Both the Summit & Awards 2026 (APIS 2026), were held at the stylish Sheraton Imperial Hotel in Kuala Lumpur recently, where we got to explore how the development of agentic capabilities can help propel organisations into the future…
Attended by senior leaders in procurement, finance, supply chain, and technology, the 4th ASEAN Procurement Innovation Summit & Awards 2026 (APIS 2026) focused on the key themes of how to empower people whilst strengthening systems, and redefining procurement’s strategic contribution across an economic landscape that’s evolving at pace.
Utilising intelligent agentic systems that can reason, make predictions, and take action whilst collaborating with their human counterparts is a key component of this transformation. Organisations that are ahead of the curve with agentic adoption can look forward to gaining a competitive advantage, including enhanced resilience and transparency. Looking further ahead, a fully agentic procurement ecosystem built around a network of connected agents will enhance organisational decision-making. In tandem, coordinating complex operational activity will help procurement teams to be seen as key value drivers in the business. This year’s event in Kuala Lumpur brought the message home with an incredible line-up from the procurement space.
Speaking to CPOstrategy at the event, Dr. Christina SS Ooi, Board Member of the CMI Regional Board of Malaysia, and advisory board member of the Summit organiser, CT Event Asia, amongst other roles, shared her take on what skills she thinks could give procurement further prominence in organisational hierarches. “The mindset and intention of the chief procurement officer or any other leaders in procurement is key. We need to show how to drive it, be passionate about it, and understand and demonstrate the value we bring to the business. And to do that, I really feel that procurement leaders today need to be fantastic storytellers.” She went on to say, “How do we influence board decisions? We must be good narrators, good storytellers, not just of the things we’ve done, but how we shape and mould the future of procurement.”
Delegates were treated to a dazzling array of inspiring and informative keynotes, panels, fireside dialogues, roundtables, and breakouts, covering a diverse range of subjects, including the shift from automation to agency, procurement as an enterprise value engine, and operational excellence and market intelligence, as well as ESG operationalisation and sustainable value.
There was also an exclusive Future-Ready Procurement Masterclass, led by Jonathan Cheung, General Manager (Asia), Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (CIPS), in collaboration with Dr. Christina SS Ooi, procurement expert and former CPO APAC, along with Kobu Kotaraju, Global Procurement Lead, CBRE. Together they facilitated a range of hands on, fully immersive workshops, covering a variety of topics from how to use storytelling to influence people, to stakeholder leadership, and risk-based sourcing, to AI for procurement.
The Summit also hosted the ASEAN Procurement Innovation Awards to celebrate the organisations and people who are leading the way in advancing procurement and supply chain transformation across the ASEAN region.
A massive congratulations to all of this year’s ASEAN Procurement Innovation Award Winners from the whole team at CPOstrategy:
- The highest honour of the night was awarded to Olam Agri, who was named the 𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐖𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐫.
- PT Pupuk Indonesia (Persero) was honoured with the 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐒𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐲 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐄𝐱𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝.
- Radicare (M) Sdn Bhd took home the 𝐄𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐂𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 and was also Highly Recommended in the 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐈𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐨𝐫𝐲.
- Shell Business Operations won the 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐲 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐈𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝.
- BSI Group were named 𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐈𝐍 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐒𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐈𝐋𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐒𝐔𝐏𝐏𝐋𝐘 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐒.
- Kimberly-Clark received the 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐈𝐍𝐍𝐎𝐕𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃 (𝐋𝐀𝐑𝐆𝐄 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐀𝐍𝐘).
- Yirigaa – Supply Nation Certified, ISO 27001:2022 received the 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐈𝐍𝐍𝐎𝐕𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃 (𝐒𝐌𝐄).
- Olam Agri was awarded the 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐈𝐍𝐍𝐎𝐕𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃 (𝐋𝐀𝐑𝐆𝐄 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐀𝐍𝐘).
- Kobu Kotaraju MBA, FCIPS (Chartered), PMP® CPSM, CPSD (CBRE) won the 𝐂𝐏𝐎 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐘𝐄𝐀𝐑 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃.
