For several years now, Spend Matters has been collecting and publishing a series of articles about predictions and insights on procurement, supply and services trends for the year ahead from expert tech and service providers in the market.
This year is no different and we’ve framed the subject around “insights,” highlighting providers’ observations from the year they’ve left behind and how they see them shaping the year ahead.
This series will run from mid-December to mid-January, then our analyst Bertrand Maltaverne will wrap up with his own take on the key themes that emerge.
In no order of preference, other than by the date they dropped into our digital letterbox, today let’s hear from Omer Abdullah, Co-Founder and Managing Director of The Smart Cube.
As we enter 2023, there are three main insights that will shape the year ahead
It’s not a matter of if but when:
Companies with progressive procurement practices will do better managing supply risk (in all its forms) than those without in the coming economic recession. Today’s procurement professionals have everything needed to implement comprehensive, coherent and cost-effective risk monitoring, measurement and mitigation programs.
Equipped with those tools, procurement and supply chain operation teams can focus on delivering the five foundational elements of a proactive supply chain risk management strategy:
- Determining the right risk focus areas including which categories are either most exposed and/or most critical to your operations and which suppliers to monitor most closely.
- Acquiring and bringing together the right data about those categories and suppliers to help you learn more about them.
- Converting that data into insights, organizing and understanding how each data point could influence relevant micro and macro risk categories.
- Sharing and disseminating insights to ensure the right people are equipped with the information they need to make the right decisions at the right time.
- Driving the right actions and ensuring that people at all levels are empowered to convert insights into actions proactively.
Analytics and insights will be a differentiator — more visibility = more agility:
Purely manual analytics solutions are outdated and unrealistic with too much data to manage. At the same time, by definition, software solutions are a one-to-many solution. While software solutions can reduce the hours of manual research, a successful solution requires sifting through the data to find the real insights. That’s where the intersection of artificial intelligence plus human intervention (AI + HI) comes into play. Advanced analytics, AI and the availability of expertly curated datasets and insights help teams learn about suppliers, market and commodity trends, and emerging risk factors.
Prioritize learning while strengthening relationships:
Strong relationships with suppliers — especially strategic ones — have always been a valuable asset for organizations of all kinds. They can help you secure value-driving contracts and exclusive deals that add unique capabilities to your line-up. By tapping into the capabilities and innovations of the supplier community, procurement can dramatically increase the nature and volume of R&D work being done on their behalf. An organization can tap into the skills and knowledge base of other parties who are experts in their specific fields, leveraging their learnings to help drive the business forward.
Thanks to The Smart Cube for being a part of the series, and look out for more insights for the year ahead.
If you need to find the right procurement technology and provider for your business needs next year, Spend Matters “Procurement Technology Buyer’s Guide” and TechMatch can help.
For granular analysis and comparisons of procurement technology solutions, subscribe to Spend Matters PRO.
And if you are looking for procurement services providers to help you with your 2023 decisions, look no further than our Procurement Services Market Landscape Directory.
