From Mainframes to Marketplaces: The Evolution of Enterprise IT Procurement

This article traces the evolution of enterprise IT procurement, from the centralized, controlled mainframe era to today’s complex cloud marketplace landscape. It highlights how each technological shift – PCs, virtualization, SaaS, and now cloud marketplaces – brought new challenges regarding visibility, cost optimization, and alignment between IT, finance, and users. Ultimately, the author argues that while the core problem of understanding what’s being used and how remains constant, modern tools and marketplace purchasing offer a path towards connecting financial commitments with actual operational outcomes and driving continuous optimization.