- Julia Thyagarajan was the winner of the 𝐖𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐍 𝐈𝐍 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃.
In addition to the winners, the judges singled out the following people and organisations for recognition as Highly Commended:
Amir Mahmod Abdullah (Tenaga Nasional Berhad), Vivek Agarwal MCIPS (Chartered), and Mano Manikkam MBA, MCIPS (Chartered) from Visa, each received 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐥𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 – 𝐂𝐏𝐎 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫.
RHB Banking Group was 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐥𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐒𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐲 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐄𝐱𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐨𝐫𝐲.
Maybank was awarded 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐥𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐲 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬.
Johor Plantations Group Berhad was 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐥𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐂𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐨𝐫𝐲.
Siti Morni Jalil was 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐥𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 – 𝐖𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭.
Over the course of the Summit, we had the pleasure of catching up with several key industry insiders to get their take on some of the fundamental issues of the day.
Kobu Kotaraju
Company: CBRE
Award: CPO of the Year
Winner’s Statement:
“Being named CPO of the Year at the ASEAN Procurement Innovation Awards 2026 is a deeply humbling milestone, but more importantly, it is a testament to the incredible ecosystem supporting me; from my family to the exceptional team, colleagues and my mentors. For my organization, this accolade validates our strategic vision and the vital senior leadership backing that empowers us to transform complex global supply networks into resilient engines of value. Furthermore, in my capacity as the CIPS Memcomm – Asia Representative, this recognition belongs to our entire procurement fraternity. It underscores our collective capacity to innovate, elevate professional standards, and share best practices across the globe. This award shines a much-needed spotlight on the massive value procurement delivers, proving that when organizations face unprecedented challenges, our community stands ready to drive business resilience and future growth.”
Yudha Andika Pratama
Company: PT Pupuk Indonesia
Award: Visionary in Sustainable Supply Chain Excellence Award
Winner’s Statement:
“Winning the Visionary in Sustainable Supply Chain Excellence Award at the Procurement ASEAN Summit 2026 is a meaningful recognition not just for our team but for PT Pupuk Indonesia Persero as an institution. This award reflects the dedication of everyone who has supported and contributed to our sustainable procurement journey including our leadership especially our President Director and Director of Operation and all colleagues across the organization. We hope this recognition will inspire broader adoption of sustainable procurement practices not only within our company but across the ASEAN procurement community and beyond. It is a reminder that sustainability in supply chain is not a constraint it is a competitive advantage.”
Efong Choong
Company: BSI Group
Award: Leaders in Procurement Transformation for Resilient Supply Chains
Winner’s Statement:
“BSI wins regional procurement award
BSI Group has won the ‘Leaders in Procurement Transformation for Resilient Supply Chains’ award at the ASEAN Procurement Innovation Awards, part of APIS 2026 in Kuala Lumpur.
This is a strong result in a highly competitive category. We were shortlisted alongside Shell Business Operations KL, Maybank and Olam Agri, with entries judged on how organisations are building more agile, resilient and value-driven procurement models.
Our winning submission, the Supplier Risk & Resilience Management Programme, shows how we are strengthening supplier risk management, sustainability and resilience across our global supply chain. Using tools like BSI Connect, we are improving visibility, enabling better decision-making and supporting long-term business continuity.
This recognition reflects the progress we are making, from transactional procurement to a more strategic, value-creating function. It also highlights the impact of strong collaboration across Procurement and the wider business.
Thank you and congratulations to everyone involved. This is a great example of the difference we can make together
Attendee insight: What key piece of advice would you give to organisations looking to future-proof their procurement strategies?
Dalia Ali Amir Alkatiri, Senior Business Development Manager, Billennium
The technology is mature and it’s not how it used to be in the past, where you have to have a great transformation or technological implementation in an organisation. You can start small because the technology now is modular, so it can fit in at whichever stage you’re at. Don’t worry about the data, because there are ways to manage how your data is being governed and it will still be very much customised and specific to your organisation’s needs.
