Our survey shows that procurement is no longer content operating in the shadows of enterprise strategy and, instead, is marching at full speed towards becoming one of, if not the most influential teams in the organisation.

That change looks set to start at the top, with the majority of our respondents expecting the CPO to become more strategic, have greater influence on corporate decision making and bring a broader suite of skills to the table than ever before. It’ s quite the prospect to think about

engaging a group of leaders who are strategists, technologists and stewards of resilience all at once.

Of course, as responsibilities broaden, so too must skillsets. Digital and AI fluency is cited by 61 % of leaders as the most critical future capability – reflecting the growing adoption of predictive analytics, automation and intelligent sourcing tools.

But technical acumen alone isn’ t enough. It’ s good to see strategic negotiation, stakeholder management and risk management remaining vital. The rising importance of ESG and sustainability expertise is a real positive, but it also highlights the function’ s ever-expanding remit. Our open responses make for fascinating reading. There is strong consensus that AI-driven decision making will become standard, while teams will increasingly rely

64 The Procurement Survey 2025