indirect, Packaging & Energy at dsm-firmenich, who shares his insights on the most vital elements for procurement transformation and success.  Enjoy!

Read the latest issue here!

Cover image of CPOstrategy issue 66
Fotograaf: MichielTon.com

Author

Mark Boswell

Published

10 November 2025

Estimated Read time

5Mins

Procurement is entering a new era, one shaped by the accelerating capabilities of artificial intelligence and emerging technologies.

These innovations offer procurement leaders the opportunity to rethink how value is created, how decisions are made, and how teams operate. Written by Mark Boswell, a Partner at independent management and technology consulting firm, BearingPoint.

From drafting contracts to surfacing negotiation insights, these tools streamline workflows and empower users to make faster, smarter decisions. By integrating AI into daily operations, teams can unlock new levels of efficiency and responsiveness. For example, AI can assist in identifying relevant clauses from previous contracts, flagging potential risks, and suggesting alternative language based on organisational preferences. Enterprise AI tools like Copilot can help users navigate complex supplier data, generate reports, and prepare for stakeholder meetings, all within a familiar interface. But unlocking this potential requires more than just adopting new tools. It demands a strategic, human-centred approach that balances innovation with accountability.

Data: The Foundation of Intelligent Procurement

AI is only as powerful as the data it consumes. Clean, structured, and well-governed data is the foundation of any successful AI deployment or integration. Procurement teams must prioritise data readiness, ensuring that systems are configured to support intelligent automation, predictive analytics, and real-time decision-making. This means going beyond basic data hygiene. For instance, when supplier master data is standardised, AI can instantly flag duplicate vendors, detect missing compliance certificates, and even predict late deliveries based on historical patterns. Organisations must invest in data architecture that enables interoperability across platforms, consistency in taxonomy, and transparency in sourcing. Without this, even the most advanced AI tools will struggle to deliver meaningful insights.

Technology Implementation: A Strategic Journey

Deploying new technology is not a plug-and-play exercise. Success hinges on aligning tools with organisational goals, engaging stakeholders early, and embedding change management throughout the process. Piloting solutions with real organisational data helps validate their relevance and build trust across teams. Implementation must be tailored, not just to the technical environment, but to the culture and maturity of the organisation. Procurement leaders should focus on configuring platforms to reflect business priorities, user workflows, and compliance requirements. This ensures that technology adoption is not just functional, but transformational.

Human Oversight: Underpinning Responsible Innovation

While AI can accelerate processes and surface insights, human judgement remains essential, particularly in areas involving ethics, compliance, and strategic decision-making. Procurement leaders must design systems that keep humans in control, using AI to augment rather than replace expertise. This is especially important in high-stake scenarios such as supplier selection, contract negotiation, and risk management. AI can provide recommendations, flag anomalies, and streamline analysis, but the final decisions must rest with experienced professionals who understand the broader context – for example, an AI tool might suggest awarding a contract to the lowest-cost supplier, but a procurement professional may override that recommendation due to ESG concerns or geopolitical risk.

Tailored Solutions: One Size Doesn’t Fit All

Procurement challenges vary widely across industries and organisations. The most impactful solutions are those tailored to specific needs, whether that’s guided buying, contract clause comparison, or supplier risk analysis. For instance, a manufacturing company might prioritise AI tools that predict raw material price fluctuations, while a financial services firm may focus on AI-driven compliance checks for third-party vendors. Deep implementation expertise ensures that platforms are configured to deliver measurable outcomes, not just technical capabilities. This requires a consultative approach to technology deployment. Procurement teams should work closely with solution providers to define success metrics, customise workflows, and ensure that tools are embedded into day-to-day operations. The goal is not just to implement software, but to enable smarter, faster, and more strategic procurement.

Balancing Innovation with Accountability

As procurement embraces AI and new technologies, it must also strengthen its governance frameworks. This includes clear policies on data usage, ethical AI deployment, and supplier transparency. Procurement leaders must ensure that innovation does not come at the expense of accountability, fairness, or compliance. This is particularly relevant in areas such as ESG reporting, supplier diversity, and responsible sourcing. AI can help identify gaps, monitor performance, and generate insights, but organisations must remain vigilant in how these tools are used and interpreted.

Conclusion: A Human-Centred Future

The future of procurement is not just digital, it’s human-centred. AI and technology will play a critical role in shaping how procurement operates, but their success depends on how well they are integrated into the organisation’s culture, strategy, and values. The key is to ensure that AI is not just a novelty, but a trusted partner in the procurement process. This means training users, refining prompts, and continuously improving the underlying models based on feedback and performance. Procurement leaders must embrace this transformation with clarity and purpose. By investing in data, tailoring solutions, empowering users, and maintaining oversight, they can unlock the full potential of AI, while ensuring that procurement remains a strategic, ethical, and value-driven function.

The author is Mark Boswell, a Partner at independent management and technology consulting firm, BearingPoint.