You can also listen to this compelling case on the Season 6 of The Procurement Software Podcast from James Meads.
Links on your favourite podcast player:
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How a ride-hailer transformed €XXXM in procurement spend by maximising existing tools instead of chasing expensive enterprise solutions
Too many companies throw money at procurement problems without asking three fundamental questions:
💡 What do we really need?
💡 How do we leverage what we already have?
💡 How do we make this work for the people who use it every day?
A fast-scaling tech powerhouse in the urban mobility space found its answers by building an ecosystem that connected all relevant business units, automated manual work and empowered procurement to act strategically.
In a company with a diverse, sprawling tech stack, adding yet another software risked overwhelming users. We took a different approach; we drove adoption by building on what people already used every day: Jira.
By bolstering our setup and process in there instead of forcing a new tool, we made change feel natural, not disruptive. People embraced it because it worked with their habits, not against them.
The goal went beyond saving on software costs, taking aim at the entrenched enterprise procurement orthodoxy that dominates our industry. Sure, we had vendors who pitched us comprehensive platforms costing €250K-€500K with 6-18 month implementations.
However, we discovered that sometimes the smartest path forward is the one that maximises what you already own.
The Chaos: Picture This Procurement Nightmare
Every great voyage begins with a storm. It’s in Q4, 2019. Procurement? It simply doesn’t exist.. Zero. Nada. The company is sailing blind on turbulent waters.
Imagine working with over 400 vendors scattered across 16 markets, parting with €XXX million in annual spend, and drafting around 1,000 POs per year (that at least were known of at the time) and still no procurement! That hole wasn’t just big; it was gaping.
Every department had its own software tune with worldclass providers: Workday, salesforce, Braze, Zendesk, Atlassian are all embedded within HR, Sales, Marketing, Tech & Product. Slack was the communication glue, Okta and Google Workspace the digital foundations.
Legal struggled with a dreaded outdated archiving system. Contracts floated in email, Google Drive, and Docusign purgatory.
Every other department in the company had Tableau for their analytics, except for Finance, who loves Excel and is somehow forgotten since it’s “just” a business supportive function.
Of course, there was no budget for buying a procurement tool and a light workflow was created in Jira. A purchase order request was raised as a ticket (to what is called nowadays “intake”), progress of that request was tracked in comment and once ready, an approval request would be triggered with an email notification and the purchase order was sent separately via email.
The Frankenstein Process: What Chaos Actually Looked Like
What did this look like in practice?
Approvals? Manual and redundant: eight sequential steps where requests went to die in someone’s inbox.
Compliance and Security checks? Buried in endless email chains that nobody could track or follow up on effectively.
Contracts? Stored in every possible location: Google Drive folders, databases, email attachments, even left floating in Docusign where documents went to be forgotten on someone’s account.
Invoice Approvals? Procurement wasn’t included in the Kofax workflow, meaning we had to manually request payment run exports and set aside every Tuesday just to cross-check purchase order numbers before releasing funds.
RFPs? A disorganized, time-consuming nightmare handled in emails and Google Sheets. Wouldn’t dare to ask what suppliers used to think about this.
Savings tracking? Creative spreadsheet gymnastics, where numbers could be stretched, tweaked or conveniently adjusted to tell the right story.
This wasn’t just inefficiency, it was a system barely holding itself together. From a simple ticketing system trying to manage a nine digit figure € in spend, our journey needed to center less on tools and more on reimagining procurement itself.
Man Overboard: When Our Growing Crew Exposed Structural Weaknesses
Between 2021 and 2022 our procurement department experienced significant growth, expanding from 3 to 10 team members, including 3 interns.
While we had progressed beyond the initial discovery phase and gained some internal acceptance of our processes, we were still very much in the development stage; somewhere between Level 1 (Reactive) and Level 2 (Foundation) in procurement maturity.
Despite having basic processes and policies well charted out, a harsh reality emerged: our system was fundamentally unsustainable. Procurement had become a significant organisational bottleneck, characterised by:
- A sluggish approval pipeline that frustrated stakeholders
- Fragmented, disconnected processes across departments
- An overwhelming amount of administrative overhead that buried our team
- Limited strategic focus due to operational firefighting
The rapid team growth, while necessary, had highlighted these structural weaknesses rather than solving them. It became evident that simply adding more people to a flawed system wasn’t the answer, we needed a fundamental transformation in how procurement operated within the organisation.
