Published

July 31, 2024

| Updated

September 6, 2026

Is your purchasing software worthy of a gold medal?

Purchasing software earns its place by making buying faster and more controlled, not by having the longest feature list. This article covers how to judge whether your current system is still doing its job, and the signs it is holding your team back.

Majdi Sleimen

Co-Founder & COO, Tradogram

Procurement Tools

5 minutes

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Contents

As the Olympic Torch burns at the 2016 Games in Rio, thoughts have ignited with just as much fervor in the minds of CPOs. For a couple of weeks in August, agile bodies perform athletic feats that leave the rest of the population chugging litres of coconut water and balancing on Bosu balls in futility. Don't despair, all you CPOs and Procurement Managers - Tradogram is spearheading a winning approach! The spirit of competition is alive not only in your trembling quads, but also in the technological advancements that are on course to bring home gold medals for corporate spending.

It happens like this: you're trying to decide whether to implement cloud-based software (CBS) or on-premise software (OPS) for your company's purchasing requirements. You can already feel the sweat drip down your temples as you realize their strengths and weaknesses seem to be evenly matched. In fact, they almost seem to mimic two boxers, perhaps representing Russia and Denmark (respectively), throwing punches in a merry-go-round of muscle and security measures. Let's go ringside to get a closer view...

‍Announcer #1:"Gotta be honest here, CBS is looking extremely annoyed at this point! Successive blows to regulatory requirements and connectivity control have taken this fight down a few notches!

Internet speed is being used by OPS as a point of attack on the opponent...OPS is maintaining a solid defense by keeping CBS's data outside the realm of visibility! OH MY GOD, this is tense...wow! Wow!"

‍Announcer #2:"Look, I think we're going to see CBS rule the IT ring yet!! Nina, his trainer, has been working with him nonstop since year end, and together they've planned for variables such as industry sector and geographic location. Shockingly, CBS's current security measures may even surpass those of private data centres like OPS! This could be anyone's match if CBS can gain some trust with the masses!"

‍Announcer #1:"Oh man, did you see that?! CBS has just taken OPS down, they're rolling around the ring like true savage software systems! This is where CBS has a huge advantage, considering OPS is notoriously hard to get up and running..."

‍Announcer #2:"...And CBS's flexibility and ability to stay low, particularly when it comes to costs, might deliver the final knock-out!"

‍Announcer #1:"Anything is possible when you're competing at this level!A quick word about tonight's sponsors - CBS has been enthusiastically supported by servers and is accessed through numerous web browsers...the user-friendliness of this software is definitely contributing to his growing popularity. Keep an eye out for his next move! In direct comparison, OPS was slow to get installed due to his demands: he only works with one computer at a time in very precise locations. You didn't hear this from me, but OPS has a reputation for being a bit of a fussy Prima Donna. You could say-"

‍Announcer #2:"OH MY GOD, CBS HAS JUST WON THE FIGHT!!! OPS is down for the count! This is it folks!! A decision has been made!! The atmosphere in here is unreal, users are on their feet cheering for CBS!!!"

The Cutting of The Maverick Spend Ceremony will be held at midnight tonight, so join us later to celebrate CBS's victory.

Until then, goodnight & good buy(ing)."

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Tradogram a good cloud procurement software option?

Tradogram is a cloud-based platform built for organizations that want strong purchasing controls without managing their own servers or a lengthy IT implementation. When evaluating whether purchasing software is actually worth adopting, the real test is whether it gives your team genuine visibility and control, not just a digital version of the same manual process. Tradogram supports this through configurable approval workflows, budget tracking, and native integrations with accounting systems like QuickBooks, Xero, and NetSuite, so purchasing data connects directly to your financial records instead of living in a separate, disconnected system.

Is Tradogram the best procurement software?

There's no procurement software that's objectively "best" for every organization, but Tradogram is built for a specific fit: mid-market companies, roughly 50 to 500 employees with $10 million to $500 million in revenue, that need more structure, visibility, and automation than spreadsheets provide, without the cost and complexity of an enterprise implementation. Customers report meaningful results within that fit; Father Joe's Villages, a nonprofit, saw purchasing costs reportedly cut in half, and general customer data points to roughly 3x faster purchasing and approvals on average. Whether Tradogram is the right choice depends on whether your organization matches that mid-market profile, not on any universal ranking.

How do you know if your current purchasing software is actually good enough?

Purchasing software is good enough when it gives you accurate, real-time visibility into what's been requested, approved, and spent, and when your team is actually using it instead of working around it with email or spreadsheets. Warning signs that it's falling short include approvals happening outside the system, budget overruns that surprise finance at month-end, and staff avoiding the software because it's slower than just asking someone directly. Cloud-based purchasing software generally holds up better over time than on-premise systems, since updates and scaling don't require a separate IT project. If your team routinely bypasses the process the software is supposed to enforce, that's usually a sign the software doesn't fit how the business actually operates.

Is cloud-based purchasing software secure?

Cloud purchasing software can be as secure as an on-premises system, and often more so, because established vendors invest in security measures most individual companies can't match. When evaluating a vendor, ask how data is encrypted and backed up, who can access it, and how user permissions work inside the platform. Check for an audit trail of changes and approvals. Your own controls matter too: strong passwords, role-based access, and prompt removal of users who leave keep the system protected.

When does on-premises purchasing software still make sense?

On-premises software can make sense when regulations or contracts require data to stay on your own servers, when you have an IT team ready to maintain and update it, or when purchasing is tied closely to a heavily customized legacy system. For most mid-sized organizations, those conditions don't apply, and cloud software offers faster setup, automatic updates, and access from anywhere. If you're weighing the two, compare the full cost of ownership, including hardware, maintenance, upgrades, and staff time.

Is Tradogram good procurement software for a mid-sized business?

Tradogram is designed for growing organizations that need more purchasing control without the complexity often associated with large enterprise procurement systems, which fits many mid-sized businesses evaluating their options. It offers configurable approval workflows, purchase order management, budget tracking, and supplier management, set up without depending on IT. As with any procurement software evaluation, it's worth checking how the platform performs on the specific criteria that matter to your business, such as ease of setup, reporting flexibility, and how well it connects to your accounting system.

What separates high-quality purchasing software from a mediocre option?

High-quality purchasing software actually reduces manual work, letting approval routing, budget checks, and PO creation happen automatically, rather than digitizing a manual process without removing the manual effort behind it. Cloud-based software also tends to offer more flexibility than on-premise systems, since updates and access aren't tied to a specific location or device. Quality also shows up in configurability: software that requires a developer or consultant to change a basic approval rule isn't well suited to a business that needs to adjust its process as it grows. The clearest sign of mediocre software is a purchasing team still relying on spreadsheets alongside it to track what the software itself should be tracking.

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