Capability template for procurement and suppliers

Supplier spend analysis

From one accounts-payable export, the finance or operations lead sees where the money goes: spend cleaned and grouped by category and supplier, the few suppliers that take most of it, the tail, needs bought from several suppliers and consolidation opportunities, each with its figures. A person decides what to act on.

The outcome

The business finally sees its supplier spend whole. Every bill in the period, from flour and freight to rent and repairs, lands in one analysis: sorted into the categories the business uses, ranked by supplier, and boiled down to the handful of suppliers that take most of the money and the long list of everyone else.

The cleaning is done in the open. Accounts that are not supplier spend, such as sales tax or loan repayments, are set aside with their totals. Three spellings of one supplier become one line, and the merge is shown so anyone can undo it. Credit notes are netted. Names that only look alike are kept apart and raised as a question.

Then come the conversations worth having. Where the business buys the same thing from two, three or four suppliers, the analysis shows how the money splits, and where that spend is big enough to matter, it becomes a consolidation opportunity with its figures. Each one arrives as a question for the budget holder and a decision for whoever leads the business. Nobody is told which supplier to keep. People talk to suppliers, people choose, and people move the spend.

Who starts the work, and when

The finance lead, finance manager or operations lead who can export accounts payable starts it once or twice a year: before budget season, before a sourcing round, after an acquisition brings in a second set of suppliers, or whenever the owner asks where the money goes. The owner, managing director or finance director makes the decisions it lists.

What they supply

  • An accounts-payable export for the period, at least three months and ideally twelve: bill date, supplier, bill number, description, the account each bill was coded to, and the amount, with credit notes as negative amounts.
  • A category map, if they have one: each supplier with the need it meets and the budget holder for that need. Without one, the analysis groups by the accounts the bills were coded to.
  • The settings: today's date, the period, the currency, the accounts to leave out, the share that counts as concentration (80% unless they choose otherwise), the category spend worth calling an opportunity, and, only if they want saving figures, the low and high percent they are willing to assume.

No connection to the accounting system or the bank is needed, and none is asked for.

What comes out

One analysis, in a fixed order:

  1. Cleaning: rows read and left out, credit notes, names merged, look-alike names kept apart, bills with no account, and suppliers missing from the map.
  2. A summary of the spend, the concentration and the tail.
  3. Spend by category, with the budget holder for each.
  4. Spend by supplier, ranked, with each supplier's share and the running total.
  5. Concentration: how few suppliers take most of the spend.
  6. The tail: how many suppliers share the rest, in how many bills, and how many were used only once.
  7. Needs bought from more than one supplier, with how the money splits.
  8. Consolidation opportunities, each with its spend, its suppliers and, only when an assumption was given, a saving range clearly labelled as that assumption.
  9. Questions for the budget holders, each resting on a fact.
  10. Decisions for whoever leads the business.
  11. What was not supplied or checked, starting with the plain statement that no contract or price list was read.

Every figure can be checked against the export with a calculator. An opportunity that needs a closer look can go on to a vendor quote comparison.

An invented example

Illustrative example with invented data. The company, the suppliers, the people, the dates and the amounts below are all invented. The company is an invented 60-person bakery and snack manufacturer, called Maker K here, and its suppliers are called Supplier A to Supplier Y. Two payees whose rows are left out as not supplier spend are called Tax authority and Lender A. Its finance manager is looking at where the business spent with suppliers last quarter, before next year's budget. First come the inputs the finance manager supplied, in full, then the analysis the capability returned.

