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Procurement start-up VendorPanel joins Microsoft programme

Written by: Supply Chain Online
Published on: 19 Sep 2018

VENDOR PANEL

Procurement start-up VendorPanel joins Microsoft programme

Microsoft has confirmed its first intake batch for its ScaleUp programme, which includes rising procurement start-up VendorPanel, which has already raised $2.35bn in investment.

VendorPanel specialises in procurement and management tools, and its platform has recently raised its profile massively. It was founded in 2008, but in the last few months has taken huge steps forward, securing large amounts of capital through Series A funding rounds.

The ScaleUp programme is aimed at start-ups that are in a stage of growth, and allows participants to gain access to a wider audience of businesses through Microsoft, as well as being able to utilise its additional wealth of tools, software and programs.

VendorPanel’s Founder and Chief Executive James Leathem said that this programme was not about finding out how a business should be run. Instead, it could offer “a faster track to partnering with Microsoft”.

The chosen start-ups are expected to have a “mature business, albeit young and nimble”, said Leathem, who hopes to take his company to the next step.

Already with 1,200 clients who they work with in the corporate world, they hope that the ScaleUp programme will allow them to add to their burgeoning business.

Leathem said that it was all about “working together to help shared customers get the best out of it”, and noted that the timing for his company was “somewhat serendipitous” given how soon the offer arrived after their successful funding rounds earlier in the year.

Noting that “navigating the ecosystem can be pretty challenging”, Leathem said that it “makes sense” for them to join this programme and hopes that it will enable a better procurement network for his clients as a result.