Article
The Deloitte Global Chief Procurement Officer Survey 2017
Growth: the cost and digital imperative
Growth ambitions are high in an uncertain market, the pace of change and increased uncertainty requires superior levels of funding. Defensive strategies being implemented by Chief Financial Officers are demanding rapid, sustained cost reduction in parallel to a greater focus on risk from procurement. We are now sure that the traditional procurement operating model has to change. This has been driven by a lack of talent and an increase in digital innovation.
As always, the report covers the state of play on key themes and challenges facing the procurement function, including market dynamics, value delivery, collaboration, digital procurement and in particular, talent.
Overview
There are four key themes within the report this year and we provide clear incremental and exponential actions for procurement leaders to consider:
- CPOs are supporting growth in uncertain times through continued delivery of cost and cashflow benefits to the business. CPOs should use high internal business support to build capabilities in collaboration, talent and digital procurement
- Collaboration: Longer term value levers of supplier collaboration and restructuring of relationships remain at lower levels. Business partnering is strong, but there is a consistent gap versus where procurement leaders want to be and an acknowledged lack in the leadership skills to be able to close this gap
- Talent: Whilst there is an increased requirement for leadership and digital skills there is limited change in the investment or approach to close the talent gap. With improvements in technology enabling automation, the skills of the past will not deliver the needs of the future - organisations should look to attract and develop the next generation of procurement leaders who will act as innovators, challengers, and digitally minded-thinkers
- Digital: Three quarters of respondents believe that procurements’ role in digital will increase. Procurement leaders are looking to overcome key barriers in data and capability in order to achieve significant impact from both their core operational systems and their new digital and analytical solutions.
Key findings
- 61% of CPOs indicated an improvement in savings performance compared to last year
- 56% of CPOs feel a high level of support from their executives in developing procurement within their organisations
- Overall, CPOs envisage procurement playing a larger role in delivering a digital strategy, with 81% indicating an increase in participation levels
Improvement to the quality of data will be key in order to deliver this ambition, with 56% of CPOs citing quality of data as the main barrier to effective application of digital technology
The Deloitte Global CPO Survey 2017