The Spend Table

Tropic
  • 5.0 (1)
  • BUSINESS

The Spend Table is where cost and spend intelligence gets served up fresh—and no topic is too spicy to tackle. Join three finance and procurement leaders for respectful debate (not head-nodding) on what really matters when managing software spend. All powered by real data insights.

Episodes

  1. 12/23/2025

    How the AI Tax is Costing Software Buyers 30% More

    Michael Shields hosts this episode of The Spend Table with Tropic's COO Justin Etkin and CFO Russell Lester, diving deep into what they call the "Ai tax" hitting enterprise software buyers. The conversation reveals how vendors are using Ai features to justify 15 to 30% price increases, far beyond the typical 5 to 10% annual uplift. Justin explains how companies like Slack struggled to sell Ai add-ons separately, leading to forced bundling strategies where customers pay higher prices whether they want the features or not. The discussion explores the broader market pressures driving this trend, from the massive Capex investments in Ai infrastructure to the valuation bubble affecting startups like Cursor, which jumped from 2.6 billion to 29 billion in under a year. Russell draws parallels to previous technology transitions and warns about the entropy effect of proliferating Ai tools across organizations. The team offers practical advice for procurement professionals, including the importance of proactive supplier engagement, understanding credit-based pricing models, and building flexibility into contracts during this period of rapid change. Key topics covered: [00:00] Intro [04:43] Slack's Failed AI Add-On Strategy [08:32] Legacy Software vs AI Native Startups [12:06] Cloud Migration Parallels to AI Adoption [15:44] Revenue vs Efficiency ROI Challenges [19:24] AI Bubble Economics and Gross Margins [22:33] Microsoft's Hostage Customer Strategy [26:00] AI Tools Enable Rapid Switching [30:02] Contract Protection for AI Features [33:04] Stay on Target Despite AI Chaos [35:24] Vibe Shopping with AI Search [36:56] 80-20 Rule for AI Productivity [39:29] 75% of Enterprises Adopting AI Procurement This episode provides essential insights for finance and procurement leaders navigating the new reality of Ai-driven software pricing and vendor negotiations.

    43 min

  2. 11/20/2025

    Why Finance and Procurement Fight During Budget Season

    Michael Shields sits down with Russell Lester, CFO and President at Tropic, and Justin Etkin, COO and Co-Founder, for the inaugural episode of The Spend Table. The trio dives deep into the tensions between finance and procurement during budget season, exploring why traditional budgeting processes often fail companies. Russell brings his perspective on the difference between strategy, planning, and budgeting, while Justin shares insights from working with hundreds of customers on spend intelligence. The conversation gets spicy as they debate who's really at fault when six figure renewals pop up unbudgeted. Michael argues for more scrutiny on existing spend versus new purchases, while Russell pushes back on the expectation that budget owners should be more accountable. They explore practical solutions like contract based budgeting, pulse surveys for stakeholder sentiment, and the four key data points every procurement team should collect beyond historical spend. Key topics covered: [00:00] Intro [03:05] Planning Season Priorities and Customer Insights [05:55] Strategy vs Planning vs Budgeting Framework [07:36] Procurement's Annual Humiliation Ritual [10:30] Zero Based Budgeting Reality Check [14:54] Annual Budget Purpose and Flexibility [19:14] Contract Based vs ERP Based Budgeting [23:55] Four Essential Budget Data Points [26:01] Six Figure Surprise Spend Responsibility [32:12] Budget Flexibility for Big Opportunities [39:17] Procurement's Strategic Data Advantage [42:45] Underutilized Software License Problem [49:08] Data a la Carte Statistics Segment [57:34] Story of the Week License Optimization [1:02:04] Next Episode AI Preview Don't miss their heated discussion on AI ROI measurement and Michael's story about cutting video recording licenses from 200 to under 100 using data driven analysis. The smartest finance and procurement leaders are already at our table, pull up your chair and subscribe to The Spend Table newsletter - https://www.tropicapp.io/newsletter

    1h 3m
  • 2 Episodes

About

The Spend Table is where cost and spend intelligence gets served up fresh—and no topic is too spicy to tackle. Join three finance and procurement leaders for respectful debate (not head-nodding) on what really matters when managing software spend. All powered by real data insights.

Information

  • Creator
    Tropic
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    2
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Tropic Technologies. All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    The Spend Table