The Vendor Armada: Enterprise Solutions Promising Safe Passage
Our procurement process was far from streamlined and the most time-consuming part proved to be creating tenders and managing RFPs. That’s why the real need was a tool focused on sourcing.
Naturally, the big players — Coupa, Ivalua, SAP Ariba, Zycus, and GEP — were invited to the table, each showcasing impressive demos and eyeing the opportunity to onboard us into their full enterprise suites.
Alongside them were niche providers, each promising a sharper focus on sourcing as their core craft.
Pro Tip: had I known there was such a thing like the Tech Map for Mid-Market from James Meads, we would’ve saved a lot of time and effort in finding a suitable solution to our company’s size, procurement maturity level and needs.
The vendor presentations followed a familiar script:
- Comprehensive functionality that would solve every procurement challenge
- Seamless integration with existing systems (with some API development required)
- User-friendly interfaces that would drive immediate adoption
- Industry best practices built into configurable workflows
- Implementation timelines of 6-12 months (optimistically)
- Total investment ranging from €200,000 to €500,000
The pitches were polished, the demos impressive, and honestly, one presentation was particularly tempting with its sleek interface and proven track record in indirect procurement.
But as we dug deeper into this process, a realisation struck us: Jira, the tool we were already using for creating requests as tickets, was 60-70% of the way there. It had workflows and integration potential. What it lacked was structure, automation and supplier-facing capabilities.
Steering Away from Expensive Flagships: The Build vs Buy Navigation Decision
Rather than falling for a costly rip-and-replace solution that would drain hundreds of thousands of Euros and spark resistance from non-procurement stakeholders, we made a counterintuitive choice: leverage Jira, a tool already embedded in our IT infrastructure and budget and which was well known by all of our colleagues and users.
Choosing Our Bearing: The Strategic Navigation Framework
We evaluated our options against five critical criteria:
- Implementation Speed
- Enterprise suites: >6 months typically
- Our approach: Incremental improvements delivering value immediately
- User Adoption Risk
- New platforms: Extensive training and change management required
- Familiar tools: Building on existing user knowledge and habits
- Integration Complexity
- Vendor promises vs. reality: Complex API development and ongoing maintenance
- Existing ecosystem: Tools already connected and understood
- Total Cost Reality
- Enterprise licensing + implementation + training + ongoing support
- Our investment: Maximise existing licences + targeted additions
- Customisation Flexibility
- Platform constraints vs. business needs
- Our control: Configure exactly how our business operates
By doubling down on what we already had, we could transform our existing platform into a procurement powerhouse without spending a single extra euro on software licences for the core functionality.
Retrofitting Our Fleet: The Transformation Strategy
Phase 1: Supercharging Jira from Task Tracker to Procurement Backbone
The beauty of our approach was that it aligned with a broader trend of process orchestration improvement across the company. Accounting had migrated invoice processing to Yooz, Information Security & Data Protection managed their projects in Jira, and IT leveraged Workato to automate processes and software interfaces across many departments in the company.
Procurement needed speed, transparency, and automation. The focus on orchestration would prove crucial in achieving these goals, allowing us to create a harmonised ecosystem where different tools and processes work together seamlessly.
✅ Better Requests
- Rebuilt the intake management needed for each of the main categories: tech (hardware, software, cloud, PSPs), professional services (marketing, consulting, other services) & office leasing
- Those requirements would serve as the data input for the procurement analytics (e.g. vendor, buying legal entity, purchasing volume, savings, one-time spend, recurring, cost centre, budget).
