What Caused the Breakthrough in a Four-Year Esker Implementation Delay
What Caused the Breakthrough in a Four-Year Esker Implementation Delay
A global enterprise had been attempting to implement Esker, its chosen procure-to-pay platform, for four years off and on without a successful go-live. Fragmented processes, no documentation, a lack of structured testing and key team members coming and going had stalled progress.
An embedded procurement consultant was deployed to provide the structure and cross-functional alignment that the project had long been missing.
Why the Esker Project Had Stalled
By the time our team got involved, the Esker implementation had built up more than just delays. Frustration, uncertainty and risk had quietly grown alongside it. Five core issues were holding the project back:
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- Lack of Process Documentation: There was no documented record of how processes were designed to operate, making it difficult to diagnose failures, align teams on expectations or onboard new stakeholders.
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- Ineffective UAT Execution: Testing scenarios did not fully reflect end-to-end operational requirements, and the absence of a responsive defect resolution team meant issues could not be addressed at pace. This resulted in unresolved defects accumulating and stalling progress.
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- Unclear Ownership: Responsibility for decisions and follow-through was fragmented across teams, leaving the Accounts Payable (AP) team and stakeholders without a clear point of contact when issues arose.
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- Integration Complexity: Purchase orders and receipting were managed in Oracle, while both purchase order and goods receipt data needed to flow into Esker to enable invoice matching. However, the integration between the two systems had never been properly designed or governed.
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- No Structured Transition Approach: Teams had no structured path to adapt to the new Esker environment from their old ways of working, which created confusion and risk when discussing the rollout.
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The result was a project that had stalled not because of a lack of intent, but because of a lack of structure.
Building What Was Missing
Our colleague Angela joined the team with six years of procurement consulting experience, stepping into three intersecting roles: Procurement Consultant, Test Manager and Process Specialist. She started by identifying the gaps and building the structure from the ground up.
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- Establishing Process Clarity: She mapped and designed end-to-end process flows across procurement and AP, creating documentation that had never existed before.
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- Building a Testing Framework: One of the most critical gaps was the absence of any formal testing discipline. Angela introduced a structured SIT & UAT approach, managed full testing cycles and drove defect resolution through to closure.
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- Connecting IT and Business Teams: Daily cross-functional check-ins and bridge calls with IT, AP and business users were scheduled to keep communication consistent.
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- Training and Change Management: Training was delivered directly to business users so they could operate Esker from day one. Beyond the technical side, it was also about helping teams feel ready to use the platform with confidence.
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- Supporting Oracle Integration: Angela worked alongside the Oracle team to manage the integration between the two systems, particularly around how receipting flowed from Oracle into Esker.
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What made the difference was not simply the delivery of individual tasks, but having someone who could connect IT, operations and finance, align stakeholders and keep the programme moving forward as one coordinated effort.
The Go-Live Outcome
Standardised Invoice-to-Pay Process
Eight entities now operate from a single, documented process framework, replacing the inconsistent and undocumented approaches that had previously caused confusion and rework.
Faster Approval Times and Fewer Bottlenecks
With cleaner workflows and clearer ownership, invoice processing became faster and smoother, reducing the manual burden on AP teams and improving efficiency across processes.
Improved Governance and Audit Readiness
Clear process documentation and structured testing governance reduced the audit risk that had been quietly accumulating throughout the delay period.
Increased Team Confidence in the System
Perhaps the hardest thing to quantify, yet among the most valuable, was the shift in how teams felt about Esker. Training, consistent support and a successful go-live turned scepticism into ownership.
The client achieved what had eluded them for four years: a fully operational Esker environment, live across global entities.
Lessons from the Project
Documentation is non-negotiable
Every transition, handover and onboarding becomes a gap for error without proper documentation. Starting with documented processes protects everything that follows.
Testing discipline shapes go-live success
Ad hoc testing creates ad hoc outcomes. Without structure, UAT becomes inconsistent and far less effective. Errors that surface post-go-live cost far more time, trust and rework than errors caught during a managed testing cycle.
Structure enables speed
The instinct in a delayed project is often to move faster. What accelerated this delivery was putting governance in place, clear ownership, daily rhythms and documented decisions.
HOW WE CAN HELP
If your organisation has a stalled implementation, Denova can help. Through Colleague-as-a-Service (CLaaS), we work alongside your teams as embedded procurement specialists.
If that sounds interesting, it might be worth a conversation about what embedded procurement expertise could look like for your organisation.
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