Beyond Trends: Industry Experts And Practitioners Weigh In On What Will Matter Most To Procurement Pros in 2019

As a lead-up to my Beyond Trends: Transformational realities redefining procurement panel on March 12th, I reached out to people in the procurement world asking them a simple, and somewhat straightforward question; in your opinion what do you believe is or will be the single most significant development that will impact procurement in 2019?

Okay, simple may be an understatement, as there are unprecedented changes on the near horizon that will forever change what we do and how we do it.

In certain instances, I received brief yet insightful commentaries from industry thought leaders as well as practitioners via email. Other times, I had the opportunity to talk with these individuals at some length. In both cases, the revelations were interesting and perhaps to some will be surprising.

In today’s first post in the series, Jack Shaw who, among the many accolades he has received was voted as one of the Top 5 Futurists in the world, talks about the rapidly shifting technological landscape and its impact on procurement.

Here is what Jack had to say:

“The most important development that will impact procurement in 2019 will NOT be a single event. Instead, it will be that, by the end of 2019, we’ll have seen a dramatically increased recognition on the part of CPO’s and other procurement executives of the importance of digital transformation for procurement. This will be driven by an increased understanding of the strategic business impact on procurement processes and supply chain ecosystems of such critical emerging technologies Robotic Process Automation (and other forms of AI), of the Internet of Things technologies, of 3D Printing, and, most importantly, of Blockchain. As a result, CPO’s will be much more proactively developing well thought through business strategies for incorporating these technologies into their business processes and procurement strategies.”

In the next installment in this series, I will share with you a brief overview of a non-technical perspective from an industry veteran and recognized thought leader who’s travels have taken him to four different countries in December alone. Stay tuned.

In the meantime, be sure to reserve your virtual seat for the Beyond Trends: Transformational realities redefining procurement panel.

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