Three Treasury Strategies for Building a Resilient Supplier Network

Reflecting on the findings of this year’s Supplier Survey, Peddy Hashemi explains why today’s suppliers are prioritising stability and security over growth, how they can harness AI effectively, and why supply chain resilience benefits everyone.

Today’s economic climate is riddled with uncertainties – and as the latest research by SAP Taulia reveals, suppliers are under more pressure than ever before.

“Interest rate shifts have significantly increased the cost of borrowing, making it more expensive to finance expansion or invest in growth,” says Peddy Hashemi, Managing Director, Global Head of Customer Success at SAP Taulia. “At the same time, persistent inflation and cost-of-living pressures are squeezing both consumers and businesses.”

Given today’s high borrowing costs and unpredictable demand, stability and cash resilience matter more than rapid expansion. So instead of aggressively pursuing growth, many organisations are working to protect their margins and strengthen their balance sheets. Indeed, SAP Taulia’s latest Supplier Survey found that 46% of suppliers identified growth as a top focus, down from 53% in 2024/25.

“For many companies, the priority is simply ensuring they have enough financial flexibility to navigate ongoing volatility,” Hashemi notes.

Late payments are on the rise

The Supplier Survey also revealed that late payments are once again on the rise, with 55% of suppliers reporting late payments, up from 51% last year. Meanwhile, only 37% of suppliers are being paid on time, down from 42% in 2024/25.

Delays due to administrative inefficiencies are nothing new. But with rising costs putting more pressure on cash flow, many businesses are holding onto their cash for longer. In some cases, larger firms are deliberately extending their payment cycles as part of their cash flow management strategy – making it harder than ever for suppliers to make ends meet.

“For suppliers, particularly SMEs, late payments can create serious cash flow challenges,” says Hashemi. “They still need to cover wages and operational costs, even if invoices remain unpaid. This can force them to take on expensive short-term financing and delay their own payments.

“In extreme cases, persistent late payments can threaten the financial stability of otherwise healthy businesses.”

Suppliers are becoming more proactive

It’s not all bad news. As the Supplier Survey report points out, suppliers aren’t just sitting around waiting for buyers to pay them – instead, they are taking control of their own destinies.

Traditionally, suppliers would either wait 30, 60, or even 90 days to be paid on the due date of an invoice. Alternatively, they would speed up payment by factoring their receivables, which tends to be an expensive option. But early payment solutions have changed this dynamic, allowing suppliers to access funds as soon as they need them.

Early payments enable suppliers to proactively manage their cash flows, with greater flexibility and control. They can choose when to access liquidity based on their own needs, rather than depending on their customers’ payment timelines. As Hashemi points out, “This allows them to bridge the cash flow gap between delivering goods or services and receiving payment.”

Increasingly, suppliers are taking advantage of this opportunity. According to the survey, 66% of suppliers are interested in taking early payments – a five-year high.

Benefits of supply chain resilience

For buyers, meanwhile, it’s important to recognise that supply chain resilience benefits everyone.

“Buyers naturally want to optimise their own working capital – but if suppliers are under financial strain, this can disrupt operations and create risk across the supply chain,” says Hashemi.

To address these risks, he explains, buyers need to communicate openly with suppliers and understand which partners may be more vulnerable to cash flow pressures. By doing so, they will be better placed to adopt solutions that support both sides of the equation.

“The goal should be a more collaborative approach to liquidity management, where both buyers and suppliers have the flexibility to manage their cash positions effectively,” Hashemi says.

AI: moving from hype to reality

This year’s survey also highlighted the growing focus on AI, with 44% of suppliers saying AI is top of mind, up from 38% a year ago.

But there’s a notable gap between interest and adoption, as highlighted in our recent report, How AI is Reshaping Risk, Resilience and the Human Role. The report found that while 82% of procurement leaders are eager to adopt AI, only 35% are prioritising procurement for AI investment.

It’s clear that AI has much to offer buyers and suppliers alike. “For one thing, it can help to automate invoice processing and identify payment risks,” says Hashemi. “AI can support more accurate cash flow forecasting and flag potential late payments before they become a problem. AI also allows the analysis of financial data to make better decisions.”

But moving from hype to real impact requires strong data foundations. AI systems are only as effective as the data they’re built on – so in order to benefit, companies need clean and accessible financial data. AI systems also need to integrate smoothly with existing finance systems so that insights can be acted on in real time.

As Hashemi concludes, “Ultimately, the businesses that will benefit most from AI are those that treat it as part of a broader digital transformation.”

Find out more in our webinar: The AI Reality Check

The gap between AI adoption and growth will be explored in more detail in a webinar on Thursday, 26^th March, ‘The AI Reality Check: Funding Growth and Managing Supplier Risk in an Uncertain Market.’

