Arroyo Strategy Study Offers Insight into Smarter Spending for Procurement Leaders

Jacksonville, FL (October 21, 2024) — Arroyo Strategy, the leading provider of procurement services, today announced the findings of their Procurement Excellence Benchmarking Survey that revealed how increased collaboration with business stakeholders, suppliers, and legal teams–alongside a renewed emphasis on technology, operational efficiencies, and organizational design–is enhancing procurement functions’ strategic value within their businesses. This study provides insight into how these evolving priorities are shaping the future of procurement.

The Big Picture Report, written in partnership with Procurement Leaders, delves into the survey responses and benchmarking data. The goal of “Smarter Spending: The Arroyo Strategy Procurement Excellence Benchmarking Survey,” with participants around the globe, across 24 industries, reporting annual spend ranging from $40M – $43B, was to identify best practices and trends in spend management, as well as to quantify key operational metrics for comparison of participants. Arroyo Strategy’s benchmarking findings highlighted three key themes:

Operational excellence: Procurement’s ability to operate an efficient and cost-effective organization
Value enablement: Procurement-generated organizational value by leveraging tools and technology
Growth strategies: Forward-looking trends and anticipated changes in the procurement landscape.

Of the firms surveyed, 15% organizations had separated strategic and tactical (execution) tasks by having dedicated focus and 85% had these tasks managed through a combined role–creating a challenging performance gap for many respondents to drive value, and increase the efficiency and effectiveness of their procurement functions since the resource capacity competed for various tasks with different skills demand.

The report examines a wide range of topics that are top of mind for CPOs including sourcing execution, category management, organizational structure, contracting practices, technology and tools, and procurement challenges. The findings provide a current overview of procurement leaders’ priorities within the procurement landscape and offer actionable insights to improve procurement operations.

Key findings include:

Stakeholder engagement: Nearly all respondents have indicated a focus on increasing engagement with business stakeholders, suppliers, and legal
Technology: Procurement organizations are using a wide range of tools across the S2P landscape, with 34% missing key technologies
Organization: Nearly all Category Managers are doubling as Sourcing Managers without split of responsibilities
Process: Several respondents are exploring opportunities to increase efficiencies and automation through technology as a key focus area

Procurement teams are continuously working to strengthen relationships with stakeholders to boost engagement and influence. Best-in-class procurement organizations understand and align with the business goals to enable strategic value, build credibility through data and data-driven insights, and adopt a solution-orientated approach for continuous improvement and innovation,” stated William DeVato, CEO of Arroyo Strategy.

In today’s rapidly changing world, procurement plays a crucial role in helping businesses navigate complex challenges shaped by macro trends such as AI, regulatory shifts, geopolitics, inflation, and climate change. To succeed, procurement must be structured to not only support daily operations such as cost management and value enablement but drive strategic decisions that will enable organizations to thrive in an evolving marketplace.

Join Arroyo Strategy and American Tire Distributors, Inc. (ATD) as they discuss the key survey findings, share insights, and offer procurement best practices on the upcoming Procurement Leaders webinar, “Spend Smarter: In Industry Benchmarking Study of Direct and Indirect Procurement Excellence,” taking place on Wednesday, October 23, 2024, at 11 AM ET. Register to join the virtual event.

For more information about assessing operational excellence, value enablement, and growth strategies in procurement, please download the complete report here.

About Arroyo Strategy

Arroyo Strategy, a Jabil company, is the leading provider of procurement services, offering advisory, managed services, digital, staffing, and recruiting solutions. For more than 25 years, we have focused exclusively on helping clients elevate their procurement function.

We combine leading methodologies, analytics, market intelligence, and industry benchmarks with our uniquely flexible and customizable service delivery model. Global organizations of all sizes trust Arroyo Strategy to transform their procurement operations, drive growth, and reimagine what’s possible. Let Arroyo Strategy help you reimagine your procurement capabilities.

Media contact:

Kathleen M. Pomento
Chief Marketing Officer | Arroyo Strategy
kpomento@arroyostrategy.com