Decoding 'Managed Platform' & Catalog Migration

Most procurement platforms hand you the keys and disappear. We stick around. Here's what that actually looks like.

Let's be honest: "managed platform" is procurement tech's most overused phrase. Right up there with "best-in-class" and "Dedicated support". It usually means someone will answer your support ticket within 48 hours. Maybe...

So when we say Axiom is a managed platform, we wanted to be crystal clear about what that actually means in practice.

Managed Means We Actually Stick Around

First, you get a designated account team. Real people who know your setup, your suppliers, and your priorities. Not a chatbot, not a ticket queue.

Second, training is included throughout your implementation and beyond. New joiners, new regions, new categories - we'll work with you to ensure your team is set up for success.

Third, we handle supplier onboarding. This is usually the hardest and most time-consuming part of any procurement change. We take ownership of supplier outreach, content ingestion, and technical setup, end to end.

The goal is simple: you should never feel like you're figuring this out on your own.

A lot of platforms hand you the keys and disappear. We stay involved, because that's how this actually succeeds.

Why Uploading to Axiom Is Different (And Why It Matters)

Here's the uncomfortable truth about traditional catalog management: you've been forced to choose between three bad options for the past 20+ years.

• Hosted catalogs give you control and searchability, but they go stale the moment you upload them. Someone (usually you) has to manually update pricing, availability, and product specs constantly. It's administrative quicksand.

• Level 1 Punchouts are "easy" because you just redirect users to the supplier's website. But your users can't search across suppliers, can't compare products, and end up lost in a maze of different sites. So they give up and just email you directly. Hello, maverick spend.

• Level 2 Punchouts try to split the difference - they index data locally but keep the cart on the supplier's site. Better, but technically complex and rarely supported by suppliers.

So most default to Level 1 because it's the path of least resistance. And then wonder why adoption is terrible and compliance is a joke.

Axiom Does Something Different

We don't replicate the old SAP catalog structure. We fundamentally rethink it.

Instead of linking out to external content, Axiom ingests and centralises all supplier catalog data onto our platform. 

This isn't a small distinction - it's the difference between patching a broken system and actually fixing it.

Here's what that means:

• True cross-catalog search: Users get a consistent, consumer-like experience across all vendors. The beauty of Axiom is what happens behind the scenes. When identical items appear across different suppliers, Axiom surfaces the best value option automatically. No switching between supplier sites, no manual comparisons, no guesswork. Savings are built into the buying journey.

• Speed without compromise: Reduce the buying journey from 30+ minutes to under 1 minute. Users find what they need instantly, while procurement stays in control through automation and policy guidance.
  

• Real-time data without the maintenance burden: Automated imports mean pricing and availability stay current without manual work.

• Price control that actually works: Suppliers can't change prices on you without approval. You set the rules once across all data.

• Basket optimisation: At checkout, Axiom automatically suggests cheaper or better alternatives based on your policies. You don't have to rely on users remembering contract terms.

• De-duplication: Catalog items map to your SAP material master, eliminating duplicate orders and spend fragmentation.

And yes, we support punchout when it makes sense, like for complex configurators or custom-engineered goods.

"Don't Let Perfect Be the Enemy of Good"

Patrick Foelck (Head of Strategy & Solutions Enablement) from a leading pharma put it best:

"If you just see problems, oh, master data and, uh, this and that, and, uh, buying channel strategy, whatever, you may never start because technology will overtake you... So either you ask a procurement professional, grab the opportunity, and drive our future, or someone else will and define our future, which is likely not the sweetest spot."

This isn't about having perfect data or perfect systems before you start. It's about procurement owning your future instead of having it dictated by IT roadmaps or vendor timelines.

Patrick's team started with Axiom when they had multiple backend systems and messy catalogs. And it still worked:

"Pick an area where you have volume and just connect, or, like, an easy website or punch-out into the Axiom environment. You don't need much. You don't need anything."

Progress beats perfection. Every time.

You're Not Starting From Scratch

Here's the other thing: companies joining Axiom now benefit from the work that other clients have already done.

"Hundreds of onboarded suppliers, millions of items on the marketplace. All you need to do is negotiate a price for your company with some of these suppliers. That's it. And then you just create a punch-out connection to this thing and try it out."

Network effects are real. New clients get immediate value from existing supplier catalogs without doing the setup work. That means faster time-to-value/savings and less heavy lifting for your team.

What Onboarding Actually Looks Like

We handle the heavy lifting. Seriously...

Your designated account team manages supplier outreach using proven templates, coordinates data ingestion, and oversees the technical setup before anything goes live. We profile your current landscape: hosted catalogs, punchouts, the whole messy reality, and migrate it to Axiom for you.

Timeline? Suppliers already on the Axiom platform can be activated in your store in as little as 3 days. New suppliers typically take up to 6 weeks end-to-end. What used to take months now happens in weeks.

We offer five flexible ways for suppliers to connect - from simple file uploads to real-time APIs, so we can meet them where they are technically.

The Bottom Line

The status quo of catalog management is a cycle of manual work, stale data, and missed savings. Bolting new modules onto outdated architecture just masks the problem.

Axiom is a break from that. We've built a modern stack that works for everyone: buyers get a fast, consumer-like experience, suppliers get flexible tools and insights to manage their content and maximise their competitiveness, procurement gets real visibility, control, and savings.

Want to talk through what this looks like for your team?

Book a discovery call with us today.

P.S. If you're tired of hearing "we need to fix our master data first" or "we're not ready yet," forward this to whoever needs to hear it. Technology isn't waiting. Neither should you.