Strong fundamentals in procurement, supply chain, and supply management will always be important, but supply management leaders are placing increased importance on leadership abilities and interpersonal strengths.

We asked what factors negatively impact effective cost modeling, and top overall impediment was lack of readily available cost data, at 54%; however, the remaining responses revolved around skills and training. 

Tactical buying remains the biggest focus for supply management headcount, claiming 35% of resources. Strategic sourcing has the potential to produce greater value, but these resources are a smaller portion of the team mix. 

Supply management (SM) return on investment (ROI) is a simple way to communicate the value your supply management group delivers to stakeholders. To calculate your organization’s SM ROI, divide cost savings (reduction + avoidance) by supply management operating expenses.

More than half of the companies we surveyed (59%) use emerging technology to identify and monitor disruptions in the supply chain. Although technology underlies each of these solutions, human-driven decisions still dominate the process of identifying and monitoring supply chain disruptions.

Within the next 18 months, 49% of companies plan to shift supply away from high-risk countries to strategically adapt to supply chain disruptions. Companies say the top risks driving the move are operational (70% of companies), logistical (65%), and geopolitical (50%).

More than a third of the procurement executives we surveyed (36%) ranked their category management process as moderately formal, while 13% said their program was extremely formal. 

In this week's CAPS News, prepare for what's next in the supply chain, participate in our CPO survey, and explore timely SCM topics like autonomous electric trucks, consumer pessimism and inflation, and more.

In a 2018 CAPS report, 40% of CPOs chose strategic thinking as the most important capability to advance the profession strategically. Will alignment to larger business objectives going forward require greater headcount working on strategic initiatives?

Take a dive into the future of supply management and the latest news in sustainability, foreign investment, and more in this week’s CAPS News.