Why Coupa Still Defeats Traditional ERPs on Spend Control

Coupa uses a community-generated, US$10tn dataset while bringing together evidence-based intelligence and autonomous AI agents to a network of over 10 million buyers and suppliers on a unified platform.

Its dedicated system for Business Spend Management (BSM) stands out against traditional ERPs on spend management by using a platform that unites supply chain, procurement and finance functions. 

Coupa is continuing to improve its BSM software, most recently by acquiring Rossum which is set to assist with faster processing, meaningful cost savings and greater data control.

Common issues in spend management

Spend management covers the full lifecycle of organisational spending, from the moment a purchase need is identified through sourcing, procurement, payment as well as post-purchase analysis and reporting.

Coupa highlighted some common signals across businesses that show the need for better spend management. These include fragmented data across spreadsheets, ERPs and departmental systems.

Other issues faced by business include uncontrolled growth in spending, maverick spending, as well as slow, inconsistently applied or easily bypassed approvals processes. 

Its State of Direct Spend 2026 report highlighted that direct procurement-related disruptions cost organisations an average of US$16m annually. 

How Coupa’s software helps

Coupa combats problems faced by those using traditional ERPs with its unified AI-powered platform. Coupa’s dedicated spend software helps companies unify purchasing, accounts payable (AP) and digital payments with automated controls and AI-driven insights. 

The company is trusted by some of the world's biggest brands. On its website Coupa lists some of its clients which include Toyota, The New York Times, Nike, UPS and P&G. 

Coupa is a specialised, user-friendly platform built for a specific function. While traditional ERPs, like SAP and Oracle, are massive in the industry, they could be seen by users as complicated to navigate for specific functions like spend management.

Coupa’s acquisition of Rossum

Coupa is continuing to improve its autonomous spend management software, including with the recent acquisition of Rossum, announced at Coupa Inspire 2026. 

In May of 2026, Coupa announced it had acquired Rossum, the AI-first market leader in intelligent document processing (IDP). Coupa says that its customers already gain incredible value from Rossum’s embedded capabilities in the Coupa platform for AP. 

Coupa says that now its customers will be able to use Rossum’s IDP technology, powered by a specialised transactional large language model (T-LLM), for faster processing, meaningful cost savings and greater data control in complex invoicing across direct and indirect spend.

Leagh Turner, Coupa CEO, says: “Rossum changes the game entirely. As a strong partner since 2024, we know there is incredible value in bringing the two companies together across the entire source-to-pay function.

“The combined value of Coupa and Rossum has been proven in AP and invoicing, and we see massive future value in applying Rossum’s T-LLM and AI-first technology across the Coupa platform.”