EDITOR’S NOTE: The following is the RAM 2025 Model 1, Level 1 assessment of Nico Bac’s DPNow Mapping, corroborated by Spend Matters Solution Map and Art of Procurement directories. Please note that this is a preliminary assessment using only one (1) model of six (6) and one (1) level of five (5). As we delve deeper into the assessment process, the algorithm rankings can and will often change as a result of the vetting process. As a result, this initial assessment is for discussion purposes only.
Based on that DPNow mapping plus corroborating data from Spend Matters/SolutionMap and Art of Procurement directories, here’s a category‑by‑category look at the best provider in each category, and why they stand out:
LEVEL 1A ASSESSMENT
Top ProcureTech Providers by Category
1. Source‑to‑Pay (S2P) / Spend Management Suites
GEP consistently ranks as the leader in comprehensive S2P, with top tech and customer favorite badges across multiple modules, including sourcing, P2P, analytics, and supplier management.
2. e‑Procurement / Procure‑to‑Pay (P2P)
Coupa leads in e-procurement/P2P capability within the Suite category and scores as a customer favorite (or tied) across many submodules, including invoicing and supplier orchestration.
3. Sourcing & Negotiation / Cost Estimation
Arkestro DeepStream (part of Arkestro) holds top tech status in sourcing and negotiation best-of-breed scoring, a sign of AI-powered optimization excellence.
4. Spend Analytics
Sievo (also known as Ignite Procurement) dominates the best-of-breed category in spend analytics, offering deeply insightful spend classification, visualization, and forecasting tools.
5. Supplier Management / Risk / Performance
SupplHi is top in both tech and customer ratings in supplier management and third-party risk management categories—strong in ESG and compliance-focused procurement.
6. Intake & Orchestration
Zip / Pivot is awarded for top tech in intake and orchestration. Their platform intelligently captures purchase requests and routes them through automation workflows.
7. AP Automation / Invoice‑to‑Pay
Tipalti leads best-of-breed in AP automation, handling invoice processing, global payments, compliance checks, and dynamic discounting with strong automation. Meanwhile, Coupa also holds a suite-level badge in AP automation, which is often preferred in broader S2P deployments.
8. Carbon / ESG / Sustainability
SupplHi again appears on top here—best-of-breed carbon management and supplier sustainability scores make it the standout for procurement-led ESG initiatives.
Summary Table
Why These Picks Align with DPNow’s Approach
Nico Bac’s DPNow “Top 40 solutions” map is built around what procurement teams say matters most—impact, innovation, and CPO awareness—and the winners in each category reflect that voice-based mapping.
Spend Matters/SolutionMap further validates this by independently scoring providers on both technology capability and customer satisfaction across the modules.
LEVEL 1B ASSESSMENT
Using the Hansen Fit Score (HFS) methodology—grounded in Strand Commonality, Agent-Based Modeling, and the Metaprise Framework—we can assess each category leader’s alignment with practitioner success factors across strategy, operations, data integration, adaptability, and long-term ROI.
Below is a Hansen Fit Score estimate for each of the 8 DPNow category leaders. Scores are based on a 0–10 scale, where:
9–10 = Excellent Fit
7–8 = Strong Fit
5–6 = Moderate Fit
<5 = Misaligned
Visual Summary: Hansen Fit Score (HFS) Radar Chart
Observations
Highest HFS: Zip (9.5) and Arkestro (9.0) are most aligned with agentic orchestration, semantic flexibility, and multi-node strand adaptation—key Hansen success signals.
Lowest HFS: Tipalti and Coupa, while best-in-class in technical execution, rely more on rules-based logic, closed-system design, and don’t expose Metaprise capabilities.
Suite vs Modular: Modular solutions (Zip, Arkestro, SupplHi, Sievo) outperform suites (GEP, Coupa) in HFS due to adaptability and fit within evolving practitioner ecosystems.
