CPO Rising’s Technology Round-Up Series returns today with fresh supply management technology news and updates covering a few recent major announcements. If you are a sourcing, procurement, or spend management solution provider and you are continually innovating the way that procurement and supply chain leaders and practitioners drive value, we’d love to hear from you. Please drop us a note at info at cporising dot com. Thanks, and enjoy!
Leagh Turner Named as Coupa CEO
SAN MATEO, Calif. — Coupa, a leader in business spend management, announced that Leagh Turner has joined the company as its new CEO. Turner brings more than 20 years of experience in technology and proven success in leading performance, innovation, and growth. Turner also joins Coupa’s Board of Directors.
According to Turner, “Coupa has a bold and inspiring purpose. We make every dollar matter. And most importantly, we’re supported by a mission-driven team, a passionate community, and an innovative platform.
“We have a huge opportunity to transform global organizations and communities for the better, and in a lasting way. I’m honored to lead this company, and to evolve and scale how we deliver real value to our community that helps them grow and succeed.”
Turner most recently served as co-CEO at Ceridian, a global leader in human capital management technology, and has held senior leadership roles at SAP and Oracle. She’s been recognized by the Women’s Executive Network as one of Canada’s 100 Most Powerful Women. In her time at Ceridian, Turner helped to double the company’s revenue and significantly expand its global customer base.
Charles Goodman, Coupa board chairman, noted, “Leagh Turner is an excellent leader with extensive experience scaling companies for growth, empowering teams, and fostering a culture of community and authenticity. Leagh is undeniably committed to our customers’ success. With Turner as CEO, Coupa is well poised to explore new innovation and opportunity.”
Read the full announcement here.
Basware Acquires Glantus to Expand AI-driven Overpayment and Fraud Detection Capabilities
LONDON — Basware, a leader in AP automation and invoice processing, announced its acquisition of Glantus, an AP specialist in audit recovery and fraud prevention for the North American and European markets. The acquisition brings together two forces in AI-driven accounts payable (AP) automation and financial technology.
The company stated that despite the fast-growing AP automation market, invoice fraud and overpayment errors remain an ongoing concern. Reports show that more than 70% of businesses are subjected to invoice or payment fraud each year. Among these, AP teams continue to be the most targeted of all departments, with 58% being compromised annually through vendor impersonator scams alone.
According to Jason Kurtz, CEO of Basware, “This acquisition marks a significant milestone for Basware and Glantus. Glantus has a very strong track record of delivering ROI and we share a mutual mission to drive value for the CFO’s team.
“This deal will only accelerate our ability to deliver demonstrable savings and innovation to our customers through a joint value proposition. This move signifies further investment activity to come for Basware, solidifying our position as the leader in the AP automation industry,” Kurtz adds.
Basware and Glantus will come together to create a joint offering, delivering customers with complete coverage and a data-driven view of their invoicing and financial operations.
Read the full announcement here.
ORO Labs Raises $34M in Series B Funding
SAN FRANCISCO — ORO Labs, a leading global SaaS provider and creator of one of the world’s foremost smart workflow orchestration platform’s for procurement, announced it has raised $34 million in Series B funding led by Felicis, with participation from existing investors including Norwest Venture Partners, B Capital, and XYZ Venture Capital.
This latest round, which will support the company’s rapid scaling of international and platform growth, closes at the one-year milestone of ORO’s launch and the company’s November 2022 $25 million Series A, bringing total investment raised to $60 million.
According to Sudhir Bhojwani, CEO and co-founder at ORO Labs, “We’re on a mission to humanize the overall procurement experience, simplifying and guiding end-to-end supplier engagement for efficiency and compliance,” he said.
“Our Series B financing is further validation, not only of our success in executing but also the opportunities as we continue to develop and scale ORO for international expansion and a host of new use cases — bringing incredibly easy start-to-finish procurement to even more organizations for agile operations and happy employees,” Bhojwani added.
The company stated that ORO is in use by leading global Fortune 200 enterprises, and provides organizations with a next-generation platform that streamlines procurement and reduces supplier cycle time using workflow automation. From intake to spend control, and contract management to supplier relationships, ORO’s smart procurement workflows empower organizations to optimize efficiency and drive success.
Read the full announcement here.
Procurify and Olive Technologies Partner to Align SaaS Procurement from Source to Pay
VANCOUVER, BC — Olive Technologies, a leader in AI-driven decision-making solutions, has partnered with Procurify, a top cloud-based procure-to-pay (P2P) software provider. This alliance merges two innovative platforms to streamline and enhance the vendor sourcing, selection, and procurement processes for organizations worldwide.
The company stated that one of the key challenges procurement faces today is bridging the gap between business decision-makers and procurement teams. Often, decisions made by business units and IT about vendor selection, product procurement, and implementation are handed to procurement with limited context, leading to inefficiencies and potential misalignment.
According to Heather Simmons, vice president, business development for Procurify, “The divide between business decision-makers and procurement teams can result in suboptimal vendor choices, delays in implementation, budget overruns and missed cost-saving opportunities,” she said.
“Companies accessing an integrated approach to spend management benefit from streamlined workflows, real-time visibility, and centralized spend data to inform better decision-making — which leads to improved business outcomes,” Simmons added.
Read the full announcement here.
