In this episode of The Procuretech Podcast, host James Meads is joined again by Ward Karson, Chief Operating Officer of Raindrop – an enterprise spend management suite based in California.

Today they discuss the different considerations you should take when sourcing procurement technology, and what sort of questions you should be asking of your technology providers.
Sourcing Procurement Technology – Ward Karson from Raindrop
Timestamps:
3:06

How did you get started in procurement?

Getting started in procurement 30 years ago.

The third leg of the stool, the environment.
Raindrop as a full suite enterprise spend management solution.
Three steps to consider when buying a solution.

6:21

Pricing should not be the driving factor in choosing a procurement tech solution.

The first step back and answer to the question.

Risk is a big thing.
How the cost can creep up over the lifetime of the contract.
The typical payback or ROI: what to look for

11:28

The difference between up front cost and ongoing support.

Different providers and how they might be set up from a cost and implementation perspective.
The difference between the initial investment, and the cost for ongoing support.

13:30

How do you validate user experience?

Validate user experience, ease of use, lack of complexity.
Procurement experience, making UI right.
The new wave of procurement leaders and what they're looking for.
Deployment speed to value and overall ease of use.

17:13

How to know if your software is up to standard

How to know if a solution is right for you.
How to adapt to the needs of your business.
A more philosophical approach to procurement.

22:05

How important are analyst reports to the wider market?

Are reports such as Gartner Magic Quadrants useful for research and due diligence purposes?
How the analyst firm is different from the wider market.
The great fallacy of defining a leader as a leader.

25:04

How to choose the right vendor.

Comparing RFPs to online dating.

The risk of being too dependent on RFP.
Providing value to the potential customer.
Leadership of a procurement software company.

28:27

How do you know if you've never sat in my chair?

Authenticity is important in the procurement industry.

The second level discussions.
The gap between the CEO and the COO.
The importance of having procurement experience.

34:00

Full suite vs. Best of breed

Technical implementation
How do newer best of breeds stand up to more established solutions?
The argument that full suites have lower overall implementation costs

40:42

What is the optimum length of a contract for procurement software?

Long term contracts reduce the risk of repricing at renewal
Why three years is Ward's perfect contract length
How to get in touch with Ward and find out more about Raindrop

And that wraps up another episode of The Procuretech Podcast!

Thanks to Ward for sharing his insights with us today, and big thanks to you for listening. We'll be back at the same time next week, so see you there.

If you want to learn more about Ward, Raindrop, or Procurement Software, check out the useful links below.
Stay in touch!