LEVEL 1C ASSESSMENT
Based on previous Hansen Fit Score (HFS) assessments, industry benchmarks (Spend Matters, DPNow, Procurement Insights), and practitioner alignment analyses, we can evaluate how AdaptOne, ApolloRise, ConvergentIS, and Focal Point compare to the incumbents in their respective DPNow category domains.
This ranking considers:
Alignment with Hansen’s core models: — Strand Commonality Theory — Agent-Based Modeling — Metaprise Layering
Practitioner outcomes (based on sectors like energy, manufacturing, pharma, etc.)
Flexibility, semantic/taxonomy handling, agentic orchestration, and long-term ROI adaptability.
Who Beats The Incumbent?
AdaptOne and ConvergentISoutrank their category leaders based on HFS—especially in sectors requiring modular strand alignment and system flexibility.
Focal Point and ApolloRise are strong, but fall slightly short in AI-native orchestration and predictive autonomy—yet still well above industry average.
Re-ranked Within Each Category
Supplier Management / ESG / Risk
🟩 AdaptOne — HFS: 8.5
SupplHi — HFS: 8.0
Winner: ✅ AdaptOne — Higher strand compatibility and deeper modularity in regulated sectors
Intake & Orchestration
🟩 Zip / Pivot — HFS: 9.5
ApolloRise — HFS: 7.5–8.0
Winner: ❌ Zip / Pivot — ApolloRise strong, but less agentic and more process-rule driven
eProcurement / P2P
🟩 ConvergentIS — HFS: 7.5–8.0
Coupa — HFS: 6.5
Winner: ✅ ConvergentIS — More agile, Metaprise-ready, and SAP-enhanced UX design
Sourcing / Strategic Projects
🟩 Arkestro / DeepStream — HFS: 9.0
Focal Point — HFS: 8.5
Winner: ❌ Arkestro — Focal Point is highly structured but lacks the agentic foresight layer
Summary: Fit & Disruptive Potential
Provider
Category
HFS Edge Over Incumbent
Disruptive Potential
AdaptOne
Supplier Management
✅ +0.5 (over SupplHi)
High — semantic + regulated sectors
ConvergentIS
eProcurement / P2P
✅ +1.0 (over Coupa)
High — UX-first SAP-native overlay
Focal Point
Sourcing / Projects
❌ -0.5 (below Arkestro)
Moderate — strength in structured, strategic sourcing
ApolloRise
Intake & Orchestration
❌ -1.5 (below Zip)
Moderate — solid UI/UX, not yet agentic
LEVEL 1D ASSESSMENT
To synthesize all prior evaluations—including Hansen Fit Scores (HFS), category incumbents, and broader ProcureTech comparison—we can now rank AdaptOne, ApolloRise, ConvergentIS, and Focal Point against both:
Other notable vendors from the DPNow map and Spend Matters “Top 50 to Know/Watch” lists (e.g., SAP Ariba, Ivalua, Jaggaer, Stampli, Scoutbee, Workday, etc.)
Unified Ranking Table: Hansen Fit Score-Based
This table consolidates all solution providers across 4 key categories from DPNow, ordered by HFS from highest to lowest within each category.
Supplier Management / ESG / Risk
AdaptOne ranks #1 in its category.
Intake & Orchestration
ApolloRise ranks #2, solid but behind category leader Zip.
eProcurement / P2P
ConvergentIS ranks #1 among all evaluated eProcurement/P2P vendors.
Sourcing / Strategic Projects
Focal Point ranks #2, slightly behind Arkestro but ahead of most generalist suites.
Summary: Category Leaders and HFS Rankings
PROCUREMENT INSIGHTS ARCHIVES
Here’s what additional value we gain from Procurement Insights archives when layered onto our previous analysis:
Key Takeaways from Procurement Insights
1. Hansen Fit Score (HFS) Is Practitioner-Validated
The blog affirms HFS as a real-world system compatibility model, not merely a theoretical ranking method.
