Emptoris

Founded in late 1999 by Avner Schneur, Emptoris was established to overhaul strategic sourcing through the application of mathematical optimization technology. Schneur, who served as Chairman, President, and CEO, brought a history of leadership in technology firms, including helping to lead Astea International to an IPO. His academic background in Industrial Engineering and Information Systems from the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology informed the company's analytical approach to procurement.

Emptoris developed a suite of software solutions designed to manage and automate the complexities of corporate procurement and supply chain operations. The company provided a comprehensive platform that addressed the entire supply management lifecycle, offering applications for spend analysis, strategic sourcing, supplier lifecycle management, and contract management. This platform allowed clients to analyze spending, automate vendor selection and negotiation, manage contracts, and track supplier performance, ultimately aiming to reduce costs and mitigate supply chain risks. The company catered to a global client base of over 350 large corporations across diverse industries such as financial services, healthcare, and manufacturing, including notable names like American Express and Kraft Foods. Emptoris operated on a flexible business model, offering its software through both on-premise installations and as a software-as-a-service (SaaS) subscription.

The firm's growth trajectory included a series of strategic acquisitions to broaden its product portfolio. Key purchases included Zeborg for spend analytics (2003), diCarta for contract management (2006), and Rivermine for telecom expense management (2011). This expansion strategy culminated in IBM's acquisition of Emptoris, which was announced in December 2011 and completed on February 1, 2012. The acquisition was a key component of IBM's "Smarter Commerce" initiative, integrating Emptoris's procurement and supply chain intelligence capabilities to enhance IBM's offerings for chief procurement officers. Following the acquisition, the Emptoris brand and its solutions were incorporated into IBM's Commerce Portfolio. In 2017, IBM formed a strategic partnership with SAP Ariba and announced it would be sunsetting the Emptoris products.

Keywords: Emptoris, Avner Schneur, strategic sourcing, supply chain management, contract management, spend analysis, procurement software, supplier lifecycle management, IBM Smarter Commerce, telecom expense management, sourcing optimization, enterprise software, SaaS, B2B procurement, supply risk management, vendor management, procurement analytics, Rivermine acquisition, diCarta acquisition, Zeborg acquisition, Xcitec acquisition, Marlin Equity Partners