Figure 9: WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING CHALLENGES DOES THE PROCUREMENT AND SUPPLY CHAIN FUNCTION IN YOUR ORGANISATION FACE?
Low (or cuts to) procurement budget Difficulty in measuring the benefits delivered
39.6%
34.7%
by the procurement function Difficulty in adopting rigorous procurement processes
32.7%
Low support and commitment in implementing improvements in procurement management Lack of a central procurement function that manages all third-party spend
23.8%
20.8%
Other Effect of the external environment Difficulty in securing resources to support an improvement programme Difficulty in adopting technology
16.8%
15.8%
5%
1%
0
10%
20%
30%
40%
Improvement areas In order to achieve their long-term objectives, more than half (55.7%) of all respondents said that improving the capabilities of the procurement team is key, followed by improving the role and profile of the procurement function in the organisation (42.5%), designing and executing a procurement strategy (41.5%) and adopting enabling technology (40.6%).
Figure 10: WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING AREAS WOULD YOU BE LOOKING TO IMPROVE IN THE NEXT TWO YEARS IN ORDER TO MEET THE TARGETS OR OBJECTIVES OF THE PROCUREMENT AND SUPPLY CHAIN FUNCTION?
Capabilities of the procurement and supply chain team Role / positioning of the procurement and supply chain function in the organisation Design and implementation of procurement strategy
55.7%
42.5%
41.5%
Use of technology
40.6%
Design and implementation of rigorous procurement processes
34.9%
Other
1.9%
0
10%
20%
30%
60%
40%
50%
This emphasises the need for investment in training programmes and raising awareness of the latest developments in procurement (one of the main objectives of this report).
Ultimately, business results are delivered through people. Organisations should be designing training that covers the right blend of technical capabilities, behavioural and communication skills that today’s new breed of procurement practitioner needs to manage and develop supply chains effectively. The most important skill, mentioned by 46.2%, is market and commodity knowledge. By becoming better informed about market trends, key players and the latest innovations, procurement professionals are better placed to develop sourcing strategies that tap the capabilities, resources and ideas that exist in their supply bases. This is followed by negotiation skills (42.3%) and eSourcing skills (41.3%).
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