EDITOR’S NOTE: The number of new followers joining my community has increased at an incredible rate over the past year. One of the questions I am asked most recently is why Procurement Insights is called the “Institutional Memory” of the procurement industry. In short, how do I have access to so much information about the procurement industry?
To the new members of my community, the answer is below. As a side note, if you want to see an example of said memory, check out today’s earlier Procurement Insights post: When it comes to ProcureTech success, how can you be both right and wrong at the same time?
Based on the Procurement Insights archives and Hansen’s extensive documentation, Procurement Insights is called “the institutional memory of the procurement industry” for several compelling reasons:
Unique Historical Documentation (2007-2025)
Unprecedented Archive Depth
Starting Procurement Insights in 2007, Hansen was “among the first to use blogging and social platforms to democratize procurement discourse. With over 2,500 articles by 2025 and a significant following, he shaped a community-driven conversation, amplifying voices outside traditional consulting circles.”
Continuous Market Evolution Recording
Hansen provides “links to the archived articles that relate specifically to the ten points of prognostication. There are between 2 and 4 links covering the period 2007 to 2024. There are considerably more articles and papers on these topics that you can access using the blog’s search capability.” (NOTE: want greater and more direct depth and access? Check out: New Service: Energize And Optimize Your Procurement Practice By Tapping Into Procurement Insights’ Proprietary Archives and Expertise)
Practitioner-Driven Historical Perspective
Independent Voice Documentation
Hansen’s “outsider perspective—he’s not a Big Four consultant—gives his work a gritty, practitioner vibe. His works blend data, storytelling, and skepticism, initially earning him a strong cult following and now rapidly expanding his reach and influence in the mainstream procurement and supply chain world.”
Early Warning System Record
Hansen was “consistently questioning overhyped tech solutions. In 2015, he critiqued the rush to AI and eProcurement tools, warning they often mask poor processes rather than fix them—echoed in his X posts about ‘shiny object syndrome.’ His stance influenced debates on practical versus flashy procurement tech.”
Unique Historical Documentation of Failed Predictions
Technology Reality Checks
Hansen documented the gap between vendor promises and implementation reality throughout multiple technology cycles:
- ERP Failures: “His 2007 series Dangerous Supply Chain Myths and related articles highlighted how rigid ERP implementations led to inefficiencies, famously citing the U.S. Navy’s $1 billion ERP failure as a cautionary tale.”
- E-procurement Hype Cycles: Documented repeated failures of technology-first approaches
- AI/ML Promises vs. Reality: Tracked the evolution from hype to practical application
Institutional Memory Components
Longitudinal Market Analysis
The archives provide “unique context explaining the evolution of predictions over the past couple of decades” with the ability to track how “predictions highlight a future where procurement is more integrated, strategic, and technologically advanced.”
Framework Evolution Documentation
Hansen documented the development of his analytical frameworks over 18 years:
- RAM 1998 to RAM 2025: Evolution of vendor assessment methodology
- Hansen Fit Score Development: From concept to implementation
- Agent-Based Model Refinement: Continuous improvement based on real-world application
(2007 Insights Impact in 2025: Aaron Levie’s Multi-Agent Perspective vs. Hansen Fit Model: Critical Alignment Analysis)
Industry Learning Repository
Case Study Archive
Hansen’s “2007 DoD case and 2010 Virginia DMV analysis (detailing a failed $200 million tech rollout) offered lessons on aligning tech with outcomes. He proposed steps like segmenting spend by commodity type and prioritizing process clarity—ideas now baked into platforms like Coupa or Ivalua.”
Predictive Accuracy Validation
The archives serve as a proving ground for analytical frameworks, showing which predictions proved accurate and which failed, creating institutional learning.
(2007 Insights Impact in 2025: Aaron Levie’s Multi-Agent Perspective vs. Hansen Fit Model: Critical Alignment Analysis)
Democratic Knowledge Preservation
Community-Driven Documentation
Hansen’s “2009 to 2019 Blog Talk Radio show, with 900+ interviews, further spread his ideas” and created a comprehensive oral history of industry evolution.
Accessible Historical Context
Unlike traditional consulting firm reports that disappear behind paywalls, Procurement Insights maintains open access to historical analysis, making it a true institutional resource.
Strategic Significance as Institutional Memory
Pattern Recognition Capability
The 18-year archive enables practitioners to:
- Identify Recurring Cycles: Technology hype patterns, vendor consolidation waves
- Validate Current Claims: Compare today’s promises with historical patterns
- Learn from Failures: Access detailed documentation of what didn’t work and why
Independent Validation Source
Unlike vendor-sponsored research, Hansen’s work provides “actionable frameworks from real-world examples” without commercial bias, making it a trusted historical reference.