The inputs

1. Settings (typed by the finance manager)

Company: Maker K
Today: Tuesday 10 November 2026
Period: 1 July 2026 to 30 September 2026
Currency: USD
Runner: Finance manager
Decision-maker: Managing director
Concentration line: 80%
Consolidation floor: $10,000 in the period
Saving assumption: 3% to 6%
Accounts to leave out: Sales tax payable; Loan repayments

2. Accounts-payable export (bills and credit notes, 1 July to 30 September 2026)

date,supplier,invoice,description,account,amount
2026-07-01,Supplier W,W-0701,"Rent, unit 4, July",Rent,12000.00
2026-07-03,Supplier A,A-5512,"Bread flour and rye, July",Ingredients,31840.00
2026-07-05,Supplier B,B-2201,"Butter and cream, July",Ingredients,26300.00
2026-07-07,Supplier S,S-1201,"Paper, toner, stationery",Office supplies,520.00
2026-07-08,Supplier C,C-901,"Sugar and glucose syrup",Ingredients,13600.00
2026-07-09,Supplier G,G-3310,"Shipping cartons, 12-pack",Packaging,7980.00
2026-07-10,Supplier Q,Q-301,"Sanitiser and hygiene consumables",Cleaning and hygiene,1980.00
2026-07-12,Supplier V,V-07,"Electricity and gas, July",Utilities,8640.00
2026-07-14,Supplier D,D-77,"Walnuts, almonds, raisins",Ingredients,5450.00
2026-07-15,Supplier K,K-118,"Printed labels and wrap film",Packaging,4950.00
2026-07-16,Supplier M,M-4410,"Pallet deliveries, July part 1",Freight,1240.00
2026-07-18,Supplier H Ltd,H-1009,"Display boxes",Packaging,3100.00
2026-07-20,Tax authority,ST-Q2,"Sales tax, second quarter",Sales tax payable,9850.00
2026-07-21,Supplier E,E-410,"Spelt and wholemeal flour",Ingredients,5900.00
2026-07-22,Supplier N,N-77120,"Courier parcels",Freight,380.00
2026-07-24,Supplier P,P-55,"Oven service visit",Repairs and maintenance,2650.00
2026-07-28,Supplier Y,Y-610,"Product testing, batch samples",Laboratory testing,2100.00
2026-07-30,Supplier X,X-2026-07,"Quarterly bookkeeping review",Professional fees,7500.00
2026-07-31,Supplier L,L-7781,"Chilled freight, July",Freight,5860.00
2026-07-31,Lender A,LN-0731,"Equipment loan, July",Loan repayments,4200.00
2026-08-01,Supplier W,W-0801,"Rent, unit 4, August",Rent,12000.00
2026-08-04,Supplier A,A-5578,"Bread flour and rye, August",Ingredients,32610.00
2026-08-05,Supplier B,B-2264,"Butter and cream, August",Ingredients,25880.00
2026-08-06,Supplier S,S-1288,"Paper and stationery",Office supplies,480.00
2026-08-07,Supplier M Express,MX-88,"Same-day pallet delivery",Freight,960.00
2026-08-10,Supplier C,C-944,"Sugar and glucose syrup",Ingredients,14250.00
2026-08-11,Supplier G,G-3372,"Shipping cartons, 12-pack",Packaging,8240.00
2026-08-12,Supplier Q,Q-322,"Sanitiser and hygiene consumables",Cleaning and hygiene,2040.00
2026-08-12,Supplier V,V-08,"Electricity and gas, August",Utilities,9210.00
2026-08-14,Supplier M,M-4466,"Pallet deliveries, August",Freight,1310.00
2026-08-17,Supplier K,K-131,"Printed labels and wrap film",Packaging,5180.00
2026-08-19,Supplier B,B-CN-118,"Credit, returned cream, short date",Ingredients,-420.00
2026-08-19,Supplier N,N-77395,"Courier parcels",Freight,410.00
2026-08-20,SUPPLIER H LTD.,H-1032,"Display boxes",Packaging,2950.00
2026-08-21,Supplier F,F-12,"Hazelnuts and dried apricots",Ingredients,3500.00
2026-08-25,Supplier R,R-44,"Floor cleaner and gloves",Cleaning and hygiene,880.00
2026-08-26,Supplier D,D-82,"Walnuts, almonds, raisins",Ingredients,5550.00
2026-08-28,Supplier P,P-61,"Mixer gearbox repair",Repairs and maintenance,3900.00
2026-08-29,Supplier U,U-3,"Batteries and torches",,186.00
2026-08-31,Supplier L,L-7840,"Chilled freight, August",Freight,6120.00
2026-08-31,Lender A,LN-0831,"Equipment loan, August",Loan repayments,4200.00
2026-09-01,Supplier W,W-0901,"Rent, unit 4, September",Rent,12000.00
2026-09-02,Supplier E,E-433,"Spelt and wholemeal flour",Ingredients,6100.00
2026-09-03,Supplier A,A-5641,"Bread flour and rye, September",Ingredients,30950.00
2026-09-04,Supplier S,S-1340,"Paper, toner, stationery",Office supplies,510.00
2026-09-05,Supplier B,B-2330,"Butter and cream, September",Ingredients,26140.00
2026-09-08,Supplier N,N-77608,"Courier parcels",Freight,420.00
2026-09-09,Supplier C,C-987,"Sugar and glucose syrup",Ingredients,13150.00
2026-09-10,Supplier G,G-3419,"Shipping cartons, 12-pack",Packaging,7780.00
2026-09-11,Supplier Q,Q-345,"Sanitiser and hygiene consumables",Cleaning and hygiene,1980.00
2026-09-12,Supplier V,V-09,"Electricity and gas, September",Utilities,8950.00
2026-09-15,Supplier J,J-501,"Shipping cartons, rush order",Packaging,2400.00
2026-09-16,Supplier K,K-144,"Printed labels and wrap film",Packaging,4870.00
2026-09-17,Supplier M,M-4502,"Pallet deliveries, September",Freight,1150.00
2026-09-18,Supplier T,T-9,"Desk chairs, two",Office supplies,615.00
2026-09-22,Supplier H,H-1057,"Display boxes",Packaging,3050.00
2026-09-24,Supplier M Express,MX-93,"Same-day pallet delivery",Freight,840.00
2026-09-25,Supplier P,P-66,"Thermostat replacement",Repairs and maintenance,1450.00
2026-09-29,Supplier Y,Y-655,"Product testing, batch samples",Laboratory testing,2100.00
2026-09-30,Supplier L,L-7902,"Chilled freight, September",Freight,6020.00
2026-09-30,Lender A,LN-0930,"Equipment loan, September",Loan repayments,4200.00

