The Smart Business Buying Report Table of contents 3Executive summary 2025 State of Procurement Data52025 business imperatives 7Section one: Core challenges and priorities 15Section two: Transforming procurement: what’s working and what’s not 21Section three: Socially responsible purchasing trends 26Section four: Collaboration, technology, and purchasing democratization 33Conclusion Executive summary —A note from Amazon Business Who did we survey? Procurement has often been viewed as an essential, yet tactical, business function.However, as our 2025 State of Procurement Data reveals, procurement is rapidlyemerging as the unsung hero driving company success. For this year’s report, weconnected with two keygroups to gain a well-roundedperspective on top procurementtrends and challenges. Amazon Business:2025 State of Procurement DataToday, procurement plays a strategic role in driving innovation, boostingoperational efficiency, and building resilience across organizations.Our thirdannual study of nearly 3,500 global procurement and organizational leaders revealsthat while challenges like managing efficiency, costs, and supplier relationshipsremain critical, procurement is also leading the way in empowering businesses tothrive in an increasingly complex and dynamic environment. Each year, this reportcaptures evolving trends that procurement teams must navigate, from digitaltransformation and AI to sustainability and resilience, showcasing how procurement'srole continues to expand and adapt to address these global shifts. The first group is procurement “decision-makers,” orrespondents who work directly in B2B purchasing orother procurement roles. All decision-makers wereat the VP level or below at the time of taking oursurvey, and we refer to this group as “decision-""makers” throughout this report. Digital transformation, particularly through AI and data analytics, is reshaping howprocurement teams operate. In fact, 64% of decision-makers see generating betterinsights as a top priority. Moreover, the growing importance of socially responsiblepurchasing (SRP) is pushing procurement teams to embrace a stronger leadership rolein fostering sustainable and diverse supply chains, with 80% of organizations workingtoward certified supplier mandates. The second group is “senior leaders,” orrespondents familiar with their organizations’procurement practices/policies, but not necessarilywith daily procurement job functions. All seniorleaders were at the SVP level or above at the timeof taking our survey, including C-suite members. However, despite procurement’s expanding role, only 46% of decision-makerscompletely agree that the procurement function is included in top decision-makingforums where organizational strategy is discussed, highlighting a clear opportunityfor better alignment between procurement and business strategy. At Amazon Business, we’re dedicated to helping organizations lead this evolution byproviding the tools and insights it takes to excel in areas like SRP, AI integration, andautomation. The 2025 State of Procurement Data offers a roadmap for procurementteams aiming to elevate their impact in this dynamic landscape. It’s an exciting time to be a procurement leader—because procurement is acatalyst for innovation, resilience, and growth. 2025 State of Procurement DataProcurement is no longer a back-office function—it’s a key competitiveadvantage, allowing companies toreduce costs, increase operationalefficiencies, and fuel growth initiatives." Shelley SalomonVice President, Amazon Business 2025 business imperatives 02 Optimizations inspired by improved insights 2025 State of Procurement DataStrategic innovations meet historical roadblocks While over half of respondents (59%) expect their 2025procurement budget to grow, many still struggle to overcomeperceptions that procurement isn’t a strategic organizationalfunction.Often, longstanding challenges hamper innovation. Forexample, procurement’s top three pain points are still 1) efficiencyand complexity, 2) costs and budgets, and 3) supplier relationships—each of which presents a barrier to evolving procurement’s impactin the year ahead. Respondents almost universally agree their procurementoperations have room for optimization.To support operationalenhancements, it will be key to generate stronger data, insights,and analysis over the next year or two, according to 64% ofdecision-makers and 73% of senior leaders.The increasingimportance and visibility of AI-powered experiences and dataanalytics practices highlights the sector's shift toward a moreproactive and value-added role in driving organizational growthand resilience. 03 04 Supplier relationships make or break Impactful purchasing rises in importance Procurement teams' ability to focus on strategic goals whilestaying compliant hinges on having suppliers prepared to act astrue partners. Many procurement teams are turning to externalsupport to manage complex operations: