Procurement's Year in Stories: February 2024
What is AB InBev's 100+ Accelerator Programme?
AB InBev's 100+ Accelerator Programme was initially launched by AB InBev in 2018 as the company looked to achieve its sustainability goals faster.
The strategy was to find startups who could explore sustainability advancements across key areas of their supply chain and procurement ecosystem.
These could include water stewardship, smart agriculture, circular packaging, climate action and upcycling, and the best practice could be scaled to other parts of their global network of influence. During the first two cohorts of partners, more than half of the startups secured long-term contracts with the company.
There was a significant expansion of the project in 2021, with The Coca-Cola Company, Colgate-Palmolive Company and Unilever joining the strategy to help finance and trial sustainable innovations in supply chains and procurement ecosystems.
By funding up to US$100K per startup pilot, the strategy helps to test and validate the selected solutions to then scale and transform their global supply chains. The 100+ Accelerator has already accelerated 116 companies in more than 30 countries.
AB InBev has also launched 100+ Europe Labs with partners like Siemens, Bain & Company, Colruyt Group and Ball Corporation. This strategy is designed to help the company and its partners to work with innovative companies across Europe to develop solutions tailored for key European challenges.
Coupa Delivers US$1 Billion in Annual Billings
Data from Coupa showed it had delivered over US$1bn in billings for the fiscal year ending January 31, 2024 – which set the tone for a hugely successful year for the spend management platform.
In total, Coupa managed more than US$1tn in overall business spend, and its figures indicate it has helped businesses around the world achieve more than US$175bn in savings and working capital improvements over the last 10 years.
The fiscal year saw a range of highlights for the business, including adding more than 300 companies joining Coupa's global community of 3,000+ customers. Significant businesses entering into collaboration with Coupa include: Albemarle Corporation, Allwyn, Great Dane, Idahoan Foods, Mobico Group, Patterson-UTI, Penguin Random House, and The Scion Group.
Coupa was named as a Leader in the inaugural Gartner Magic Quadrant for Source-to-Pay Suites.
Leagh Turner, Coupa CEO, said: "Businesses today are looking for trusted digital transformation partners that deliver tangible value. Our recent recognition by Gartner as a Leader in its first-ever Magic Quadrant for Source-to-Pay Suites is a testament to the business value and operational confidence that Coupa's AI-driven platform delivers.
"In 2023 alone, we helped our customer community unlock more than US$30bn in bottom-line savings. That's real value that gets reinvested in innovation, customer service, and profitability. And it wouldn't be possible without the greatest competitive edge that's driving this company forward – our agile, passionate, and committed global team," Leagh added.
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