The Complete Guide to Source-to-Pay Adoption Across Decentralised Teams

Last reviewed: October 2026.

Quick answer: To improve source-to-pay (S2P) adoption across decentralised teams, make the platform the easiest way to buy, not just the required one. Set a clear policy on which spend must go through the system, name an executive sponsor who holds business units to it, configure approvals to match how each team actually works, put the suppliers people already use into the platform, and train people in their own context rather than once at go-live. Then measure the share of spend flowing through the system each month and act on the teams that fall behind.

Key definitions

Source-to-pay adoption is the extent to which people across an organisation actually use the S2P platform for the activities it covers, from sourcing and contracts through to purchasing, invoicing and payment, instead of working around it.

Decentralised procurement is a model where purchasing decisions are made by many business units, sites or departments rather than a central procurement team, with procurement setting policy and providing support.

Spend under management is the proportion of an organisation's third-party spend that flows through approved processes and systems. It's the most reliable single measure of S2P adoption.

Off-system spend, often called maverick spend, is purchasing that bypasses the agreed process, such as buying on a card without approval, ordering directly from a supplier's website, or receiving an invoice with no purchase order behind it.

In this guide

• Why S2P adoption stalls in decentralised teams
• Common rollout barriers and how to remove them
• Governance and policy design
• Executive sponsorship
• User enablement and training
• Supplier onboarding
• Vendor fit: questions to ask
• Adoption metrics to track
• A 30/60/90-day adoption plan
• Considerations for New Zealand government organisations
• Frequently asked questions

Why S2P adoption stalls in decentralised teams

Most S2P platforms can do what they promise. When adoption stalls, the cause is rarely the software failing. It's usually that the people who need to use it have a faster, more familiar way of getting what they need, and nothing in the organisation makes the new way more attractive.

Decentralised organisations feel this more sharply. A council, a government agency or a mid-market group with several sites has many people buying, each with their own suppliers, habits and deadlines. Central procurement can design a good process, but it doesn't control every purchase. If the platform adds steps without removing any, people quietly return to email approvals, corporate cards and direct orders.

Adoption typically stalls for a handful of connected reasons:

• The platform isn't the easiest path. If it's quicker to email a supplier than raise a requisition, people will email the supplier.
• The rules aren't clear. Staff aren't sure which purchases must go through the system and which can go on a card.
• The suppliers aren't there. People search for what they buy every week, can't find it, and give up.
• Approvals feel slow or wrong. Requests sit with the wrong person, or low-value purchases need the same sign-off as large ones.
• Nobody is accountable. Without a senior sponsor and visible reporting, non-compliance carries no consequence.
• Training was a one-off. People were shown the system at go-live and haven't been supported since.

Each of these is fixable, and most can be fixed without replacing the platform.

Common rollout barriers and how to remove them

Governance and policy design

Governance is what turns S2P from an optional tool into the normal way of working. Good governance is clear, proportionate and applied consistently.

Define what must go through the platform

Write a short, plain-language policy that states which types of spend must be raised in the system, which can use a purchasing card, and which exceptions are allowed. A common principle is "no purchase order, no pay" for agreed categories: if an invoice arrives without a matching order, it goes back to the requester rather than being paid through a side door.

Make approvals proportionate

Approval rules should reflect risk. Low-value purchases from contracted suppliers can often be auto-approved or approved by a line manager, while higher-value or higher-risk purchases need more scrutiny. Align thresholds with your delegation of authority and review them after the first few months, based on where requests actually get stuck.

Use the platform to guide, not just enforce

The best governance is built into the buying experience. Showing contracted and preferred suppliers first, pre-filling coding where possible and flagging when a purchase needs a quote all steer people towards compliant choices without them reading a policy document.

Set a governance rhythm

Create a small steering group with representatives from procurement, finance and the main business units. Meet monthly during rollout to review adoption data, agree changes and decide on escalations. Keep a decision log so the reasons behind thresholds and exceptions aren't lost.

Executive sponsorship

In a decentralised organisation, procurement rarely has the authority to make every business unit comply. An executive sponsor does. The right sponsor is usually a chief financial officer, chief operating officer or equivalent who can settle disputes, approve policy and hold leaders accountable. An effective sponsor:

• explains why the organisation is adopting S2P, in terms of control, visibility and value for money
• endorses the purchasing policy and the "no purchase order, no pay" principle
• reviews adoption by business unit and raises it with leaders whose teams are behind
• backs procurement when exceptions are requested without good reason
• recognises teams that adopt well

Sponsorship should continue after go-live. Adoption often dips a few months in, once project attention moves elsewhere. That's when visible senior interest matters most.

User enablement and training

Training is necessary but not sufficient. The aim is for people to be confident using the platform for the purchases they actually make, and to know where to go when something doesn't work.

Train by role and by task

Requisitioners, approvers, receivers and accounts payable staff need different things. Short, task-based training, such as how to order from a catalogue or how to approve a request on your phone, is more useful than a full system walkthrough. Use real examples from the person's own team wherever possible.

Build a champion network

Identify one or two confident users in each business unit or site and give them extra training and a direct line to the project team. Champions answer everyday questions locally, spot problems early and give feedback central teams wouldn't otherwise hear.

