THE PROCUREMENT INTERVIEW
Confidence in AI is high – with The Economist Impact study finding that nearly nine out of ten procurement professionals have faith in its potential. However, a significant gap persists between optimism and execution. For many organisations, the challenge lies not in believing AI can transform procurement, but in building the strategic foundations to make that transformation real.
Etosha Thurman, Chief Marketing Officer for Finance & Spend Management at SAP, argues that confidence alone is not enough. What is missing, she explains, is the infrastructure to move from isolated pilots to enterprise-wide impact.
Bridging the strategy gap The barriers to wider AI adoption in procurement are less about technology than about organisational readiness. Many enterprises lack the clear strategic direction, top-down vision and change management capabilities needed to scale AI initiatives beyond the experimental phase.
“ The pressure to leverage AI is incredibly high, but for many organisations the strategic direction, top-down vision and clear expectations simply are not there,” Etosha says.
“ The Economist Impact study shows confidence in AI’ s potential, but confidence does not equal readiness. What is missing is a clear, consistent AI strategy paired with the investment and change management needed to turn isolated pilots into real transformation.”
“Procurement cannot plan for every disruption, but it can prepare to respond”
Etosha Thurman, Chief Marketing Officer, Finance & Spend Management, SAP
SAP’ s response focuses on embedding intelligence directly into core business workflows, rather than treating AI as a separate capability. The next generation of SAP Ariba solutions, announced at SAP Spend Connect Live 2025, for source-to-pay incorporates AI at the process level, automating routine tasks whilst elevating strategic work.
This approach aims to deliver improved efficiency, greater productivity and deeper insight through relevant business recommendations that accelerate decision-making and time to value.
“ We have set a clear AI vision and are executing on it, so customers don’ t have to manage the pressure alone,” Etosha says.
“ Our goal is to amplify the power of procurement and give organisations the clarity, capability and confidence to realise the full value of AI.”
Resilience through predictive intelligence As global supply chains face continuing volatility, the ability to anticipate and respond to disruption has become a competitive necessity.
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