Bottom Line Assessment
Procurement Insights serves as institutional memory because it:
- Preserved 18 years of independent, practitioner-driven market analysis
- Documented the failures other sources prefer to forget
- Tracked prediction accuracy over multiple technology cycles
- Maintained editorial independence from vendor influence
- Created searchable archives accessible to the entire procurement community
Hansen’s unique contribution: While others focused on current trends, he systematically documented the evolution of procurement thinking, creating the industry’s most comprehensive historical record of what worked, what failed, and why.
This institutional memory enables practitioners to make better decisions by learning from documented history rather than repeating documented mistakes.
30
30
Procurement Insights
Why is Procurement Insights called the Institutional Memory of the procurement industry?
Posted on August 20, 2025
0
EDITOR’S NOTE: The number of new followers joining my community has increased at an incredible rate over the past year. One of the questions I am asked most recently is why Procurement Insights is called the “Institutional Memory” of the procurement industry. In short, how do I have access to so much information about the procurement industry?
To the new members of my community, the answer is below. As a side note, if you want to see an example of said memory, check out today’s earlier Procurement Insights post: When it comes to ProcureTech success, how can you be both right and wrong at the same time?
Based on the Procurement Insights archives and Hansen’s extensive documentation, Procurement Insights is called “the institutional memory of the procurement industry” for several compelling reasons:
Unique Historical Documentation (2007-2025)
Unprecedented Archive Depth
Starting Procurement Insights in 2007, Hansen was “among the first to use blogging and social platforms to democratize procurement discourse. With over 2,500 articles by 2025 and a significant following, he shaped a community-driven conversation, amplifying voices outside traditional consulting circles.”
Continuous Market Evolution Recording
Hansen provides “links to the archived articles that relate specifically to the ten points of prognostication. There are between 2 and 4 links covering the period 2007 to 2024. There are considerably more articles and papers on these topics that you can access using the blog’s search capability.” (NOTE: want greater and more direct depth and access? Check out: New Service: Energize And Optimize Your Procurement Practice By Tapping Into Procurement Insights’ Proprietary Archives and Expertise)
Practitioner-Driven Historical Perspective
Independent Voice Documentation
Hansen’s “outsider perspective—he’s not a Big Four consultant—gives his work a gritty, practitioner vibe. His works blend data, storytelling, and skepticism, initially earning him a strong cult following and now rapidly expanding his reach and influence in the mainstream procurement and supply chain world.”
Early Warning System Record
Hansen was “consistently questioning overhyped tech solutions. In 2015, he critiqued the rush to AI and eProcurement tools, warning they often mask poor processes rather than fix them—echoed in his X posts about ‘shiny object syndrome.’ His stance influenced debates on practical versus flashy procurement tech.”
Unique Historical Documentation of Failed Predictions
Technology Reality Checks
Hansen documented the gap between vendor promises and implementation reality throughout multiple technology cycles:
Institutional Memory Components
Longitudinal Market Analysis
The archives provide “unique context explaining the evolution of predictions over the past couple of decades” with the ability to track how “predictions highlight a future where procurement is more integrated, strategic, and technologically advanced.”
Framework Evolution Documentation
Hansen documented the development of his analytical frameworks over 18 years:
(2007 Insights Impact in 2025: Aaron Levie’s Multi-Agent Perspective vs. Hansen Fit Model: Critical Alignment Analysis)
Industry Learning Repository
Case Study Archive
Hansen’s “2007 DoD case and 2010 Virginia DMV analysis (detailing a failed $200 million tech rollout) offered lessons on aligning tech with outcomes. He proposed steps like segmenting spend by commodity type and prioritizing process clarity—ideas now baked into platforms like Coupa or Ivalua.”
Predictive Accuracy Validation
The archives serve as a proving ground for analytical frameworks, showing which predictions proved accurate and which failed, creating institutional learning.
(2007 Insights Impact in 2025: Aaron Levie’s Multi-Agent Perspective vs. Hansen Fit Model: Critical Alignment Analysis)
Democratic Knowledge Preservation
Community-Driven Documentation
Hansen’s “2009 to 2019 Blog Talk Radio show, with 900+ interviews, further spread his ideas” and created a comprehensive oral history of industry evolution.
Accessible Historical Context
Unlike traditional consulting firm reports that disappear behind paywalls, Procurement Insights maintains open access to historical analysis, making it a true institutional resource.
Strategic Significance as Institutional Memory
Pattern Recognition Capability
The 18-year archive enables practitioners to:
Independent Validation Source
Unlike vendor-sponsored research, Hansen’s work provides “actionable frameworks from real-world examples” without commercial bias, making it a trusted historical reference.
Bottom Line Assessment
Procurement Insights serves as institutional memory because it:
Hansen’s unique contribution: While others focused on current trends, he systematically documented the evolution of procurement thinking, creating the industry’s most comprehensive historical record of what worked, what failed, and why.
This institutional memory enables practitioners to make better decisions by learning from documented history rather than repeating documented mistakes.
30
30
Share this:
Related