3. Category map (kept by the finance manager with the budget holders)

supplier,category,owner
Supplier A,Flour and grains,Production manager
Supplier E,Flour and grains,Production manager
Supplier B,Dairy,Production manager
Supplier C,Sugar and syrups,Production manager
Supplier D,Nuts and dried fruit,Production manager
Supplier F,Nuts and dried fruit,Production manager
Supplier G,Cartons and boxes,Production manager
Supplier H,Cartons and boxes,Production manager
Supplier J,Cartons and boxes,Production manager
Supplier K,Labels and film,Production manager
Supplier L,Freight,Operations manager
Supplier M,Freight,Operations manager
Supplier N,Freight,Operations manager
Supplier P,Equipment maintenance,Operations manager
Supplier Q,Cleaning and hygiene,Operations manager
Supplier R,Cleaning and hygiene,Operations manager
Supplier S,Office supplies,Office manager
Supplier V,Energy,Finance manager
Supplier W,Rent,Finance manager
Supplier X,Accounting,Finance manager
Supplier Y,Laboratory testing,Quality lead

The output

The output is shown here formatted for reading, with bold headings and lists. The assistant returns the same sections, in the same order, as the plain-text format in the template.

SUPPLIER SPEND ANALYSIS: Maker K, 1 July 2026 to 30 September 2026

For: Finance manager. Decisions by: Managing director. Prepared Tuesday 10 November 2026 from the settings, the accounts-payable export (61 rows) and the category map (21 rows). All figures are for the period, in USD; nothing is annualised.

