NetSuite 
Sage Intacct 
QuickBooks 
Microsoft Dynamics 
ERP Integration Options 
Jira Integration – Streamline Your Workflows 
Ironclad Integration – Simplify Legal Operations 
DocuSign 
Asana 
Slack 
TravelPerk 
SSO 
American Express Card 
Silicon Valley Bank Card 
After a year’s hiatus, I was happy to return to Oracle NetSuite’s recent annual conference, SuiteWorld — in person — in Las Vegas. Even better was representing my new company as VP of Business Development at Airbase, one of the conference sponsors and a SuiteCloud Developer Network partner.
Partner networking at center stage.
While preparing for the conference, I was struck by the list of partners, developers, press, and industry influencers, as well as the wide range of topics scheduled in both the on-demand and live events. SuiteWorld is always an opportunity to connect with current and prospective partners, and to learn about new ones who are aligned with Airbase’s mission.
One notable difference from previous years was that the number of partners attending seemed to outweigh the number of customers. The conference did feature many virtual sessions, which underscored the continued trend toward events and tools that can support remote teams and participation.
Nonetheless, the collaborative energy of the live conference facilitated many great opportunities to talk with potential partners, and we enjoyed speaking to organizations looking for ways to add a consolidated AP solution to their clients’ tech stacks while also adding revenue streams to their business.
Presentations with impact.
I had an opportunity to present on Airbase’s deep integration with NetSuite. It was great to not only highlight why deep integrations play an important role in delivering measurable value for our end customers, but to also showcase how our platform maximizes the potential of NetSuite’s tools. Examples of this include requesting virtual cards, amortization templates, and multi-entity support.
Airbase’s CFO, Aneal Vallurupalli, together with Lattice’s Controller, Jason Lopez, combined forces in a presentation called “How Lattice Transformed Its Spend Management and AP Processes To Scale from Startup to Unicorn.” They focused on the need for finance teams to get the right setup with the right automation tools, so that the people they hire can do more strategic work. It was based on Lattice’s own experiences dealing with the challenges of rapid growth — a topic of interest to many companies at the conference.
Positive in-person interactions.
My colleagues enjoyed doing live product demonstrations. Although they’re masters of online demos, it was great to have that in-person interaction, and the reactions were overwhelmingly positive. They noticed a lot of interest in some of our new features, like multi-subsidiary support and advanced approvals, providing validation that we’re on the right track with our roadmap.
Much of the recognition Airbase received centered around our consolidation of AP functions. “Oh, you’re the all-in-one,” one attendee noticed. The AP ecosystem in general garnered a lot of attention. During the conference NetSuite announced SuiteBanking, a planned product for banks to bring their user experience inside the ERP instead of interacting with their bank portals.
Growing interest in automation.
We noticed that many of the questions at our booth, and many of the event topics, centered around automation and a shift in the way people think about technology. Users want technology that works for them, not the other way around. Based on the questions and interest we received, companies that can’t keep pace may be in trouble. More finance teams now realize they don’t need multiple systems and complex P2P processes to handle employee spending when a consolidated system can handle all non-payroll spend with automated workflows that enable full visibility and control.
The fun factor of live events.
Live conferences also have a fun factor that is hard to replicate online, and we took part in a few of the social events, including an appearance by singer Jason Derulo at the official NetSuite SuiteWorld after-party. We look forward to next year’s event when we hope to see a resurgence of NetSuite customers seeking that in-person experience.
To learn more about Airbase, contact us for a product demo.
Dan DeVall
VP of Business Development at Airbase
Dan is VP of Business Development and leads the Partnership Program at Airbase. He previously held leadership roles at Coupa and Tipalti. Prior to his move into fintech, he spent over a decade in banking at Wells Fargo, where he was a Senior Vice President and key leader, establishing their tech banking group focusing on software and fintech companies. Dan is a graduate of USC’s Marshall School of Business.
