EDITOR’S NOTE: Given the continuing reliance on ChatGPT has an information source and trusted resource, I like to pose specific questions to this generative AI platform regarding procurement, supply, technology and solution providers. After giving ChatGPT its due, I then like to interject the human take on the same question – in this case mine.
This week’s Procurement ChatGPT question: What are the views regarding ProcureTech AI by age?
Views on AI in procurement vary significantly across age groups, with younger and older procurement professionals generally perceiving AI differently in terms of potential, trust, and adoption hurdles.
- Younger Professionals (Millennials and Gen Z): These groups are generally more open to adopting AI in procurement and have a positive outlook on AI’s potential to improve efficiency, cost savings, and data-driven decision-making. Younger professionals, who are often early in their careers, see AI as a strategic tool that can reduce manual tasks, enhance sourcing processes, and provide valuable insights. They are also more likely to experiment with AI in roles like supplier assessment, spend categorization, and negotiation support. Many appreciate the continuous learning and technical skills development that working with AI offers, aligning with their desire for career growthSOURCESOURCE.
- Older Professionals (Gen X and Boomers): More experienced professionals tend to approach AI with caution, prioritizing trust, transparency, and clear value demonstration before full adoption. They often express concerns about data privacy, regulatory compliance, and potential job displacement risks due to automation. While these professionals acknowledge AI’s utility, especially in areas such as contract analysis and category strategy, they emphasize the need for careful implementation. They are also more focused on addressing ethical challenges, including biases in AI systems and the importance of human oversightSOURCESOURCE.
The differences in perspectives reflect generational attitudes toward technology and workplace change, where younger professionals often embrace the learning curve and flexibility AI requires, while older professionals balance innovation with risk management and ethical considerations.
The Human Perspective
The generational view of AI is irrelevant.
Do you know what else is irrelevant – technology in general outside of an agent-based development and implementation model.
Here is the excerpt from a recent post in which Lance Younger and I discuss our different perspectives on the importance and effectiveness of ProcureTech solutions – ProcureTech CEO Younger stresses we must change the negative narrative and focus on accelerating the positive.
Back in the early 2000s, the following is a commentary on my position regarding technologies’ growing irrelevance in a digital world (which is still the same in 2024):
Jon Hansen’s paper emphasizing that “technology is irrelevant” centers on the idea that success in eProcurement doesn’t primarily depend on the software itself but rather on how well an organization manages its technology implementation. In his view, public procurement projects often face high failure rates due to an overemphasis on technology alone. Instead, he argues that success is more likely when the organization itself leads the project, as was the case with Virginia’s eVA program and the County of Santa Clara’s approach to eProcurement, where strategic oversight and internal control, rather than reliance on external vendors, drove successful outcomes. Hansen’s stance is that technology serves as a tool and not the ultimate solution, which he describes as “largely irrelevant” without the proper organizational ownership and oversight to make it effective.
This perspective challenges the common industry notion that better technology directly correlates with better outcomes, instead advocating for internal accountability and management as the keys to effective technology use in procurement.
Based on the above, if we don’t move away from this “focus first” on technology and continue to use an equation-based development and implementation model to solve our problems, we will be having the same conversation 10 to 15 years from now in which we will still be asking ourselves: why do 80% of all ProcureTech initiatives fail?
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Procurement Insights
Boomer/GenX AI BattleBot Versus Millennials/Gen Z BattleBots
Posted on November 13, 2024
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EDITOR’S NOTE: Given the continuing reliance on ChatGPT has an information source and trusted resource, I like to pose specific questions to this generative AI platform regarding procurement, supply, technology and solution providers. After giving ChatGPT its due, I then like to interject the human take on the same question – in this case mine.
This week’s Procurement ChatGPT question: What are the views regarding ProcureTech AI by age?
Views on AI in procurement vary significantly across age groups, with younger and older procurement professionals generally perceiving AI differently in terms of potential, trust, and adoption hurdles.
The differences in perspectives reflect generational attitudes toward technology and workplace change, where younger professionals often embrace the learning curve and flexibility AI requires, while older professionals balance innovation with risk management and ethical considerations.
The Human Perspective
The generational view of AI is irrelevant.
Do you know what else is irrelevant – technology in general outside of an agent-based development and implementation model.
Here is the excerpt from a recent post in which Lance Younger and I discuss our different perspectives on the importance and effectiveness of ProcureTech solutions – ProcureTech CEO Younger stresses we must change the negative narrative and focus on accelerating the positive.
Back in the early 2000s, the following is a commentary on my position regarding technologies’ growing irrelevance in a digital world (which is still the same in 2024):
Jon Hansen’s paper emphasizing that “technology is irrelevant” centers on the idea that success in eProcurement doesn’t primarily depend on the software itself but rather on how well an organization manages its technology implementation. In his view, public procurement projects often face high failure rates due to an overemphasis on technology alone. Instead, he argues that success is more likely when the organization itself leads the project, as was the case with Virginia’s eVA program and the County of Santa Clara’s approach to eProcurement, where strategic oversight and internal control, rather than reliance on external vendors, drove successful outcomes. Hansen’s stance is that technology serves as a tool and not the ultimate solution, which he describes as “largely irrelevant” without the proper organizational ownership and oversight to make it effective.
This perspective challenges the common industry notion that better technology directly correlates with better outcomes, instead advocating for internal accountability and management as the keys to effective technology use in procurement.
Based on the above, if we don’t move away from this “focus first” on technology and continue to use an equation-based development and implementation model to solve our problems, we will be having the same conversation 10 to 15 years from now in which we will still be asking ourselves: why do 80% of all ProcureTech initiatives fail?
30
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