Operating expenses aren’t the sexiest topic in business - but they’re one of the biggest levers for profit. At ATP, we’re helping clients manage over £200m of costs right now, unlocking huge gains along the way. It’s hectic, it’s rewarding, and it made me stop and think: why are more companies coming to us? And what’s really driving the results?

The Value of Internal Procurement Teams

Here’s something we’ve learned along the way: the clients who already have their own procurement teams are often the ones who get the most out of working with us. It sounds counterintuitive, right? You’d think they wouldn’t need us. But actually, the partnership effect makes everything click.

On the flip side, businesses where costs are handled directly by a founder or CFO (without a procurement structure) can be trickier. Finding savings is usually the easy bit - but implementing them? That’s where it gets messy. With limited resource, old loyalties, and the sheer effort of making change stick, good opportunities often fade out.

But when we work alongside proper procurement teams who choose to work with us (rather than being “told” to), that’s when the magic happens. We don’t duplicate or compete. We just add tools, insight, leverage, and market knowledge that are hard to replicate in-house. Together, we move faster, make bigger gains, and avoid wasted effort.

What Great Procurement Partnerships Look Like

My favourite partnerships are with procurement teams who see us as an extension of their toolkit. They have already got strong processes, proper risk management, and the confidence to shake up suppliers when needed. They act as coordinators, connecting the whole business, and they already have goals and plans in place.

What they don’t always have is bandwidth. That’s where we come in - adding horsepower, plugging in extra expertise, and accelerating results without adding headcount.

Straight from the Client’s Mouth

I had the chance to interview the Procurement Director of a client business with 350+ branches and £800m revenue about why they work with us. Here are a few of his unfiltered comments:

• “I know you can’t tell me what my competitors are paying, but I’d be mad to assume we can’t do better. FOMO is real.”

• “Working with ATP is like bringing on a 12th player in football , and that 12th player is Ronaldo.”

• “We’re planning to exit in the next two years. Every extra £1 on the bottom line adds £10 to the business value.”

• “I only pay you if I see profit. If I hand you 25p for every £1 you deliver, I’m still 75p ahead.”

• “At peak, you had four team members involved and one on site regularly. I can’t flex my employed team like that - but I can flex you.”

Hard to argue with that, really.

Wrapping It Up

Procurement isn’t a tug of war between internal teams and external partners. The real wins come when both sides pull in the same direction: internal teams setting the course, and partners like us adding the muscle, insight, and leverage to accelerate the journey.

In the end, it’s not about in-house versus outsourced - it’s about recognising that the future belongs to those who collaborate. Because partnership doesn’t just beat replacement… it multiplies value.