Procurement workers urged to adopt AI, but finance needed

Procurement professionals have urged their companies to act now and adopt AI for their businesses, having asked for financial assistance to make this a reality.

The ultimate goal of AI in procurement is to automate various aspects of the procurement process and therefore enable organisations to make better and more informed decisions, optimise resource allocation and drive operational excellence.

New research carried out by Globality finds that procurement leaders want their organisations to adopt generative AI-powered sourcing technology immediately. According to those surveyed, this is to increase productivity and efficiency within the workplace and as a result drive better business outcomes.

90% believe AI adoption will make procurement more strategic

The survey was conducted by Globality and Art of Procurement among procurement professionals in Q3, 2023.

Globality is a leader in autonomous procurement and revolutionises the buying process for large and mid-size enterprises. The company’s generative AI-powered bot, “GLO,” aims to empower workforces to make intelligent decisions on purchasing products and services, reducing costs, increasing productivity and improving business outcomes.

Its findings reveal that nearly two-thirds of procurement leaders want their companies to urgently adopt generative AI-powered sourcing technology. In addition, a majority (61%) said their organisations should pilot solutions using the game-changing tech by the end of 2023 in order to increase sourcing productivity and efficiency and reduce costs.

The remaining third surveyed have taken a more cautious view, but still want their companies to adopt the technology over a longer period. Only one in twenty are opposed to the use of generative AI to improve their buying models.

“The message from sourcing leaders is clear – they want their companies to start using gen AI-powered solutions right now to help them work more productively and efficiently, enabling procurement teams to do more with less and deliver instant improvements to the bottom line,” says Seth Catalli, Chief Revenue Officer at Globality.

“AI-powered autonomous sourcing technology automates repetitive, manual processes and frees up procurement to become business partners, adding real strategic value to the organisation through deal-making, and improved internal and external collaboration.”

In addition, nearly 90% of survey respondents say that adopting generative AI will enable procurement to become more strategic in the future, with the remaining 10% of the view that the technology will go as far as to replace the function entirely and manage a company’s spend by itself.

This seemingly sudden urgency for AI assistance becomes clear within the survey's findings, as 92% of procurement leaders state that they are currently focused on maximising savings from their indirect spend and 86% identified the automation of their sourcing model as important to their ability to cut costs.

When asked for the main benefits that generative AI-powered sourcing will offer business function, more than half (61%) of respondents said providing intelligent insights on complex sourcing categories, while one in five want it to scope accurate briefs more quickly. In addition, 14% are focused on using the technology to drive supplier negotiations.

The overall impact that AI could have within the procurement sector is unclear. However, it appears as though those working within it are keen to give the technology a chance.

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Other magazines that may be of interest - Supply Chain Magazine | Sustainability Magazine

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