Technology Round-Up – August 13, 2015

Posted by Ardent Partners Analyst Team on August 13th, 2015
Stored in Articles, Complex Categories, General, Procure-to-Pay, Solution Providers, Technology

Selectica Finalizes Acquisition of b-pack

On August 3, Selectica (NASDAQ: SLTC), the California-based provider of contract lifecycle management solutions, announced that it has completed its acquisition of procure-to-pay solution provider, b-pack, for $12.33 million in cash and stock. Announced in late March and covered by Ardent Partners here, the deal was finalized at the end of July following completion of Phase 1 of the transition. Phase 1 milestones included the collaboration of Selectica’s and b-pack’s product and technology teams, the development of their joint sales and marketing strategies, and a communications campaign for each companies’ customers. This is Selectica’s second acquisition in as many years, following their acquisition of Iasta in June 2014 (read Ardent’s analysis of that deal by clicking here), and continues its path towards being a broad supply management solution provider.

Coupa Software Announces Release 13

In mid June, Coupa Software, the California-based provider of cloud-based spend management solutions, announced Coupa Release 13, featuring mobility enhancements, simplified and automated expense management, touchless invoice processing, and integration across Coupa’s business suite and its Open Business Network. Release 13 brings “responsive web design, mobile apps and actionable email notifications” to the user, enhancing their mobile experience using the Coupa platform. It also seeks to consolidate “upstream” and “downstream” processes into what Coupa calls “one single stream”, which links sourcing and payables activities on one platform. Such activities include touchless non-PO invoice processing, invoice discounting, and other features.

Infor Announces the Release of Advanced Planning 11

Also in mid June, Infor, the New York-based provider of cloud-based supply chain management solutions, announced the release of Advanced Planning 11, a configurable supply chain tool that can bring agility and flexibility to the supply chain management process. Advanced Planning 11 features a supply chain optimization tool, which allows end users to consider cost and supply constraints across the supply chain in factors such as sourcing, inventory, manufacturing, labor, warehousing, distribution, and transportation. Infor has also deployed a newer optimization engine, CPLEX 12.6, using 64-bit, resulting in faster speeds and greater scale for end users, according to company officials.

Deem Updates Deem Expense for Business Travel and Expense Management

In late June, Deem, the San Francisco-based provider of cloud-based expense management solutions, announced a new release of Deem Expense, which aims to simplify mobile expense management for business travelers. Essentially, it allows business travelers to create, edit, review, and submit their expense reports up the chain of command directly from their mobile devices. To do this, Deem has incorporated automated receipt processing into its platform, allowing travelers to bypass manual expense inputs and reduce report processing times. This feature has been incorporated into the platform at no additional charge to customers. Deem will be adding additional features to Expense Management later this year, including the ability to link corporate and personal credit cards to the platform for faster, more efficient, and more accurate expense reporting.

Basware Announces Mobile Enhancements for Expense Management Solution

Also in late June, Basware, the Finland-based provider of spend management solutions, enhanced its Alusta platform with cloud and mobility features for travel and expense (T&E) manegement, simplifying the T&E reporting process for all parties. As a result, business travelers can more easily scan and capture receipts with their devices and submit expense reports, particularly when they are still traveling. Managers can receive and review their reports much faster, resulting in faster deconfliction and approval, and ultimately, faster reimbursement to the employee and greater savings in time and costs to process reports. Another benefit of speeding up the submission and approval process is that employees can take advantage of early booking discounts, which will ultimately provide greater value to the enterprise.

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