CLEANING

  • Rows read: 61. Left out: 4 rows, $22,450.00 (Loan repayments: 3 rows, $12,600.00; Sales tax payable: 1 row, $9,850.00).
  • Credit notes: 1, -$420.00, netted against their suppliers (Supplier B -$420.00).
  • Names merged: Supplier H Ltd: "Supplier H Ltd", "SUPPLIER H LTD.", "Supplier H" (3 rows).
  • Possible same supplier, not merged: Supplier M and Supplier M Express.
  • Not coded: 1 row, $186.00 (Supplier U $186.00).
  • Not on the category map: Supplier M Express (placed by its account, Freight); Supplier T (placed by its account, Office supplies); Supplier U (not coded).
  • Net or zero after credits: none.
  • Spend analysed: $407,701.00, 24 suppliers, 56 bills and 1 credit note.

SUMMARY

  • 24 suppliers (8 in the concentration group) across 14 categories, plus $186.00 not coded.
  • Concentration: 8 of 24 suppliers (33.3%) take 81.9% of spend ($334,100.00).
  • Tail: 16 suppliers (66.7%) take 18.1% ($73,601.00) in 32 bills.
  • Same need, more than one supplier: 6 categories. Consolidation opportunities: 4.

SPEND BY CATEGORY (highest first; shares rounded to one decimal place)

  • Flour and grains: $107,400.00, 26.3%, 2 suppliers, 5 bills. Owner: Production manager.
  • Dairy: $77,900.00, 19.1%, 1 supplier, 3 bills. Owner: Production manager.
  • Sugar and syrups: $41,000.00, 10.1%, 1 supplier, 3 bills. Owner: Production manager.
  • Rent: $36,000.00, 8.8%, 1 supplier, 3 bills. Owner: Finance manager.
  • Cartons and boxes: $35,500.00, 8.7%, 3 suppliers, 7 bills. Owner: Production manager.
  • Energy: $26,800.00, 6.6%, 1 supplier, 3 bills. Owner: Finance manager.
  • Freight (includes from the account): $24,710.00, 6.1%, 4 suppliers, 11 bills. Owner: Operations manager.
  • Labels and film: $15,000.00, 3.7%, 1 supplier, 3 bills. Owner: Production manager.
  • Nuts and dried fruit: $14,500.00, 3.6%, 2 suppliers, 3 bills. Owner: Production manager.
  • Equipment maintenance: $8,000.00, 2.0%, 1 supplier, 3 bills. Owner: Operations manager.
  • Accounting: $7,500.00, 1.8%, 1 supplier, 1 bill. Owner: Finance manager.
  • Cleaning and hygiene: $6,880.00, 1.7%, 2 suppliers, 4 bills. Owner: Operations manager.
  • Laboratory testing: $4,200.00, 1.0%, 1 supplier, 2 bills. Owner: Quality lead.
  • Office supplies (includes from the account): $2,125.00, 0.5%, 2 suppliers, 4 bills. Owner: Office manager.
  • Not coded: $186.00, 0.0%, 1 supplier, 1 bill.

SPEND BY SUPPLIER (highest first)

