Every founder eventually has the same experience. You win the room. The people who will actually use the thing are enthusiastic, the demo went well, the problem is real and you clearly solve it.
Then the process starts, and nine months later a competitor you consider inferior has the contract.
The usual explanation is that the buyer was incompetent or the incumbent had relationships. Sometimes true. Mostly it is neither. Procurement selected exactly what it was designed to select, and it was never designed to select the best product.
Understanding what it is actually for is the difference between raging at it and winning inside it.
What procurement optimises for