- Workflows tailored to those categories for leaner processes
✅ Streamlined Approvals
- Moved from waterfall approvals (8+ steps!) to parallel approvals
- Approvals escalated automatically, cutting down wait times and additional approvals via email
- Slack notifications replaced email notifications, making decisions faster
✅ Integrated IT, Infosec and Data Protection Directly into the Procurement Workflow for Software Spend
- Requirements were embedded into the workflows (Does it have SSO, Pentest, SOC2 Report, ISO 27001, GDPR, DPA, etc)
- Approvals became dependent on each other, ensuring checks happened at the right time
- Users finally had visibility on where and which process their request was stuck in
✅ Automated Contract Management & Renewals
- Jira Assets (Insight) stored contract data, auto-triggering renewal tickets from 60-270 days
- Decisions to terminate, renegotiate, or renew were proactive—not last-minute scrambles
- Integration with Docusign for seamless contract execution
✅ Real-Time Spend Analytics with EazyBI
- Automatic Spend Cube built from Jira data
- KPIs like Spend vs Budget, Savings vs Previous Contracts, Supplier Spend Trends finally visible in real-time
✅ Seamless Invoice Matching via Workato & Yooz
Workato connected Yooz and Jira, enabling:
- Invoice data storage in Jira
- Automated procurement approvals (distinct from Cost Centre Owner approvals) triggered when PO number and amount matched invoice
- Mismatches between Invoice and Order automatically generated new tickets for discrepancy review
- Automatic Spend Cube creation in EazyBI, including vendor, invoice volume, annual spend, and KPIs like Spend vs Budget, Savings vs Budget, Savings vs Previous Contract/Order
✅ Legal and Compliance Fully Integrated
- By the beginning of 2023, Legal moved their process off email and into Jira, finally making all of our processes interconnected
Phase 2: Bringing in Deepstream, a Game-Changer for Sourcing
Having run an RFP for an RFP software (ironically, isn’t it?) provided us knowledge and a starting point to boost our own process. Jira could cover most procurement operations internally, but supplier collaboration was still a pain in the ass. RFPs meant dozens of emails, spreadsheets, and manual comparisons. That’s when we decided to rather invest in a focused, specialised sourcing tool that cost a fraction of enterprise solutions. By staying laser-focused on solving just the RFx piece, we got maximum value for minimal investment, completing our procurement technology puzzle without breaking the bank.
Deepstream was the better fit. Why?
💡 Fast implementation, being live in just 2 weeks
💡 Intuitive UI that procurement managers could use instantly
💡 Massive efficiency boost and no more scattered supplier communication; cutting RFP execution time from weeks to days
💡 Centralised platform where suppliers could submit proposals, ask questions, and track deadlines
💡 >70% reduction in administrative RFP tasks
💡 Complete audit trail, transparency and documentation in one place
By compliance policy, all spends that were above €100,000 p.a., regardless of new or being renewed, needed to go through a selection process. By automating and structuring sourcing, the new software freed up time for real negotiations, ensuring the procurement managers could focus on value, not admin work or bumps in the sourcing process.
Reaching Safe Harbor: Measuring Our Voyage’s Success
With our foundation set and tools in place, the transformation began showing results that even the most sceptical stakeholders couldn’t ignore. The numbers told a story of efficiency, but the real victory was in how procurement’s role evolved from a bottleneck to a business enabler.
The Procurement Engine: What We Built
By mid-2023, our procurement function had evolved significantly, reaching even some aspects of Level 4 maturity. We had built a robust and integrated technology foundation that transformed our operations, without relying on expensive enterprise procurement suites:
✅ Jira = The procurement backbone
✅ Assets (Insight) = The contract management tool
✅ EazyBI = Real-time spend intelligence
✅ Workato = The automation enabler
✅ Deepstream = A structured, transparent sourcing engine
Smooth Sailing: Measurable Business Impact
Hard savings are difficult to quantify, but the efficiency gains were transformative. Procurement went from a chaotic, email-driven nightmare to a data-backed, automated, strategically aligned function:
Team Optimisation: We operated more efficiently with a streamlined team of 6 (including 1 intern), down from our previous 10-person structure [As of Q2’25 with a team of 5]
Process Automation: We moved away from manual, email-based workflows to automated, data-driven processes, providing a 27% productivity improvement and quicker order-to-pay process
Strategic Alignment: The function shifted from reactive purchasing to becoming a strategic business partner, with good category management and risk frameworks in place
Technology Integration: Our tech stack enabled seamless operations and improved spend visibility, while supporting our digital-first procurement needs
The Financial Reality Check
Our Investment:
- Deepstream licensing: €XX,XXX annually
- Internal resource allocation: Existing team time
- Total additional software cost: Less than €XX,XXX
Enterprise Alternative Would Have Cost:
- Platform licensing: €180,000-€450,000
- Implementation consulting: €80,000-€150,000
- Training and change management: €50,000-€90,000
- Total investment: €310,000-€690,000
Our ROI: Achieved enterprise-grade results for approx. 10% of enterprise-grade investment.
Plotting the Next Course
This evolution demonstrated that procurement excellence doesn’t require massive enterprise systems or silver bullets. Through teamwork, creativity and a willingness to challenge the status quo, we built a function that excels in operational efficiency and strategic elements like risk, supplier collaboration and category management.
What’s Still Missing? What Could Be Better?
While we established strong foundations, the journey didn’t reach an end, particularly in deepening the analytics capabilities and strategic value creation. This transformation was massive, but no system is perfect.