  1. Supplier A: $95,400.00, 23.4% (cumulative 23.4%). Flour and grains. 3 bills. Concentration group.
  2. Supplier B: $77,900.00, 19.1% (cumulative 42.5%). Dairy. 3 bills, 1 credit note. Concentration group.
  3. Supplier C: $41,000.00, 10.1% (cumulative 52.6%). Sugar and syrups. 3 bills. Concentration group.
  4. Supplier W: $36,000.00, 8.8% (cumulative 61.4%). Rent. 3 bills. Concentration group.
  5. Supplier V: $26,800.00, 6.6% (cumulative 68.0%). Energy. 3 bills. Concentration group.
  6. Supplier G: $24,000.00, 5.9% (cumulative 73.9%). Cartons and boxes. 3 bills. Concentration group.
  7. Supplier L: $18,000.00, 4.4% (cumulative 78.3%). Freight. 3 bills. Concentration group.
  8. Supplier K: $15,000.00, 3.7% (cumulative 81.9%). Labels and film. 3 bills. Concentration group.
  9. Supplier E: $12,000.00, 2.9% (cumulative 84.9%). Flour and grains. 2 bills. Tail.
  10. Supplier D: $11,000.00, 2.7% (cumulative 87.6%). Nuts and dried fruit. 2 bills. Tail.
  11. Supplier H Ltd: $9,100.00, 2.2% (cumulative 89.8%). Cartons and boxes. 3 bills. Tail.
  12. Supplier P: $8,000.00, 2.0% (cumulative 91.8%). Equipment maintenance. 3 bills. Tail.
  13. Supplier X: $7,500.00, 1.8% (cumulative 93.6%). Accounting. 1 bill. Tail.
  14. Supplier Q: $6,000.00, 1.5% (cumulative 95.1%). Cleaning and hygiene. 3 bills. Tail.
  15. Supplier Y: $4,200.00, 1.0% (cumulative 96.1%). Laboratory testing. 2 bills. Tail.
  16. Supplier M: $3,700.00, 0.9% (cumulative 97.0%). Freight. 3 bills. Tail.
  17. Supplier F: $3,500.00, 0.9% (cumulative 97.9%). Nuts and dried fruit. 1 bill. Tail.
  18. Supplier J: $2,400.00, 0.6% (cumulative 98.5%). Cartons and boxes. 1 bill. Tail.
  19. Supplier M Express: $1,800.00, 0.4% (cumulative 98.9%). Freight (from the account). 2 bills. Tail.
  20. Supplier S: $1,510.00, 0.4% (cumulative 99.3%). Office supplies. 3 bills. Tail.
  21. Supplier N: $1,210.00, 0.3% (cumulative 99.6%). Freight. 3 bills. Tail.
  22. Supplier R: $880.00, 0.2% (cumulative 99.8%). Cleaning and hygiene. 1 bill. Tail.
  23. Supplier T: $615.00, 0.2% (cumulative 100.0%). Office supplies (from the account). 1 bill. Tail.
  24. Supplier U: $186.00, 0.0% (cumulative 100.0%). Not coded. 1 bill. Tail.

CONCENTRATION (line: 80%)

8 of 24 suppliers (33.3%) take $334,100.00, 81.9% of spend: Supplier A; Supplier B; Supplier C; Supplier W; Supplier V; Supplier G; Supplier L; Supplier K. The group ends at the first supplier whose cumulative share reaches 80%.

Largest supplier: Supplier A, 23.4% of spend.

TAIL

16 suppliers (66.7% of suppliers) take $73,601.00, 18.1% of spend, in 32 bills; average bill $2,300.03. Billed once in the period: 6 (Supplier X; Supplier F; Supplier J; Supplier R; Supplier T; Supplier U)

Tail spend by category: Nuts and dried fruit $14,500.00 (2 suppliers); Flour and grains $12,000.00 (1 supplier); Cartons and boxes $11,500.00 (2 suppliers); Equipment maintenance $8,000.00 (1 supplier); Accounting $7,500.00 (1 supplier); Cleaning and hygiene $6,880.00 (2 suppliers); Freight $6,710.00 (3 suppliers); Laboratory testing $4,200.00 (1 supplier); Office supplies $2,125.00 (2 suppliers); Not coded $186.00 (1 supplier)

SAME NEED, MORE THAN ONE SUPPLIER

  • Flour and grains: $107,400.00, 2 suppliers: Supplier A $95,400.00 (88.8%); Supplier E $12,000.00 (11.2%).
  • Cartons and boxes: $35,500.00, 3 suppliers: Supplier G $24,000.00 (67.6%); Supplier H Ltd $9,100.00 (25.6%); Supplier J $2,400.00 (6.8%).
  • Freight: $24,710.00, 4 suppliers: Supplier L $18,000.00 (72.8%); Supplier M $3,700.00 (15.0%); Supplier M Express $1,800.00 (7.3%); Supplier N $1,210.00 (4.9%).
  • Nuts and dried fruit: $14,500.00, 2 suppliers: Supplier D $11,000.00 (75.9%); Supplier F $3,500.00 (24.1%).
  • Cleaning and hygiene: $6,880.00, 2 suppliers: Supplier Q $6,000.00 (87.2%); Supplier R $880.00 (12.8%). Below the consolidation floor of $10,000.00.
  • Office supplies: $2,125.00, 2 suppliers: Supplier S $1,510.00 (71.1%); Supplier T $615.00 (28.9%). Below the consolidation floor of $10,000.00.

