Procurement Workflows by CloudEagle to Simplify SaaS Procurement

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Shadow IT has increased within organizations were employees often purchase apps without the knowledge of the IT & procurement team; this led to numerous issues,

• Increased SaaS expenses
• Security and data breaches
• Duplicate apps
• Compliance risks, and more. 

Creating a centralized procurement process will prevent shadow IT and it'll also provide a better control on the SaaS buying process for procurement managers. 

Manually creating a centralized process is extremely difficult. Businesses should opt for a SaaS buying software that comes with automated procurement workflows to streamline the process. This approach will result in a hassle-free buying process for the procurement teams.

So, what are SaaS procurement workflows?

Before delving into the workflows, let's eliminate the common misconception about SaaS procurement.

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SaaS procurement: what is it?

If you think it's just the activity of purchasing software for the business, you cannot be farther from the truth. It also includes verifying purchase requests, selecting the right vendor, negotiating the SLAs, signing the contract, and effectively managing the SaaS subscriptions. 

In a nutshell,

SaaS procurement = The entire lifecycle involved before purchasing a SaaS product. 

Procurement teams need to have complete control over the entire SaaS buying lifecycle; only then can the process be streamlined. Focusing only on the purchasing aspect of procurement will lead to

• Application not meeting the requirements.
• Raise duplicate apps within the stack(apps with the same functionalities)
• Renewal hassles
• Poor vendor relationship, etc. 

Importance of SaaS procurement

You might wonder, "If SaaS applications are easy to purchase, why is there a need to create a separate process for them?"

Here’s why an individual purchases process is needed,

• Gives control over your SaaS stack.
• Prevents shadow IT and its relevant risks.
• Eliminates maverick spending.
• The centralized process improves SaaS app management. 
• Saves cost by eliminating underused, duplicate licenses.
• Improves the quality of your SaaS stack.
• Improves vendor relationships.

A process will serve as a roadmap for your team and show them what needs to be done and when. It’ll help procurement managers stay in control of the process and manage it effectively. 

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How can you ensure a smooth SaaS buying process?

It is impossible to do it through spreadsheets or any other manual process. Procurement teams need automated platforms to ensure a smooth SaaS buying process.

CloudEagle is a SaaS management and procurement solution with numerous features to help IT, finance, and procurement teams manage SaaS apps, save on SaaS spending, and streamline SaaS procurement. 

The platform has all the right features to create a smooth process, 

• Procurement workflows 
• Customizable intake request forms for various purchases
• Instant request-approval notifications
• Vendor research and management
• Price benchmarking data
• Assisted buying experts
• Pre-negotiated vendor discounts.

Let us state the facts: What are the key considerations when evaluating SaaS procurement software?

1. The platform should minimize the manual workload and free the procurement teams from hassles.

2. The ability to create a workflow for any type of purchase

3. It must possess an extensive database of SaaS vendors and applications, including the latest pricing plans. 

4. The platform must have access to unique discounts from vendors.

5. It should have a team of SaaS contract negotiation experts to simplify negotiations for you. 

6. Functionality to create a Slack channel for specific procurement workflow to increase collaboration

7. Raise procurement requests from Slack without logging into the CloudEagle app.

8. It should provide complete transparency over the buying process.

Suppose these are the factors that make an excellent procurement solution. In that case, CloudEagle is equipped with all the functionalities to eliminate the hassles of SaaS procurement and help procurement teams and procurement managers save time and increase productivity. 

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What are SaaS procurement workflows?

Procurement workflows are more than just a series of pre-defined steps to automate repetitive tasks or actions in a business’s purchasing process. They represent a systematic approach aimed at breaking down silos in the procurement process and making the flow more seamless. 

From raising intake requests to signing the contract and purchasing the application, SaaS procurement and sourcing workflows significantly minimize the need for manual intervention and accelerate the process along the way. 

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How does CloudEagle’s SaaS procurement workflow work?

CloudEagle has one of the most sophisticated procurement workflows that can be mastered on your first try. A procurement workflow generally initiates with a purchase request,

These are the requisites to create a successful procurement workflow in CloudEagle,

• Create intake forms based on various types of purchases.
• Configure respective workflows and members associated with them.
• Create intake requests.

Once they are created, users will be able to raise purchase requests; this is how the process will flow,

• The user raises a purchase request by filling out the form
• The respective workflow will be triggered, and the members will be notified via Slack, Email, and in-app notifications. 
• As each member completes their defined tasks, the workflow moves forward, finally green-lighting the purchase.
• Your procurement team can negotiate with the vendors and purchase the product. 

This is just the tip of the iceberg. CloudEagle provides expert negotiation services. These on-demand experts can negotiate on your behalf and secure the best deals for you. 

Also, CloudEagle is one of the few procurement platforms with access to unique, pre-negotiated vendor discounts. 

For more information about vendor discounts, click here.

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Benefits of using CloudEagle's procurement workflows for businesses

Cost savings

CloudEagle has an extensive database of applications and a vendor research tool to help businesses make informed purchase decisions. You can leverage the price benchmarking data to choose vendors that offer the best value for their pricing and reduce costs.

Also, CloudEagle has access to pre-negotiated discounts thanks to its years-long relationship with the vendors. They are more likely to offer discounts for you as part of the CloudEagle experience. 

Save time and increase productivity

SaaS buying can be time-consuming and tedious; doing it manually will only mess up the workflow and might lead to inaccuracies. CloudEagle’s purchase order line workflow will solve these pain points by automating your tasks. 

Once the procurement and sourcing workflows are initiated, they can run independently, assign tasks to respective stakeholders, and complete the process for you. Your procurement teams can save time and increase their productivity by focusing on more strategic tasks. 

Increase efficiency 

A SaaS purchase is not just about buying an application; it involves the entire lifecycle, from managing intake requests to purchasing the products and maintaining a healthy relationship with SaaS vendors. 

This is where procurement and sourcing workflows can help you out. You can efficiently manage the entire procurement process lifecycle and secure the best deals through expert vendor negotiations using CloudEagle. 

Improved transparency 

One of the major pain points in the buying process is the lack of visibility. The requester will not know where their request goes, whether it is moving, stuck in the middle, or lost entirely. This leads to inaccurate and delayed procurement, which eventually leads to an increase in SaaS spending. 

Increase visibility over your procurement process with CloudEagle; every user within an organization can check the progress of a buying order workflow. This increases accountability and accelerates the procurement process. 

Enhanced vendor relationships

The best thing about CloudEagle is the vendor management features it possesses. You can communicate with the vendors, compare the latest prices, talk to their customers, get access to discounts, and more. 

CloudEagle’s expert negotiation team can assist you by communicating with the vendor on your behalf and securing the best deals. This way, you’ll have a better chance of maintaining good vendor relationships and longevity of service. 

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Wrapping up

SaaS purchasing is never easy, but with platforms like CloudEagle, you can change the dogma. Managing the entire buying process manually can cause inaccuracies and team burnout. 

But without a procurement process, duplicate apps, shadow IT, maverick spending, underused licenses, etc. will have a detrimental effect on your SaaS portfolio. So, never skip the thought of creating a SaaS buying process. 

However, you must invest your efforts to create a robust procurement process; this is where CloudEagle’s purchase order workflows can help you. This article showed you what CloudEagle SaaS procurement workflows can do and how they benefit your business.

Saving on SaaS spend starts with simplifying your procurement, so get in touch with us and create SaaS buying workflows for your organization.