The Smart Intake & Orchestration Journey: People, Purpose, and Product

In the world of engineering here at Coupa, I’m reminded of one of our core beliefs: powerful systems should still feel simple. Yet as organizations grow, even everyday tasks such as requesting equipment, submitting a purchase, or finding the right workflow can become more complex than they should.


Tracking back to early 2024, our team asked a simple question with big implications: What if we could make the user experience for these requests effortless? What started as one little idea has grown into Smart Intake & Orchestration (SIO), a reimagined way for people to navigate requests across the Coupa platform.


How It All Began


Coupa has been scaling fast. With more capabilities and more global customers, complexity naturally grows too. We realized that incremental fixes weren’t going to be enough.


We needed to transform the entire end-to-end journey.


Our goal was clear: Make every request simple, intuitive, and human, regardless of the user or the workflow behind it.


Building Something New Together


I joined the project early and quickly saw its potential impact. It became one of the most collaborative efforts of my career with Product, UX, engineering, and cross-functional partners all coming together with a shared purpose.


We created a flexible, scalable experience framework that supports users today and grows with them for tomorrow.


This wasn’t just innovation to gain business efficiency. It was innovation rooted in empathy for our customers using our platform every day.


Facing Challenges and Growing from Them


With any ambitious initiative, there were moments where decisions had to be made with limited precedent. We made decisions with limited precedent, tight timelines, and alignment across many teams.


Some key challenges included:

  • Balancing speed with thoughtful execution
  • Experimenting while staying grounded
  • Ensuring teams worldwide rallied around a shared vision
  • Prioritizing customer needs with long-term strategy in mind


These challenges made us better and reminded us to bring people in early, test ideas quickly, and keep the user experience at the heart of everything.


Launching, Learning, and Iterating


We officially introduced Smart Intake & Orchestration at our Coupa Inspire customer event in  May 2025. Since then, we’ve partnered closely with customers to refine, evolve, and expand the capabilities.


Today, many Coupa customers are already using SIO, with more on the horizon. Here is a
demo and overview of SIO for those interested in learning more. 


It’s just the beginning and the momentum is exciting.

The People Behind the Product


One of the most meaningful parts of this journey has been the people. Guiding teammates, sharing best practices, and welcoming new engineers became a big part of my role.


We built more than a product but created a community where people felt supported, empowered, and encouraged to grow.


The Coupa Core Value of
Cultivate Belonging was at the heart of SIO and what makes working here so special and enriching.


A Personal Highlight


This project also marked a pivotal moment in my own career. The trust and support from leadership and my teammates helped me grow, take ownership, and lead confidently.


I’m grateful to have been promoted to Senior Lead Engineer and honored to join Coupa’s Excellence Club (Most Valuable Employee). To me, it represents not just recognition but responsibility to keep learning, elevating others, and delivering impact.


A Message for Future Talent


If you’re someone who loves solving complex problems, building meaningful experiences, and working in teams where innovation and support go hand-in-hand, this kind of work is incredibly rewarding.


Our engineering and product teams partner closely with our Talent Acquisition team to ensure we’re bringing in people who want to make a real impact. SIO is a great example of how one idea can change the everyday experience for thousands of users and how every person on the team contributes to that success.


At Coupa, you’re not just building features but shaping the future of how businesses work.


Smart Intake & Orchestration is only getting started. We’re expanding capabilities, deepening customer partnerships, and exploring new ways to simplify enterprise processes.


There is so much more to build and I’m excited for the path ahead.


Join Us


This journey reflects who we are at Coupa:

  • Drive Success for #AllOfUs — Ensuring value for our entire community
  • Own Our Results — Taking proactive action and having accountability
  • Cultivate Belonging — Fostering an environment of empathy, inclusion, and goodwill
  • Build Tomorrow Together — Collaborating and innovating to disrupt the industry


If this resonates with you, take the next step:


I’m proud of what we’ve created and even more energized by the people who will help shape what comes next. Let’s build a smarter, more connected future, together.


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