CONSOLIDATION OPPORTUNITIES: 4 (categories at or above $10,000.00 with more than one supplier)

  1. Flour and grains: $107,400.00 with 2 suppliers. Largest by spend (not a recommendation): Supplier A, $95,400.00 (88.8%). With the other 1: $12,000.00 in 2 bills. At your assumption of 3% to 6% of the category's spend: $3,222.00 to $6,444.00 in the period; an assumption, not a quote.
  2. Cartons and boxes: $35,500.00 with 3 suppliers. Largest by spend (not a recommendation): Supplier G, $24,000.00 (67.6%). With the other 2: $11,500.00 in 4 bills. At your assumption of 3% to 6% of the category's spend: $1,065.00 to $2,130.00 in the period; an assumption, not a quote.
  3. Freight: $24,710.00 with 4 suppliers. Largest by spend (not a recommendation): Supplier L, $18,000.00 (72.8%). With the other 3: $6,710.00 in 8 bills. At your assumption of 3% to 6% of the category's spend: $741.30 to $1,482.60 in the period; an assumption, not a quote.
  4. Nuts and dried fruit: $14,500.00 with 2 suppliers. Largest by spend (not a recommendation): Supplier D, $11,000.00 (75.9%). With the other 1: $3,500.00 in 1 bill. At your assumption of 3% to 6% of the category's spend: $435.00 to $870.00 in the period; an assumption, not a quote.

QUESTIONS: 6, for the Finance manager to decide whether to ask

  1. To the Finance manager: Supplier M (3 bills, $3,700.00) and Supplier M Express (2 bills, $1,800.00) are both coded to Freight and were not merged. Are they the same supplier?
  2. To the Finance manager: Supplier M Express (placed by its account, Freight), Supplier T (placed by its account, Office supplies) and Supplier U (not coded; one bill, "Batteries and torches", $186.00) are not on the category map. Which category does each belong in?
  3. To the Production manager: Flour and grains went to Supplier A ($95,400.00) and Supplier E ($12,000.00). Do they supply the same thing, and is there a reason each is used, such as a specification, a site or a backup?
  4. To the Production manager: Cartons and boxes went to Supplier G ($24,000.00), Supplier H Ltd ($9,100.00) and Supplier J ($2,400.00). Do they supply the same thing, and is there a reason each is used, such as a specification, a site or a backup?
  5. To the Operations manager: Freight went to Supplier L ($18,000.00), Supplier M ($3,700.00), Supplier M Express ($1,800.00) and Supplier N ($1,210.00). Do they supply the same thing, and is there a reason each is used, such as a specification, a site or a backup?
  6. To the Production manager: Nuts and dried fruit went to Supplier D ($11,000.00) and Supplier F ($3,500.00). Do they supply the same thing, and is there a reason each is used, such as a specification, a site or a backup?

DECISIONS FOR THE MANAGING DIRECTOR: 5

  1. Flour and grains: $107,400.00 with 2 suppliers; $12,000.00 went to suppliers other than the largest. At your assumption of 3% to 6%, $3,222.00 to $6,444.00 in the period. Should the Production manager look into moving flour and grains to fewer suppliers, once question 3 is answered? A vendor quote comparison can prepare the choice.
  2. Cartons and boxes: $35,500.00 with 3 suppliers; $11,500.00 went to suppliers other than the largest. At your assumption of 3% to 6%, $1,065.00 to $2,130.00 in the period. Should the Production manager look into moving cartons and boxes to fewer suppliers, once question 4 is answered? A vendor quote comparison can prepare the choice.
  3. Freight: $24,710.00 with 4 suppliers; $6,710.00 went to suppliers other than the largest. At your assumption of 3% to 6%, $741.30 to $1,482.60 in the period. Should the Operations manager look into moving freight to fewer suppliers, once question 5 is answered? A vendor quote comparison can prepare the choice.
  4. Nuts and dried fruit: $14,500.00 with 2 suppliers; $3,500.00 went to suppliers other than the largest. At your assumption of 3% to 6%, $435.00 to $870.00 in the period. Should the Production manager look into moving nuts and dried fruit to fewer suppliers, once question 6 is answered? A vendor quote comparison can prepare the choice.
  5. The tail: 16 of 24 suppliers took $73,601.00 (18.1% of spend) in 32 bills, and 6 of them were billed once in the period. Should anyone look at whether this spend can go through suppliers already used, and who?

