Gartner: Half of Supply Organisations to Implement Gen AI

The study of 127 supply leaders investigated their plans to put the technology to use, or begin implementation in their department, and the results strongly support the continued adoption of the technology.

Key report takeaways

• 14% have already implemented or are currently implementing
• 30% say they are actively planning to implement in the next 6 months
• 20% reported actively planning to implement in the next 6 to 12 months
• Only 2% are not considering the technology, or will not explore it in the foreseeable future

Increased budget to be spent on Gen AI technology 

The Gartner Generative AI 2024 Planning Survey also indicates that 5.8% of budgets on average will now be invested in Gen AI technology.  This is also being backed up with an investment in talent, as 65% of survey respondents said they plan to hire dedicated staff and experts to help deploy the technology in 2024.

“CSCOs see GenAI as supportive of their broader digital transformation objectives,” said Noha Tohamy, Distinguished VP analyst in Gartner’s Supply Chain Practice. “Many supply chain leaders were already leveraging supply chain technologies and advanced analytics, and it’s clear from this data that the majority also see the value in GenAI to enhance productivity, improve business agility and reduce costs. The challenge for many of these organisations over the next 12 months will be in scaling their pilot projects to broader adoption,” said Tohamy.

Tohamy continues to say that the projected budget figures indicate that decision makers in the area are serious about making progress on GenAI solutions this year and that they also recognise the need for additional resources to successfully move beyond small-scale pilots. “CSCOs may also be factoring in impacts on employee roles required of their staff as they shift to higher value-add activities, while lower-level tasks are increasingly automated,” said Tohamy.

Late implementation in supply and procurement

The Gartner Generative AI 2024 Planning Survey does suggest that the supply industry is lagging behind some other business functions, such as sales and marketing.  Tohamy suggests this  could present an opportunity for supply chain organisations to be “fast followers” by capitalising on early learnings and technology investments from other functional partners. The survey data showed that the most impactful supply chain use cases for GenAI include areas such as code augmentation, providing more insights into supply chain key performance indicators and staff assistance chatbots.

Procurement talent to meet industry needs 

The report follows research that says only 14% of procurement leaders express confidence in their talent’s ability to meet the future needs of the function.   Driving the lack of confidence in future talent readiness is a shift in the key competencies CPOs need to help drive objectives associated with procurement transformation.

Sixty-nine percent of respondents said business acumen had gained importance in the last 12 months, while 68% said technology and data skills had increased in importance. Only 26% said “traditional procurement competencies” had gained importance in the same period.

“Procurement leaders are generally confident in the current state of their talent and the ability to meet their near-term objectives,” said Fareen Mehrzai, Senior Director Analyst in Gartner’s Supply Chain Practice. “However, our data shows that chief procurement officers (CPOs) are worried about the future and having sufficient talent to meet transformative goals based around technology, as well as the ability to serve as a strategic advisor to the business.”

Read more about the Gartner Procurement Competencies Survey here. 

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