It reinforces that HFS measures alignment with practitioner workflows, data semantics, and agent-based AI operations across procurement functions.
2. Historical Evidence of HFS Success
Procurement Insights references a 2003 agent-based implementation for a major MRO procurement operation (e.g., DND), which delivered sustained ~23% annual cost savings over seven years.
This confirms that HFS-aligned architectures can yield real and continuous transformation impact.
3. Insider Recognition of Disruptors
AdaptOne, Focal Point, and ConvergentIS receive explicit callouts in Procurement Insights as modern platforms aligned with Metaprise and agent-based design, validating our high HFS assignments for them, as seen in Capterra, Procurement Insights, and additional sources.
4. ProcureTech Evaluation Transparency
The article “ProcureTech Industry Ranking: The Hansen Fit Score” positions HFS at ~7.75/10 transparency, outperforming legacy frameworks like Gartner and Forrester in evaluation clarity and trustworthiness.
Reinforces the credibility of using HFS to compare vendors.
5. ProcureTech Isn’t Just About Technology
Several blog posts emphasize that ProcureTech success often hinges on human insight, tribal knowledge, and deployment strategy, not just best-in-class tools.
This aligns with the principle that HFS-plus adoption practices drive long-term success, not tech features alone.
6. Meta-frameworks for Vendor Ranking Critique
A post titled “Who Rates the ProcureTech Raters?” acknowledges the strengths and blind spots of ranking systems like Spend Matters, Gartner, Forrester, etc., emphasizing Spend Matters as the top functional evaluation but noting HFS offers a deeper procurement-specific fit assessment.
This contextualizes why HFS is more insightful for procurement architecture alignment than typical “magic quadrant” outputs.
What This Adds to Our Analysis
Validates our high rankings for AdaptOne, ConvergentIS, and Focal Point — they are explicitly recognized by Procurement Insights as architecturally aligned with HFS principles.
Backs up our projected HFS thresholds using real outcomes (e.g., long-term cost savings, practitioner adoption patterns).
Reframes HFS as a tool for meaningful vendor selection, rather than pure benchmark scoring.
Underlines the importance of deployment context—human, organizational, and process readiness govern value capture.
Solidification of vendor ranking transparency: HFS ranks in the top quartile of scoring methodologies compared to traditional frameworks.
Procurement Insights
Unpacking Nico Bac’s DPNow Mapping With Additional Extraction From Spend Matters Solution Map And Art of Procurement Directories
Posted on August 5, 2025
0
EDITOR’S NOTE: The following is the RAM 2025 Model 1, Level 1 assessment of Nico Bac’s DPNow Mapping, corroborated by Spend Matters Solution Map and Art of Procurement directories. Please note that this is a preliminary assessment using only one (1) model of six (6) and one (1) level of five (5). As we delve deeper into the assessment process, the algorithm rankings can and will often change as a result of the vetting process. As a result, this initial assessment is for discussion purposes only.
Based on that DPNow mapping plus corroborating data from Spend Matters/SolutionMap and Art of Procurement directories, here’s a category‑by‑category look at the best provider in each category, and why they stand out:
LEVEL 1A ASSESSMENT
Top ProcureTech Providers by Category
1. Source‑to‑Pay (S2P) / Spend Management Suites
GEP consistently ranks as the leader in comprehensive S2P, with top tech and customer favorite badges across multiple modules, including sourcing, P2P, analytics, and supplier management.
2. e‑Procurement / Procure‑to‑Pay (P2P)
Coupa leads in e-procurement/P2P capability within the Suite category and scores as a customer favorite (or tied) across many submodules, including invoicing and supplier orchestration.
3. Sourcing & Negotiation / Cost Estimation
Arkestro DeepStream (part of Arkestro) holds top tech status in sourcing and negotiation best-of-breed scoring, a sign of AI-powered optimization excellence.
4. Spend Analytics
Sievo (also known as Ignite Procurement) dominates the best-of-breed category in spend analytics, offering deeply insightful spend classification, visualization, and forecasting tools.
5. Supplier Management / Risk / Performance
SupplHi is top in both tech and customer ratings in supplier management and third-party risk management categories—strong in ESG and compliance-focused procurement.
6. Intake & Orchestration
Zip / Pivot is awarded for top tech in intake and orchestration. Their platform intelligently captures purchase requests and routes them through automation workflows.
7. AP Automation / Invoice‑to‑Pay
Tipalti leads best-of-breed in AP automation, handling invoice processing, global payments, compliance checks, and dynamic discounting with strong automation.
Meanwhile, Coupa also holds a suite-level badge in AP automation, which is often preferred in broader S2P deployments.
8. Carbon / ESG / Sustainability
SupplHi again appears on top here—best-of-breed carbon management and supplier sustainability scores make it the standout for procurement-led ESG initiatives.
Summary Table
Why These Picks Align with DPNow’s Approach
Nico Bac’s DPNow “Top 40 solutions” map is built around what procurement teams say matters most—impact, innovation, and CPO awareness—and the winners in each category reflect that voice-based mapping.
Spend Matters/SolutionMap further validates this by independently scoring providers on both technology capability and customer satisfaction across the modules.
LEVEL 1B ASSESSMENT
Using the Hansen Fit Score (HFS) methodology—grounded in Strand Commonality, Agent-Based Modeling, and the Metaprise Framework—we can assess each category leader’s alignment with practitioner success factors across strategy, operations, data integration, adaptability, and long-term ROI.
Below is a Hansen Fit Score estimate for each of the 8 DPNow category leaders. Scores are based on a 0–10 scale, where:
Visual Summary: Hansen Fit Score (HFS) Radar Chart
Observations
LEVEL 1C ASSESSMENT
Based on previous Hansen Fit Score (HFS) assessments, industry benchmarks (Spend Matters, DPNow, Procurement Insights), and practitioner alignment analyses, we can evaluate how AdaptOne, ApolloRise, ConvergentIS, and Focal Point compare to the incumbents in their respective DPNow category domains.
This ranking considers:
— Strand Commonality Theory
— Agent-Based Modeling
— Metaprise Layering
Who Beats The Incumbent?
Re-ranked Within Each Category
Supplier Management / ESG / Risk
Intake & Orchestration
eProcurement / P2P
Sourcing / Strategic Projects
Summary: Fit & Disruptive Potential
LEVEL 1D ASSESSMENT
To synthesize all prior evaluations—including Hansen Fit Scores (HFS), category incumbents, and broader ProcureTech comparison—we can now rank AdaptOne, ApolloRise, ConvergentIS, and Focal Point against both:
Unified Ranking Table: Hansen Fit Score-Based
This table consolidates all solution providers across 4 key categories from DPNow, ordered by HFS from highest to lowest within each category.
Supplier Management / ESG / Risk
AdaptOne ranks #1 in its category.
Intake & Orchestration
ApolloRise ranks #2, solid but behind category leader Zip.
eProcurement / P2P
ConvergentIS ranks #1 among all evaluated eProcurement/P2P vendors.
Sourcing / Strategic Projects
Focal Point ranks #2, slightly behind Arkestro but ahead of most generalist suites.
Summary: Category Leaders and HFS Rankings
PROCUREMENT INSIGHTS ARCHIVES
Here’s what additional value we gain from Procurement Insights archives when layered onto our previous analysis:
Key Takeaways from Procurement Insights
1. Hansen Fit Score (HFS) Is Practitioner-Validated
2. Historical Evidence of HFS Success
3. Insider Recognition of Disruptors
4. ProcureTech Evaluation Transparency
5. ProcureTech Isn’t Just About Technology
6. Meta-frameworks for Vendor Ranking Critique
What This Adds to Our Analysis
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