Carl Kimball, Regional Vice President (Asia Pacific, Japan & Middle East), ZYCUS
There are different levels of maturity across the companies we deal with. Some are moving from spreadsheets to very sophisticated agentic AI. Some are already far along that journey. But I think in terms of future proofing, you really need to ensure that you have a good foundational source-to-pay core. You have technology that supports and really drives the agentic AI capability. And then you want what we call the front door view into it, or what from a user experience view you’d call intake management. So, there’s three components to it and that’s your future proofing right there.
Tong EE Lim, Director, Visa Commercial & Money Movement Solutions, Malaysia
Having a global payment network combined with reach transaction data. By embedding payments directly into existing systems, businesses don’t just make payments faster. They gain actionable insights from every transaction, helping procurement and finance teams make smarter and more informed decisions. This trigger data is a strategic asset. Organisations that connect procurement, payment, finance, and risk management are better positioned to make faster decisions, whether it’s managing cash flow, mitigating risks, or strengthening supplier relationships.
Vidya Malkani, Founder & Managing Director, VMC Consulting
Think about what you’re not doing. What is your organisation looking for? We’ve had so many disruptions in the market in the last 10 years. How have we evolved? What has been our journey? What did we not learn from it? And how can we improve it in the future? I think that self-assessment really needs to be done today, so that future-proofing can be done right.
What do you see as key procurement challenges currently and how can your organisation help people solve them?
Jonathan Cheung, General Manager (Asia), Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (CIPS)
I think the biggest challenge is accepting technology. Using generative AI to do the job faster, with a focus on the administrative part of the work, because that’s where AI can take over. What you need to think of is how to make clever use of technology to help you get rid of all those administration tasks that you’re doing. You can then spend time with your stakeholders, your budget owners, and your suppliers to plan ahead and be predictive.
Luke Kenny, Chief Executive Officer, Local Government Procurement
We differentiate ourselves by being a capability enabler and we help people who don’t necessarily have the skills or experience to help themselves. We also risk mitigate sourcing. Our job is to make sure when they buy, they buy well, they buy safely and they’re ensuring they’re extracting every piece of value from the money that they’re spending. And they see tangible outcomes, that in our case, local communities can see, touch and recognise.
Jaroslaw Zarychta, Head of Commercial, Billennium
I think the big procurement challenges nowadays aren’t related to technology. The big procurement challenges are related to trusting AI, especially at the beginning of the AI era. At Billennium, we provide solutions based on data and AI, as well as cloud and on-premises platforms, to secure procurement teams to go into the era of AI, because this is crucial to transformation regarding our challenges. We also build our solutions based on worldwide class technologies, for both cloud vendors and on-premises vendors. Also, we adopt a Zero Trust strategy for all our solutions.
Richard Brown, Head of Marketing & Sales, Anvil Analytical
I would say it’s two things. The first is around visibility. Getting visibility into spend insights, or their carbon, or risks across the organisation, maybe contracts or projects, and really getting their fingers on the data. The next piece is very much around deep insights. Whether that’s AI-driven market insights, or really deep insights into their spend and savings opportunities. It’s very algorithmically driven. Millions of points of external data that come in and enrich to really drive those key insights that can be actioned.
Tong EE Lim, Director, Visa Commercial & Money Movement Solutions, Malaysia
Many organisations still deal with fragmented procurement and payment processes, which leads to limited visibility and slow payment cycles. We help address that gap by connecting procurement and payment, so businesses have better control automations and real-time insights into where their money is going.
Vidya Malkani, Founder & Managing Director, VMC Consulting
First of all, how do you build a business case? How do you personally brand yourself? How do you ensure that the values which sit within your procurement team are elevated and shared with the board? It actually makes a difference to the organisation and can justify the ROI that they can get out of it.
Read the new issue here!