Support people after go-live

Provide quick reference guides, short videos and a clear help channel, and run drop-in sessions in the first few weeks. Track the questions people ask, because repeated questions usually point to a configuration or communication issue rather than a training gap.

Remove friction continuously

Ask users what slows them down and act on it. Adding a missing supplier, simplifying a form or adjusting an approval route often does more for adoption than another round of training.

Supplier onboarding

People can only buy through the platform if the suppliers they rely on are in it. Supplier onboarding is one of the most underestimated parts of S2P adoption, particularly in decentralised organisations where each site may use its own local suppliers.

• Start with spend data. Identify the suppliers with the most transactions and the most spend, and prioritise them.
• Offer more than one way to connect. Larger suppliers may connect through punchout catalogues or electronic invoicing, while smaller and local suppliers need a simple option, such as receiving purchase orders by email and converting them into invoices.
• Explain what's in it for suppliers. Clearer orders, fewer queries and faster payment are strong incentives.
• Keep supplier data clean. Assign an owner for the supplier master, verify bank details before payment and remove duplicates.

Our supplier onboarding guide covers this process in more detail.

Vendor fit: questions to ask

Sometimes adoption problems trace back to platform fit. Whether you're selecting a new S2P solution or reviewing your current one, these questions test whether it will work for a decentralised organisation:

1. Can an occasional user find and buy what they need without training?
2. Can approval workflows be configured by business unit, value and category without custom development?
3. How does it handle multiple sites, cost centres or charts of accounts?
4. What options are there for onboarding small, local suppliers?
5. How does it integrate with our finance system, and which system holds master data?
6. Which approvals can be completed on a mobile device?
7. What adoption reporting is available by business unit, user and category?
8. What support does the vendor provide for change management, training and supplier onboarding?
9. Can the vendor share references from organisations with a similar structure and sector?

If your current platform falls short on several of these, the issue may be fit rather than effort. If it scores well, focus on governance, enablement and suppliers.

Adoption metrics to track

Measure adoption from the start, report it by business unit and review it monthly. Set a baseline before rollout so you can show progress.

Avoid measuring success by training completion. It's easy to report but says little about whether people are actually buying through the platform. For more on how these metrics connect across purchasing and invoicing, see our complete guide to procure-to-pay automation.

A 30/60/90-day adoption plan

If your rollout is struggling, this plan offers a structured way to reset. It assumes the platform is already live and focuses on raising usage.

Days 1 to 30: diagnose and reset

• Pull adoption data by business unit, category and supplier, and identify where spend is leaving the system.
• Interview requisitioners and approvers in the lowest-adopting teams to understand why.
• Confirm or appoint an executive sponsor and agree the adoption targets they'll champion.
• Refresh the purchasing policy so it clearly states what must go through the platform.
• Fix the top three sources of friction, such as missing suppliers, slow approval routes or confusing forms.

Days 31 to 60: enable and expand

• Launch a champion network across business units and sites.
• Run short, role-based refresher sessions focused on the most common purchases.
• Onboard the highest-volume suppliers still off the platform.
• Introduce "no purchase order, no pay" for an agreed set of categories, with clear communication beforehand.
• Start monthly adoption reporting to the steering group and sponsor.

Days 61 to 90: embed and measure

• Review progress against the baseline and recognise teams that have improved.
• Escalate persistent non-compliance through the sponsor.
• Extend the platform to the next set of categories or sites.
• Adjust approval thresholds and workflows based on where requests are getting stuck.
• Agree ongoing targets and a review rhythm for the next six months.

Considerations for New Zealand government organisations

Government agencies and councils in New Zealand face the same adoption challenges as other organisations, with a few added considerations.

Mid-market organisations share many of the same needs, particularly where several business units or sites buy independently and a small central team sets the rules.

Frequently asked questions

What is a good S2P adoption rate?

There's no single benchmark that suits every organisation, because it depends on which categories are in scope and how much spend is addressable. Most organisations set a target for spend under management in the categories they've rolled out, then raise it as more categories come on board. The trend over time matters more than any one figure.

How long does it take to improve S2P adoption?

Organisations usually see early improvements within the first few months of a focused effort, particularly after fixing supplier gaps and approval bottlenecks. Lasting adoption depends on governance and sponsorship being sustained over a longer period.

Should we mandate use of the S2P platform?

A mandate helps, but it works best when the platform is also the easiest way to buy. Combine a clear policy, such as "no purchase order, no pay" for agreed categories, with good supplier coverage and simple workflows. Mandates without usability tend to drive workarounds.

Who should own S2P adoption?

Procurement usually leads day-to-day adoption, but ownership should be shared with finance and backed by an executive sponsor. Business unit leaders are accountable for adoption in their own areas.

Why do people keep buying outside the system?

Usually because it's faster, the supplier they need isn't available, or they're unsure of the rules. Ask them. Their answers will show whether the fix is a supplier, a workflow, a policy or a training issue.

Do we need to replace our S2P platform if adoption is low?

Not necessarily. Most adoption problems can be solved with better governance, enablement and supplier onboarding. Consider a change only if the platform can't support how your organisation works, for example if it can't handle your structure, integrate with your finance system or offer a simple experience for occasional users.