Procurement Trends which will Impact Global Supply Chain & Logistics in Post COVID era
Procurement must never
be an afterthought in any enterprise. Manufacturers need to have the right raw
materials and supplies available. Supply chain entities need to know vendors
will be held accountable and adhere to the terms within vendor-supply chain
partner service level agreements.
Supply chain
professionals must also know how they will be shipping freight. In other
words, shippers need to know how they will be getting enough trucks to fulfill
their orders. The answers to these questions lie in understanding a few of the
top industrial procurement trends to expect in future.
Companies Will Seek New Ways to Use Technology in Procurement
As with many other facets
that are affecting industry trends in the transportation, trucking and
manufacturing industries, companies are looking for ways to increase the use of
technology in procurement. The global supply chain creates many
challenges and opportunities in procurement. Manufacturers can tap into the raw
materials of one country and produce products in another, while customers
continue to exist in an entirely third country. This global footprint demands a
digital supply chain. Digital technologies reduce errors, time, and costs
associated with manufacturing and order fulfillment, and procurement costs can
be effectively reduced by increasing the vendor-manufacturer relationship.
Integrated Procurement and Payment Systems Simplify the Process
The use of technology
naturally lends itself to integrated procurement and payment systems. Thanks to
the use of these types of systems vendors and suppliers no longer have to
manually execute processes and have easier documentation visibility and storage
due to the move toward digital, automated systems. Of all of the
industrial procurement trends, the implementation and utilization of a
procurement and payment system allows procurement professionals and shippers to
handle the entire procurement process much faster and efficiently. As a result,
suppliers can sell more product and materials, manufacturers can produce more
finished products, and transportation staff can ship more freight.
Global alignments in trade Will Continue to Cause Disruptions in Procurement.
While Britain still has
moved out of the European Union, this move coupled with Post COVID and Global
conflicts will begin to make a serious impact on global supply chains. Freed
from the constraints of each other countries will shop around its supplies and
services to other countries in need for better trade deals and FOREX earnings,
which may free other transportation and manufacturing industries that have
already been working within the existing post-cold war set up. The same is
equally true for all other such macro-economic moves.
Analytics Driven Procurement Will Take Center Stage as the Key Player in all the Industrial Procurement Trends
In the years ahead the
procurement will become smarter and cognitive, meaning it will use more
analytics-driven processes in decision-making and activities. This will
increase cost efficiency by 10%, as well as increased service performance by 5%
over the next two years. Similarly, artificial intelligence (AI) and
machine-to-machine learning will make equipment smarter and intuitive, enabling
self-optimization and reduced costs associated with procurement.
Sustainability and Visibility Become a New Focus of Auditing
The number of consumer
and regulatory watchdog groups around the globe is growing, regardless of
changes within US policies. Sustainability and visibility are going to become
more in important in future, and advanced auditing tools, including the use
of outsourced auditing services, will be a driving force in maintaining
compliance with regulations and upholding a positive image in the public eye.
More Companies Will Invest in Cyber-security in Procurement Logistics
Cyber-security is an
ever-present envelope around any of the industrial procurement trends. By some
standards, cyber-security is more vulnerable than ever. This is due to the
increased use of technologies around the globe, but more information and
advances in cloud-based technology have built impenetrable walls in the
networks of supply chains. For vendors, this increased level of cyber security
will propel them to take advantage of technologies that have often been left
reserved for the post-manufacturing supply chain. The convergence of vendor,
manufacturer, and transportation provider systems will generate a new era of
accountability, efficiency, and productivity throughout the world supply
chains, and cyber security will be an area of top investment.
Executives Seek to Lead by Example
Supply chain executives
will also face greater pressure to lead by example in coming years. This will
be in response to increased E-commerce sales by their parent organizations.
This move comes on the heels of companies giving out bonuses in response to the
new tax plan. Executives must take all steps to avoid the unexpected closure of
stores, and if store closures are inevitable, employees and consumers must be
given ample notice.
Start the Process of Leveraging These Industrial Procurement Trends Your Enterprise
The importance of
strong, robust procurement processes for both supply and logistics procurement
needs cannot be overstated. Supply chain executives must understand industry
trends when it comes to procurement and leverage this information to make
informed decisions about change management, new technology and ways to reduce
procurement costs throughout the supply chain.