Here’s what could take this success story to the next level:
❌ Tail Spend Management Still Lacking
Hivebuy knocking on the door made our IT wake up and start working on this for all spends below €10k p.a. This should be fully rolled out in self-service mode to control rogue spending and automate low-value purchases.
❌ Budget Planning & Spend Forecasting Needed More Work
- Integration of budget planning tools into Jira for proactive financial planning
- Develop models to forecast spending patterns across categories
- Create automated variance analysis for spending
- Automatically cross-match invoiced spend vs order vs budget
❌ Automated Contract Value Analysis
- Build automated tracking of negotiated vs. actual value realised
- Create real-time visibility into contract utilisation rates
- Develop automated alerts for underutilised services/licences (with use of Okta & Workato)
❌ Analytics Improvement Although EazyBI was a quick way to fix this, moving the procurement and finance data to Tableau, which is already embedded in the company, would broaden the spectrum on the spend cube, supplier information (e.g. price development, purchasing volume, number of orders, etc), budgeting, forecast and spend patterns.
❌ Jira’s UI? Functional, but Not Sexy
Don’t think there’s a solution for this!
Why This Approach Matters: Lessons for Every Procurement Leader
Although this transformation took nearly a year and internal resources from IT (Atlassian Engineer, Automation Engineer) & Procurement (several Procurement Managers) to develop, implement, iterate, change, scrap and live the process, it delivered a masterclass in digital procurement strategy:
🔥 No monolithic system, just smart, lean procurement technology
🔥 Automation-first approach cut out unnecessary steps
🔥 Data-driven spend management = better financial decisions
🔥 Procurement finally gained visibility and influence
The Strategic Principles That Made It Work
- User Adoption Through Familiarity The biggest implementation risk isn’t technical—it’s human. By building on tools people already understood and used daily, we minimised the adoption challenge. Our system felt like a natural evolution rather than a disruptive revolution.
- Integration That Actually Works
Enterprise platforms promise seamless integration, but reality often involves complex API development and ongoing maintenance issues. We controlled the integration process completely, connecting systems exactly how we needed them to work together. - Customisation Without Constraints Enterprise software excels at standard processes but struggles with unique requirements. Jira’s workflow engine allowed us to configure processes exactly how our business operated, adapting quickly when requirements changed.
- Maximum Value from Existing Investments Most organisations underutilise the technology they’ve already purchased. Before investing in new platforms, we conducted an honest assessment of current capabilities and were surprised by what was possible with better configuration.
- Problem-Specific Solutions Beat Platform Everything Instead of trying to solve every problem with one platform, we identified specific challenges and implemented targeted solutions. This approach delivered better results at lower cost with less risk.
The Industry Reality Check
Our experience challenges several assumptions that dominate procurement technology discussions:
The Enterprise Suite Myth: Comprehensive platforms don’t automatically deliver better results than integrated best-of-breed solutions. Often, the complexity and cost outweigh theoretical advantages.
The Implementation Timeline Fantasy: Vendor projections consistently underestimate organisational change, data migration, and user adoption challenges. Build realistic timelines based on your actual capacity for change.
The Total Cost Deception: Enterprise software pricing rarely reflects true total cost of ownership. Implementation, training, and ongoing support costs can easily double headline licensing fees.
The Bottom Line: Smart Beats Expensive
Building a procurement function isn’t about having the most expensive tools—it’s about having the right ones and using them intelligently. Our journey proved that with creative thinking and a focus on user adoption, you can achieve enterprise-grade results without enterprise-grade spending.
Success doesn’t mean perfection. As our procurement function matured, new opportunities for improvement emerged. While we solved our core challenges, the journey to procurement excellence is never truly complete.
But what we proved definitively is that sometimes the smartest procurement strategy is the most pragmatic one: understand what you already have, maximise those investments through intelligent configuration and integration, then fill specific gaps with targeted solutions.
The next time a vendor tells you that transformation requires their expensive platform, remember this story. Ask yourself: “What could we achieve if we maximised our existing investments first?”
You might be surprised by how much procurement excellence you can build with tools you already own, licences you’ve already paid for and creativity you haven’t yet applied.
Often, the smartest move is simply getting more mileage out of what’s already there.
This procurement transformation demonstrates that competitive advantage often comes not from buying the latest technology, but from intelligently maximising investments you’ve already made. In a world obsessed with comprehensive platforms and revolutionary solutions, sometimes the most intelligent revolution is creative evolution of what already works.