666: Debunking Common Software Procurement Myths w/ Aubrey Zimmerman and KR Barron

Art of Procurement

“There is this misconception that procurement pros are paper-pushers – that we are not strategic, or we are not business partners – and we are just there to move things from one place to another.” - KR Barron, Principal Product Marketing Manager at Productiv

Sourcing and purchasing software, especially SaaS solutions, is often a source of major friction for procurement. Tight timelines, complex stakeholder networks, difficult collaborations, and entrenched misconceptions can lead to missed opportunities not only for procurement but for the business as a whole. Fortunately, many of the challenges associated with software purchasing are rooted in commonly held myths that, when looked at more closely, are easily busted, paving the way for procurement to elevate their role in the process.

In this episode, based on an AOP Live Session, Philip Ideson and Kelly Barner engage in some much-needed myth-busting with Aubrey Zimmerman, Procurement Analyst at Lattice, and KR Barron, Principal Product Marketing Manager at Productiv. They also share insights from recent research on software procurement that explores how procurement can simplify software decisioning and better align with the business.

In this episode, they discuss:

• Common myths surrounding procurement’s role in software purchasing and how these myths can negatively impact the business as a whole
• How procurement can build a single source of truth for software decisioning and utilization
• How procurement can start to change negative perceptions about the role they play in software purchasing and demonstrate their full value

Links:

• Subscribe to This Week in Procurement
• KR Barron on LinkedIn
• Aubrey Zimmerman on LinkedIn
• Watch again: Busted! Demystifying Software Procurement