2030 is regarded as the end destination for many sustainability and digital programmes.
The first part of this decade has been filled with complexity and uncertainty. From the likes of COVID-19, to the wars in Ukraine and Israel, to inflation concerns and Trump’s tariffs, the geopolitical landscape has appeared extra challenging in recent years. However, despite this disruption, procurement is still fighting back amidst an unprecedented and overwhelming plethora of new and exciting digital tools available on the market.
So, how does procurement map its way to 2030? CPOstrategy explores this burning question and hears from experts in the field who are tackling this conundrum head-on.
Procurement transformation
Nicholas Walden, Europe Practice Leader, Procurement Advisory at The Hackett Group, believes that by 2030, procurement will be redefined as an intelligent and resilient function that helps guide the business on strategy and value capture, especially in a world characterised by sustained volatility and uncertainty. “Procurement will be closely aligned with overall business strategy and goals, supported by strong capability ‘muscles’ such as scenario modelling, risk management, supplier-led innovation, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance,” he says. “Procurement functions must also develop a culture of continuous learning to address new skill requirements and closing capability gaps. This includes adopting emerging technologies, particularly digital and AI-enabled tools, which will play a central role in enhancing productivity, improving decision-making, and handling time-consuming tasks such as regular revalidation of supplier data, certifications, and risk assessments.
“Critically, business processes across procurement will operate at significantly greater speed – potentially one and a half to two times faster than today – enabling more agile and effective operations. In this future, procurement will be a proactive, insight-led partner to the business, equipped to navigate complex challenges and deliver sustained results.”
Purposeful AI
Simon Geale, Executive Vice President at Proxima, explains that as procurement leaders continue to find meaningful use cases for AI, both build and buy, many are not yet scaling investment. However, in his view, it is set to change. “There are a few forces driving this transformation, and each will adapt and evolve during the next five years,” he tells us. “Firstly, platforms are seeking to reinvent themselves. The best of breed market has threatened to usurp platforms and looking forward, agents and orchestration make this possible and practical. Platforms must reinvent or retarget those businesses that do not have the capability to invest in resources or build programmes.
“Secondly, the best of breed market is under attack from itself. What started as the easy antidote to complex platforms has become a complex market. The antidote to this could paradoxically be larger players and we should see some exciting consolidations and digital managed services or digital BPO arising.
“Finally, the barriers to build are disappearing. It’s getting easier to build private LLMs and use agents to automate process and replicate many tasks. Looking to 2030, we can probably expect to see an industry around ‘build’ allowing for bespoke architectures. And we will still be focused on savings, and to some extent bemoaning that fact. I say own it! There are few things more strategic than helping a business to achieve its strategic objectives to the best commercial benefit.”
Powering decision-making
Jenny Draper, Managing Director at Barkers Commercial Consultancy, reveals that procurement in 2030 will be expected to take a far more strategic approach within organisations, driving not just cost efficiency, but also sustainability and innovation. “Effective risk mitigation will be crucial and will heavily depend on having accurate, real-time data across a range of critical factors,” she tells us. “Procurement teams will need to integrate diverse data points, including supply chain performance, political and regulatory developments, climate-related disruptions, and the availability of goods and services – using accurate, real-time data as forecasting processes to predict and respond to risks. From navigating geopolitical tensions, adapting to extreme weather events, or managing shortages and price volatility, the ability to underpin these unpredictabilities with accurate, real-time data will be vital in securing supply and supporting long-term business development.
“The widespread use of AI to scrape data and interpret it to create a scenario plan is already prominent, and the use of AI is already growing in real-time exponentially. It’s likely we will begin to have even more credence in AI as the years roll on, and procurement teams – especially where data analysts are crucial to strategy planning and decision-making – will obtain data interpretations from AI more. AI will likely feed into decision-making, making it a streamlined, easy way to obtain data insights and scenario modelling. People can then focus their energy on interpreting for the business and continuing to manage and foster relationships with supply partners. We will likely gain even more confidence in AI’s ability, with analysts, to mitigate risk, set direction, and forecast any of these disruptions.”
Future-proofing procurement
As the procurement function continues to shift and move, its role will transition to one heavily underpinned by technology. “It can do much of the strenuous work to present options in front of a human, with a high degree of real-time accuracy,” adds Draper. “However, as opposed to broader, end-to-end solutions, it’s likely we will see point solutions in procurement to address particular, specific needs of the business. By 2030, orchestration tools like Zip and ORO will play an integral role in procurement functions by seamlessly connecting workflows across multiple platforms and technologies. These orchestration tools enable organisations to use different systems for differing stages of the procurement journey, including sourcing, contract management, or supplier onboarding, without losing efficiency.
“Orchestration platforms act as a workflow bridge, creating a unified, automated workflow that is tailored to specific roles within the business. Not only does this enhance user experience, but these tools also improve speed and compliance across processes. While these tools are already gaining traction in the market, their use is expected to escalate enormously as procurement becomes more digitally developed.”
Procurement’s journey ahead isn’t linear. Its way forward is a continuous journey of development and transformation. Indeed, the acceleration of new digital tools such as generative and agentic AI is set to continue to free up procurement practitioners and help deliver time and cost savings to the companies brave enough to adopt it into operations. As digital tools mature, innovations such as this will become increasingly popular options across the workforce. While digital transformation is the key, it is people which underpins procurement’s evolution. Procurement’s pathway to 2030 has never been clearer.