NOT SUPPLIED OR NOT CHECKED

No contract, price list, quote or delivery record was read, so whether two suppliers sell the same item, at what price or on what terms is not known from this export. Categories are as set on the category map or the account each bill was coded to. Spend is what was billed in the period, not what was committed or paid. Names that differ other than by case, punctuation, spacing or a legal ending were not merged.

Every figure traces to the inputs supplied for Maker K on 10 November 2026. Nothing has been sent, paid, changed or agreed with any supplier.

Where it fits

  • Procurement and suppliers, which decides who the business buys from and on what terms.
  • Finance and accounting, which holds the accounts-payable ledger and owns the budget the suppliers are paid from.
  • Manufacturing, where materials, packaging and freight are most of the cost and often come from more suppliers than anyone planned.
  • Construction, where each project picks its own suppliers and the same materials end up bought from many of them.
  • Hospitality, where food, drink, linen and cleaning arrive from a long list of suppliers, site by site.
  • Growth and scaling, when buying has spread across teams and nobody sees the whole supplier list.
  • Acquisitions and integration, when two businesses bring two sets of suppliers for the same needs.
  • Private equity and portfolios, where owners want to know early how supplier spend is spread across a portfolio company.

What has to change for your company

Map the column headers of your accounting system's export, and decide whether you export bills or payments. List the accounts that are not supplier spend in your books. Build the category map with your budget holders, naming each need finely enough that two suppliers in one category really meet the same need. Set the concentration share, the spend worth calling an opportunity and, if you want saving figures at all, the percentages your business is willing to assume. Name who decides, who keeps the map between analyses, and where the finished analysis is kept. It runs in ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot or Gemini, from files you supply.

What has been checked

Fully Powered AI wrote this capability template. It was editorially reviewed on 10 November 2026. It was tried once on its invented example in Claude on 10 November 2026, and the record of that run is published with the template; it lists the small edits made afterward that have not been run again. It has not yet been tested in a client environment. It has not yet been tested as a packaged version in ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot or Gemini.

Testing in your environment means running it on a past period your finance lead knows well, with hard cases written in advance: an export whose headers do not match, one bill exported twice, a supplier spelled three ways, two names that look alike but are different businesses, a credit note larger than the bills it offsets, and a category that sits just under the floor. The runner checks every figure against the export before anyone relies on the analysis. Pilot acceptance-test preparation sets those cases up, and what we test before we call an AI workflow ready describes the record we keep.

The full capability template

Everything above is the outline. The complete capability template is the working version: the roles, the inputs, the procedure, the exceptions and stop conditions, the output format, the reviewer checklist, the acceptance tests, the instructions for an AI assistant and what to customize for your company. It comes with a download and the link to its folder in Fully Powered’s public repository.

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    From a card statement or ledger export, the finance or operations lead gets every subscription on one register: what each costs a year, who owns it, what renews in the next 90 days, what looks unused, duplicated or orphaned, and the decisions to make. Nothing is cancelled or changed.

  • Supplier bill review and payment-run preparation

    Before each payment run, the person who approves it gets one sheet: every supplier bill checked against its purchase order and what was received, duplicates and changed bank details stopped, credits shown, and a proposed run with its total. Nothing is paid until a person approves.

  • Vendor quote comparison

    Before anyone signs, the person choosing a vendor gets one sheet: the criteria agreed first, every quote costed the same way, and each vendor eliminated with its reason, on hold with the question that settles it, or shortlisted with its trade-offs. A person chooses; contract terms go to your reviewer.