BasWare, the leading provider of financial process automation software, today released its predictions for five key trends affecting businesses in 2008. Overall, the company sees a major transformation of traditional accounts payable (AP) and procurement functions into strategic corporate roles as the adoption of Enterprise Purchase-to-Pay technology increases. The growing use of automation to handle time-consuming transactional tasks will give AP and procurement professionals more time to focus on financial activities that add strategic business value.

Following are the company’s predictions:

SaaS Will Grow Faster Than Anticipated; The CIO Role Will Change

The benefits that Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) offers to organizations, such as avoiding upfront capital investment and enabling organizations to implement applications without specialized technology expertise, will spur its faster adoption in 2008. Because SaaS requires minimal IT involvement, CFOs and other business unit leaders will increasingly drive technology decisions throughout the organization based on business needs, instead of internal IT policies. Consequently, the role of the CIO will evolve to focus more on integrating processes and solutions organization-wide based on business priorities, rather than standardizing on particular technologies. Forward-thinking CIOs will partner with CFOs and other business unit leaders to tackle business problems with best-of-breed solutions that deliver the best value and offer strong integration capabilities.

Processes First, Outsourcing Second

Outsourcing has rapidly taken off as a trend, but many forward-thinking organizations are realizing that they must get their own financial houses in order before they can make the decision to outsource. They recognize the importance of first fixing broken processes in operations such as AP and procurement so they can effectively determine what they want to outsource and how to reap a return on investment.

Supplier Relationships Based on Value, Not Price

Best-in-class companies are realizing that when it comes to supplier relationships it is often more important to focus on value rather than the lowest price. By creating strong buyer-seller relationships, these organizations will continue to get the value they need in 2008 and beyond.

Processes, Not Compliance, Must Drive Change

Companies are realizing that a singular focus on compliance has often resulted in rigid systems that employees find ways to circumvent. For example, if purchasing processes in an organization are cumbersome, employees will often order off catalog. In 2008, we will see more companies focusing on process improvement of their financial operations based on best practices. This will result in financial visibility, auditability, innovation, and as a by-product – compliance.

Think Big, Start Small

Organizations will continue to focus on ways to gain the greatest value, while cutting cost. More organizations will realize that huge re-engineering projects and custom-built technology developed from the ground up are too costly and time-consuming to implement, and detract attention from their core business. As a result, organizations will continue to turn to packaged financial process automation solutions that offer robust capabilities. Also, as the emphasis on continuous improvement in financial processes remains strong, best-of-class financial departments will focus on making small, measurable improvements to avoid long, costly projects.

About BasWare

BasWare Corp. is the global leader in Enterprise Purchase-to-Pay and Financial Management solutions. More than 650,000 end-users in over 40 countries use its software to automate back-office financial operations to enhance efficiency, gain process control and transparency, and meet compliance requirements. BasWare’s products are widely used in Shared Service Centers.

In 2006, net sales reached approximately $80 million. The growth target for net sales for 2007 is 15 – 20 percent and will continue to be supported by a growing network of value-added resellers. Founded in 1985, BasWare Corporation (HEX:BAS) is a public company listed on the Helsinki Stock Exchange. Headquartered in Helsinki, Finland, it has eight subsidiaries in the U.S. and Europe. The company’s U.S. business, BasWare, Inc., is headquartered in Stamford, Conn. More information can be found at www.basware.com/us.

The BasWare name is a registered trademark of BasWare Corporation. The BasWare logo is a trademark of BasWare Corporation. All other trademarks are the property of their respective companies.