PROCUREMENT TECHNOLOGY
As automation technologies mature and AI becomes increasingly sophisticated, procurement roles are undergoing transformation before our eyes. From transactional processing to strategic enablement, procurement professionals are discovering that their job descriptions are being rewritten in real time.
Where procurement teams once spent countless hours on manual processes – creating purchase orders, chasing approvals and reconciling invoices – intelligent systems now handle these tasks with remarkable speed and accuracy. It’ s not merely about replacing manual work, it represents a fundamental shift in what procurement professionals do and how they create value for their organisations.
The strategic evolution Giulio Rindi, Chief Financial Officer, Commercial & New Payment Flows at Mastercard, has witnessed this transformation firsthand within one of the world’ s leading financial services companies.“ Automation has elevated the role of procurement professionals at Mastercard by freeing up time for more strategic work,” he explains.
“ While payment execution is now seamless and system-driven, our teams continue to play a vital role in supplier engagement, risk management and driving innovation.”
This shift represents more than just a change in daily activities – it’ s a complete redefinition of procurement’ s value proposition.
“Automation is shifting procurement from transactional execution to strategic enablement”
Giulio Rindi, Chief Financial Officer, Commercial and New Payment Flows, Mastercard
At Mastercard, Giulio notes that“ automation is shifting procurement from transactional execution to strategic enablement. This evolution allows our teams to focus more on vendor strategy, performance and resilience as well as commercial innovation – such as expanding virtual card adoption and driving sustainability initiatives.”
Traditional tasks like payment processing and supplier reconciliation, which once ate away at significant resources, are now handled through automated systems. By embedding virtual card capabilities into their systems, Mastercard has reduced manual intervention, accelerated settlement timelines and unlocked issuer rebates that are not available through traditional methods like ACH or wire.
The technology foundation Tricia Miller, SVP Product Marketing and Chief Evangelist at Coupa, identifies the areas where automation delivers immediate impact:“ The most immediate efficiency gains come
106 October 2025