A new study by the Everest Research Institute, part of Everest Group, revealed a strong link between successful accounts payable (AP) outsourcing and the move towards Procure-to-Pay (P2P) outsourcing. Nearly 50 percent of respondents to a recent executive survey conducted by the Institute indicated interest in exploring how to expand their current AP outsourcing initiatives to include a broader Procure-to-Pay (P2P) scope within the next year to three years.

According to the Institute’s study, buyers are increasingly considering P2P outsourcing to gain additional savings and address key pain points in their financial supply chains, such as high manual intervention costs. The Institute pinpoints P2P as a buyer’s stepping-stone toward full-service or Source-to-Pay (S2P) outsourcing, which is a more complex transition.

“In the world of Procurement Outsourcing (PO), P2P is a growth driver for the market as a whole, bringing new suppliers to the space and introducing global sourcing as a delivery mechanism,” said Katrina Menzigian, Vice President, Everest Research Institute. “P2P makes Procurement Outsourcing digestible, offering immediate benefits and opening the door to a new group of buyers that are interested in gaining transactional benefits up front and for whom PO now becomes a viable possibility.”

Supplier landscape

The supplier landscape in the PO market is highly concentrated with the top five suppliers (Accenture, Ariba, IBM, ICG Commerce and Xchanging) holding about 85 percent of market share, according to the study. Everest analysts say most suppliers who offer or plan to offer P2P services are making investments in building delivery capability through acquisitions, partnerships and internal investments.

“The demand for P2P capability is driving shifts in the supplier landscape,” said Saurabh Gupta, Research Director, Everest Research Institute and co-author of the report. “Currently, 40 percent of work is completed offshore, but we believe there is the potential for this number to reach 70 to 85 percent. In order to achieve this level, buyers need better education, detailed process definition, mentor and training programs of supplier resources and tool and process standardization. Suppliers recognize P2P capabilities will serve as a point of entry into the PO market. They are making significant investments, particularly in developing end-to-end technology solutions. Over the next few years, we see gradual movement towards a platform approach, and individual suppliers will create their own platform brands.”

About this study

The Everest Research Institute study, Outsourcing the Procure-to-Pay Process, examines the expanding market opportunity around the outsourcing of Procure-to-Pay (P2P) processes. It focuses on identifying the emerging value proposition of an end-to-end approach in addressing converging buyer requirements between the F&A and procurement processes. Based on extensive primary research, including a buyer survey and in-depth supplier interviews, the study explores perspectives on adoption trends, solution components, supplier capabilities, and the supplier landscape of the present market. The report also provides over a dozen profiles of the P2P offerings of specific suppliers, along with case studies.

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