Asia Pacific procurement analytics market is anticipated to hold a significant share over the projected time period.
From sourcing ethical materials to helping outlaw modern slavery, procurement professionals make a real difference in the world. From services to managing contracts and relationships with suppliers, procurement and supply management is a complex, strategic, challenging, and ultimately rewarding sector to work in. Professionals in this space enable an organisation to operate in a profitable and ethical manner.
According to Procurement Advisory, 2014 by KPMG Singapore, sourcing and procurement functions typically manage 40 to 80 percent of an organisation's total spend. According to The Deloitte Global Chief Procurement Officer Survey 2017, within the Asia Pacific region, reducing cost is by far the biggest priority for CPOs (73%). So, even small cost reductions can have a big impact on the bottom line.
Companies such as SAP Ariba are just one of the many businesses trying to change the amount of money spent on procurement. Based in Palo Alto, the company slogan is, โMake Procurement Awesome.โ The company may be little known among consumers, but more than 3.4 million companies across 190 countries use the Ariba Network to process $16.4 trillion HKD worth of transactions each year. The goal of SAP Ariba, according to its president, Barry Padgett, is to take the โback-office, after-the-fact process of procurement and push it to the forefront of cost saving strategy.โ
As we progress towards further digitalisation worldwide, the role of a procurement professional will continue to change rapidly. The Fourth Industrial revolution will create new opportunities for professionals who are willing to familiarise themselves with new technologies such as automation, artificial intelligence, and the internet of things. These tools will give companies a competitive advantage as they can continuously improve their procurement management systems to better control cost and enforce compliance. According to a recent report produced by DHL, 33% of the current procurement workforce is at or beyond retirement age, leaving many teams with an ageing workforce. As the talent pool becomes increasingly tight, ambitious procurement professionals have a unique opportunity to capitalise on high demand for digital skills to advance their career further, faster.
