.png)
Turning 20 years of procurement expertise into a vertical SaaS product
Our client, Progressio, is a consultancy firm with over 20 years of experience in procurement and supply chain optimization. While advising their clients on digital solutions for their procurement processes, they identified a need for a targeted solution specifically designed for mid-sized companies. This solution would need to avoid lengthy implementation processes and be available at a reasonable cost. This case study highlights the structure of our partnership and our key role throughout the product development lifecycle.
Challenge
Progressio approached us with an ambitious vision: to reimagine procurement processes for B2B environments over the next 5-10 years. Their goal was to find new efficiencies, streamline communication, and enhance visibility and traceability within these sensitive business workflows.
Solution
We conceptualized and built a SaaS product from the ground up, complete with dedicated interfaces for both buyers and suppliers. This solution digitizes the entire core workflow of creating and publishing tenders in a compliant manner. We are currently actively integrating AI services into the core product offering to further automate this process.
Approach
Starting with a blank whiteboard, we embarked on an intensive collaborative journey with Progressio, connecting all the dots from ideation and product strategy to go-to-market planning. We then assembled a dedicated product development team to build the platform and implemented all the necessary tools for its operationalization.
Shaping a frictionless procurement journey
Recognizing that every company has unique procurement processes, our initial challenge was to identify the functional commonalities across hundreds of sample tenders and translate those findings into an intuitive user experience. Simultaneously, we designed a robust cloud architecture capable of handling large data volumes and providing the necessary uptime guarantees for such a business-critical application.
Design track:
We started by creating wireframes and validating our initial assumptions with potential users. All user flows were then transformed into interactive prototypes, detailing the specific business logic. Beyond the core application logic, we also assisted the Progressio team with their go-to-market activities and brand development.
Architecture track:
We opted for Google Cloud Platform infrastructure and defined an API-driven architecture capable of seamless integration with external ERP and accounting systems. As we continue to integrate generative AI services into the core application workflows, we are constantly refining the data structure and enhancing the overall architectural reliability.
Building a high-quality software product
Traditional tendering processes often involve a disproportionate amount of repetitive administrative work compared to value-adding activities. Our mission is to automate these manual tasks as much as possible by leveraging the power of large language models.
Integrating genAI services into the core application workflow
We are developing an AI assistant in the form of a semantic search algorithm. This assistant taps into the organization's knowledge base to retrieve or generate the right information at the right time, streamlining the tendering process. This integration touches all aspects of the product, from the cloud architecture to the user experience. We will continue to provide updates on our progress in this area.
From idea to MVP in under 6 months and ready to scale
We assembled a dedicated product team, consisting of a product manager and a team of skilled software engineers, focused on building a user-friendly and valuable product. We implemented CI/CD pipelines with extensive automated test coverage, security checks, and continuous monitoring tools to proactively identify and address potential errors or performance issues. We are proud to have brought the first version of Valcori to market in under six months, complete with a comprehensive customer success model, legal documentation, a billing model, and the foundation for an Information Security Management System (ISMS).
Progressio approached us with a very ambitious plan: building a vertical B2B SaaS product from scratch in an industry that is fairly resistant to change but ripe for disruption.
Thanks to our methodological approach we were able to turn their knowhow into a product loved by thousands of users. We're truly proud of this achievement and thankful to our partner Progressio for the productive cooperation and trust. Excited to keep shaping and building a digital future for the procurement industry.
Let's build. Together!
Are you looking for an entrepreneurial product development partner? Never hesitate to schedule a virtual coffee.
