Post by Thibaut C.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗝𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆 🛒 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗺𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗔𝗜 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 15 years ago, procurement ran on Word templates and Excel. Requisitions were emailed around, approvals got lost, and supplier data lived in shared drives or locked systems. Then came eProcurement suites like Coupa Deutschland GmbH, which work really well. They brought structure: digital workflows, catalog-based ordering, spend visibility. A massive step forward. Now we're entering the next chapter. At Bots & Buyers in Munich last week, Bernhard Schmutz and I were fortunate to get a closer look at what Lio is building and it's a compelling glimpse of where procurement is heading. What stood out: - AI agents that work as a connected network, not isolated bots – an orchestrator routes tasks to specialized agents as needed - Supplier onboarding that pulls data from public registries, reads PDFs, and checks for duplicates – instead of forcing suppliers through rigid forms. Less admin, more time for the real work with your suppliers - Contract management with collaborative editing via email with clause-level risk checks - End-to-end P2P coverage including automated PO matching, invoice checks, and even agent-driven dispute handling with suppliers - No-code process orchestration: for example, renegotiating payment terms with hundreds of suppliers in parallel My absolute favourite: the Voice Negotiation Agent. It lets buyers rehearse negotiations in realistic simulations based on actual spend data and external benchmarks. And during the real negotiation? The agent provides real-time fact-checking and tactical suggestions. A sparring partner that helps you walk into every negotiation better prepared. 𝗡𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝘆𝗲𝗿'𝘀 𝗷𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁. 𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗸𝗲𝗲𝗽𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗰𝗸 𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗳𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀. The key question for every procurement organization remains the same: where does AI genuinely add value in our processes ? At Galenica, we and our internal stakeholders are excited to use Coupa and Lio (formerly askLio) as an integrated platform, leveraging the strengths of both tools. Great times ahead. #coupa #lio #botsandbuyers