The Truth on Digital Procurement Transformation: Real Perspectives and Insights from CPOs and Procurement Leaders

THE TRUTHABOUT DIGITAL PROCUREMENT TRANSFORMATIONREAL PERSPECTIVES AND INSIGHTS FROM CPOS AND PROCUREMENT LEADERS Digitalisation: Promise and deliveryIn association with | 2YOU WINCIPSProcurement LeadersSIG (Sourcing Industry Group)CPO Rising (two consecutive years!)NAEP (National Association of Educational Procurement)These are just the latest opinion leaders to honor GEP customers for the scale, scope and amazing results from digital transformation initiativesbuilt on the GEP SMART™ platform.(And by the way – GEP has bagged its fair share of laurels, winning honors from Gartner,Forrester, IDC, Procurement Leaders, Spend Matters, Ardent Partners, and recentlywas named Software Provider of the Year by the Global Sourcing Association.)Join Us in the Winner’s Circle – Visit gepsmart.com or Contact Us at info@gep.comPROCUREMENT TEAMS THAT SELECT GEP SMART™ARE RAKING IN A METRIC TON OF AWARDS ANDRECOGNITION FROM LEADING INDUSTRY ANALYSTS,PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS AND BUSINESS MEDIA(LOTS OF INDUSTRY AWARDS, TONS OF PRAISE, MOMENTS OF GLORY) | 1YOU WINCIPSProcurement LeadersSIG (Sourcing Industry Group)CPO Rising (two consecutive years!)NAEP (National Association of Educational Procurement)These are just the latest opinion leaders to honor GEP customers for the scale, scope and amazing results from digital transformation initiativesbuilt on the GEP SMART™ platform.(And by the way – GEP has bagged its fair share of laurels, winning honors from Gartner,Forrester, IDC, Procurement Leaders, Spend Matters, Ardent Partners, and recentlywas named Software Provider of the Year by the Global Sourcing Association.)Join Us in the Winner’s Circle – Visit gepsmart.com or Contact Us at info@gep.comPROCUREMENT TEAMS THAT SELECT GEP SMART™ARE RAKING IN A METRIC TON OF AWARDS ANDRECOGNITION FROM LEADING INDUSTRY ANALYSTS,PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS AND BUSINESS MEDIA(LOTS OF INDUSTRY AWARDS, TONS OF PRAISE, MOMENTS OF GLORY)Contents2 Digitalisation’s promiseMany new technologies promise to transform the function, enabling it to add strategic value7 Research: Mind the gapProcurement Leaders lifts the lid on the gap between corporates’ expectations and results10 ThinkZoneThought leadership from our partners12 Getting there...Digitalisation’s promise is one thing. Delivering it is another, but the barriers are surmountable16 ViewpointsHighlights from this issueEDITORIAL STAFFDirector of partnershipsSteve HallSpecial projects editorAndrew SawersContributing journalistMalcolm WheatleyProduction managerPeter EllenderArt directorSalvatore SpagnuoloPERMISSIONS AND REPRINTSReproduction in whole or part of any photograph, text or illustration without written permission from the editor is prohibited. Due care is taken to ensure that the content of Procurement Perspectives is fully accurate, but the publisher cannot accept liability for errors and omissions.Published by:Procurement Leaders LtdProspero House241 Borough High StreetLondon, SE1 1GA, UK© A Procurement Leaders publication in association with GEP. All rights reservedThis edition of Procurement Perspectives combines a distillation of the best in digitalisation thought leadership to have appeared in Procurement Leaders’ publications coupled with the latest cutting-edge viewpoints.W: www.procurementleaders.comT: +44 (0)20 7501 0530E: editor@procurementleaders.comAdvertising opportunities: Matt Dias T: +44 (0)20 7819 1029E: m.dias@procurementleaders.com | 2Many new technologies are offering the promise of procurement digitalisation that will transform the function, enabling it to add strategic value, writes Malcolm Wheatleythe more people it is possible to call. So, too, with digital data: the more you have, the more you can leverage it.“Digitalisation delivers on a number of levels,” David Food, an associate principal lecturer at the University of London’s Royal Holloway College, told Procurement Leaders in 2018. “You get speed, but also accuracy. You get third-party connectivity, where you’re buying from one company but digitally interacting with its logistics partners. And through that greater speed, accuracy, and those extended data connections, you get greater confidence, enabling you to make higher-quality decisions. And each successive piece of procurement technology builds on this.”RETHINKING WHAT’S POSSIBLERarely have so many different pieces of procurement technology been jostling for procurement functions’ budgets. Artificial Intelligence (AI), machine learning algorithms, natural language processing, the Internet of Things, blockchain, advanced analytics, robotic process automation (RPA) – these and more are coming hard on the heels of advances in source-to-pay, strategic sourcing, combinational bundling and digital m