A full year into the pandemic and it is great to see so many Chief Procurement Officers focusing on executing key strategies despite COVID-19. March and April are traditionally very busy months for the research team at Ardent, and 2021 is no different, as we begin to deliver the new year’s research that is designed to help our readers drive their current year agendas and performance.
I was working on my slides to next week’s webinar, Proactive Procurement: The CPO’s Five Keys to Success (March 25th 2-3 pm ET), and I was struck by the dynamic shift that we’ve seen in the role of procurement over the last three years. The longer arc of procurement’s evolution continues on a steady continuum, but more recently, there a several stark factors driving the profession ahead. For example, technology is no longer a secondary consideration – the level of recent innovation has ramped up to a point where the capabilities available within the systems may soon outstrip user requirements. Supplier relationship management is no longer something for only the most mature organizations…And, the ‘Future of Work’, where companies use outside workers, consultants, and contractors for strategic work, has increased the amount of spend that a procurement team can manage and improve.
It’s been a different, and in many ways tough 12 months. But now it’s time to look forward and be proactive.
Our webinar next week hits upon many of the themes in this note and I hope you can join me.
