Procurement is a vital function in the back office—and one that helps the business to function properly. While manual procurement often leads to poor visibility, high maverick spend, and delayed payments, automation software creates a streamlined process that enables the Chief Procurement Officer (CPO) to control costs and make strategic sourcing decisions. 

In the last few years, Levvel has noticed an interesting distinction emerge in the procurement technology space between “computerization” and “automation.” Specifically, as organizations have worked to improve their procurement processes with technology, many have computerized their procurement, but few have truly automated it. For instance, “computerized” procurement departments operate through a combination of Excel spreadsheets, outdated enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, supplier websites, and, in some cases, a simple approval workflow tool. While these types of organizations may believe they’re handling procurement electronically, they’re unable to realize anywhere near the same number of benefits as a truly automated department. Rather, true automation entails shifting the entire procurement process to a singular solution in which all tasks, tools, and data are centralized and optimized.