In addition to the analysis of global trends, you'll find focus on 16 industries and on issues specific to the diferent areas of the world.
Faced with the challenges brought by successive crises, Purchasing function is more strategic than ever in maintaining a company's smooth operation and resilience, whether it's through the securization of supplies or the search for innovations that will make the company more competitive.
How far have Purchasing Departments come in their digitalization drive?
Purchasing departments remain focused on priorities such as cost reduction, digital transformation and strategic sourcing. However, a significant shift is taking place, with corporate social responsibility (CSR) issues making their first steps on the podium in 3rd place ex-aequo. This underlines the growing importance of corporate social and environmental responsibility in corporate strategy, and a growing awareness of the need for a more sustainable approach to sourcing practices.
As a result, transparency and compliance, two key aspects of sustainable business transformation, are now emerging as key drivers for digitalization within Purchasing Departments.
On the solutions side, a dominant trend is arising with the widespread adoption of Source-to-Pay (S2P) solutions, which have become the norm for 94% of Purchasing Departments surveyed, demonstrating a high level of digitalization worldwide and the effectiveness of these S2P solutions.
When deploying digital solutions, companies now give priority to business criteria such as the definition of requirements and processes. This choice emphasizes an approach based first on the specific needs of each organization, rather than focusing on more technical aspects. This orientation reflects a growing understanding of the importance of user adoption as a key success factor in maximizing the effectiveness of digital solutions.
What are the prospects and priorities between now and 2027 for Purchasing Departments ?
Purchasing Departments are embarking on an ambitious digitalization trajectory, aiming to achieve a 70% rate of digitized processes by 2027. Although the initial target of 2022 was not achieved due to successive crises impacting investments, companies need to increase their level of resilience if they are to meet the targets set. In this quest for digitalization, small and medium-sized businesses stand out by stepping up their investments in digital purchasing transformation, recording a 6% increase between 2024 and 2027.
On the other hand, large and very large companies are maintaining their investments, while retaining a significant capacity for digital transformation. Purchasing Departments are mapping out their roadmap, focusing on key aspects such as data management, digitalization of Source-to-Contract (S2C) processes, risk management, as well as innovative use cases linked to CSR issues and contract lifecycle management.
Among CSR challenges, the management of environmental issues is rising as the main priority for Purchasing Departments over the next three years. This orientation is motivated by the objectives of reducing scope 3 emissions, underlining once again a growing awareness of the environmental impact of procurement activities.
A notable trend is that one company out of two plans to invest in the next three years in the evolution or deployment of a contract management tool (CLM). The anticipated benefits of this initiative include saving time, reducing costs, and complying with regulatory standards.
Global digital Procurement Survey - 5th Edition
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