With rising R&D costs, life sciences organizations must stay vigilant for smarter ways to manage their procurement cycles. That’s where procure-to-pay (P2P) platforms come in, helping streamline purchasing, optimize supply chains, and manage spending. In this article, discover the top procurement platforms for 2025 and how pairing them with a specialized lab supply marketplace can optimize your purchasing process by addressing challenges unique to biotech and pharmaceutical organizations and fully automating procurement.
Why procurement workflows matter in life sciences
A well-structured procure-to-pay process helps labs keep costs in check, avoid delays, and run more smoothly. By using modern procurement software platforms, life sciences organizations can centralize procurement, reduce supply chain risks, and make sure they have the research materials they need, when they need them.
What is a Procure-to-Pay (P2P) platform?
A procure-to-pay platform integrates purchasing, vendor management, invoicing, and payment processes into a single, streamlined workflow. These platforms can help improve spend visibility, simplify compliance, and reduce inefficiencies, making them essential for labs ranging from startups to juggernauts.
Learn more: Lab Supply Purchasing: Everything You Need to Know
Key features of top Procure-to-Pay software
In an ideal world, a top-tier P2P platform would seamlessly handle all the complexities of procurement while giving teams the tools they need to stay efficient and compliant. Here are the key features you'd expect from the best P2P software:
- Vendor management. Automates supplier selection, contract activation, and order tracking.
- Billing and invoice automation. Reduces errors, prevents duplicate payments, and ensures timely processing of supplier invoices.
- Spend visibility and budget forecasting. Tracks real-time expenses, identifies cost-saving opportunities, and aids in financial planning.
- Seamless integration: Works with existing ERP, accounting, inventory management, and lab supply ordering systems to streamline procurement operations.
- Compliance and risk management. Ensures adherence to industry regulations, minimizes supplier risks, and maintains financial security.
- Automation and workflow optimization. Speeds up approvals, provides alerts for budget overruns, and enables smoother procurement cycles.
Learn more: What is Procure-to-Pay (P2P)? Best Practices for Life Sciences Procurement
What to look for in a Procure-to-Pay platform for life sciences
When selecting the right procure-to-pay software, it's important to make sure it will be easy to use, grow alongside your lab, and play well with other platforms. Here are some things to consider:
- User-friendly interface. Simplifies procurement for lab managers and finance teams with intuitive dashboards and mobile accessibility.
- Customization and scalability. Supports evolving research and organizational needs with flexible workflows, configurable approval hierarchies, and role-based access controls.
- Robust security: Protects sensitive financial data and supplier contracts with enterprise-grade security measures.
- Training and support: Ensures successful adoption with dedicated customer support, implementation assistance, and user education resources.
- Integration capabilities. Seamlessly integrates with existing and/or future ERP, accounting, e-invoicing, and lab supply ordering solutions.
- Automation. Automates approval workflows and provides automated alerts for activities such as approvals, budget overruns, and order status updates.
- Compliance and risk management. Ensures adherence to industry regulations and company policies. Identifies and mitigates procurement risks, including supplier risks and financial exposures.
Top 9 Procure-to-Pay platforms in 2025
Life sciences organizations have a range of P2P solutions to choose from, each offering unique benefits for procurement optimization.
- Coupa: AI-powered procurement and supply chain management that enhances cost savings and risk mitigation.
- SAP Ariba: A widely adopted P2P platform offering extensive supplier collaboration and financial tracking.
- Jaggaer: Provides end-to-end procurement capabilities, customizable workflows, and deep analytics.
- Procurify: Helps labs manage purchasing, budgeting, and approvals with user-friendly procurement tools.
- ProcureDesk: Focuses on streamlining procurement and accounts payable processes for cost efficiency.
- Fraxion: Enables spend control and budget forecasting tailored to life sciences procurement.
- Point Purchasing: Offers automation-driven P2P solutions designed to enhance procurement visibility.
- Corpay (formerly Accrualify): Tracks corporate spend with automated workflows for improved financial management.
- Tungsten Automation: Specializes in electronic invoicing and supply chain financing, optimizing procurement efficiency.
The limitations of P2P in life sciences and the need for additional solutions
While P2P platforms improve procurement efficiency, the unique challenges of life sciences purchasing pose obstacles that can stall process automation. Scientists grapple with purchasing pain points, including backorders, juggling multiple punchout catalogs, vendor management and onboarding issues, and the difficulty of sourcing specialized R&D materials. These limitations highlight the need for an integrated solution like the ZAGENO lab supply marketplace, which works alongside leading procure-to-pay platforms to streamline lab supply ordering, restart stalled automation, and fully support R&D procurement needs.
How ZAGENO enhances Procure-to-Pay efficiency in life sciences
ZAGENO seamlessly integrates with leading procure-to-pay platforms, including Coupa, SAP Ariba, Jaggaer, Procurify, ProcureDesk, Fraxion, Point Purchasing, Corpay, Tungsten Automation, and more, ensuring labs can efficiently source and purchase lab supplies while maintaining full control over procurement workflows.
A unified approach to lab procurement
ZAGENO simplifies procurement by consolidating lab supply ordering into a single PunchOut catalog. Instead of navigating multiple supplier interfaces, labs can browse, compare, and order over 40 million SKUs from over 5,300 vendors in one streamlined experience. This approach minimizes errors, improves pricing transparency, and accelerates order fulfillment.
End-to-end automation
With intuitive workflows, ZAGENO automates everything from product searches and order approvals to tracking, invoicing, and reporting. By reducing manual tasks, labs can minimize errors, speed up procurement cycles, and ensure compliance with internal purchasing policies.
Optimized supplier management
Managing lab suppliers can be complex, but ZAGENO simplifies this process by providing access to thousands of pre-vetted suppliers. The platform enables rapid onboarding of new vendors, ensuring scientists can quickly source specialized materials without unnecessary delays.
Greater visibility and control
With built-in analytics, ZAGENO helps labs gain real-time insights into spending, supplier performance, and procurement efficiency. This transparency allows organizations to make data-driven decisions, optimize purchasing strategies, and prevent budget overruns.
Minimized back-order disruptions
Life sciences procurement often faces unpredictable challenges like backorders and vendor exceptions. ZAGENO mitigates these issues by offering real-time inventory updates, alternative product suggestions, and expedited supplier onboarding to keep research projects on track.
Take your procurement strategy all the way
As the life sciences landscape evolves, labs must continuously refine their procurement approaches and adopt solutions that grow with their needs. Ready to experience a more efficient and streamlined procurement process? Demo ZAGENO today and see how our integrated platform can transform your lab supply ordering.