During the webinar, Peddy Hashemi is joined by experts from SAP, PwC, and Applied Materials. Together, they discuss why AI can only deliver real value if organisations have the right data infrastructure in place, why businesses need a liquidity toolkit, and why waiting until cash flow becomes a problem is too late.

And as the cash flow gap across supply chains continues to widen, the panel will also explore why addressing this gap is becoming an important priority for buyers who want to maintain stable, resilient supply chains.

Register for the webinar

Three Treasury Strategies for Building a Resilient Supplier Network

Effective Treasury departments are no longer just custodians of cash. By leveraging data and optimizing funding, Treasury can proactively prevent disruptions before they affect production.

The definition of resilience has shifted from a buzzword to a critical survival metric. As Deloitte reports, technology is now “transforming treasury operations, driving efficiency and strategic decision-making.” Simultaneously, Forbes notes that supply chain visibility has become a CFO imperative, with unrelenting disruptions dominating the agenda.

To build a truly resilient supply chain, you must look beyond supplier diversity and focus on supplier financial health. Here is how to execute a strategy that strengthens your network.

1. Diversify your funding sources

Relying on a single bank for your Supply Chain Finance (SCF) program creates a single point of failure. If that partner faces constraints, your suppliers lose their lifeline.

Do not just diversify who you buy from—diversify how you pay them. Move away from single-bank dependency and establish a multi-funder model that ensures liquidity is always available, regardless of market volatility.

The benefit:
Your program remains stable even if one financial partner pulls back. This guarantees that your suppliers can always access the capital they need to operate and fulfil orders, which is vital for high-growth suppliers or those in volatile markets.

SAP Taulia’s Multifunder capabilities eliminate single-point reliance. The platform provides access to a diverse pool of liquidity, supporting growth and maintaining stability irrespective of any single funder’s capacity limitations.

2. Inject liquidity dynamically

A supply chain is only as strong as its weakest cash flow link. When suppliers lack liquidity, they cannot fulfil orders, leading to costly, difficult-to-reverse physical disruptions.

Implement a flexible payment strategy that allows you to toggle between funding sources based on your current cash position. Treat early payments not just as a benefit, but as a strategic injection of liquidity into your supply chain.

The Benefit:
You protect your margins and production schedules by ensuring suppliers stay solvent. Simultaneously, you optimize your own working capital—using excess cash for returns when possible or preserving cash when necessary.

SAP Taulia lets you seamlessly switch between using your own cash (Dynamic Discounting) and third-party bank funds (Supply Chain Finance).

• Cash-Rich? Use Dynamic Discounting to pay early and generate risk-free returns.
• Cash-Preservation Mode? Switch to Supply Chain Finance to let suppliers access affordable third-party capital without impacting your balance sheet.

3. Monitor risk with data-driven precision

Complexity hides risk. Without visibility, a key supplier’s financial distress often goes unnoticed until they fail to deliver.

Stop reacting to disruptions and start predicting them. Use data from your payment platform to spot behavioral changes, such as a stable supplier suddenly requesting early payment every month, as early warning signs of financial distress.

The Benefit:
You gain a “first-mover” advantage on risk. By identifying precarious suppliers early, you can intervene or adjust your supply chain plans before a breakdown occurs, protecting profitability and client relationships.

SAP Taulia’s AI-driven analytics do the heavy lifting for you. The platform analyzes complex datasets to:

• Identify potential liquidity issues by detecting irregularities.
• Simulate “best-case to worst-case” scenarios to assess cash flow impact.
• Provide real-time insights for proactive decision-making.

The antifragile treasury

A resilient network requires a resilient financial foundation. By building flexibility into your funding and using data to predict risk, you move beyond simple survival. You create an antifragile treasury; one that doesn’t just withstand volatility but strengthens its position because of it.

With the agility to pivot funding strategies instantly through SAP Taulia, you ensure that market disruptions become opportunities for optimization rather than risks to be managed.

How to maximize savings with virtual cards for treasury departments

Treasurers operating in today’s business landscape are facing more pressure than ever to cut costs, streamline treasury operations, and strengthen payment security.

A solution that can move the needle on all of these factors is the Virtual Card. A corporate Virtual Card is a 16-digit number randomly generated for specific transactions or vendors, providing a secure and flexible digital payment method.

Virtual Cards don’t just replace traditional payment methods, such as ACH, wire transfers, or physical cards; they enable treasury teams to tap into new cost-saving and revenue-generating opportunities, reduce tedious manual processes, and gain greater control over every payment.

This article offers an in-depth look at the immense potential of Virtual Cards for treasury.

Consumer vs. corporate Virtual Cards: Key differences treasurers need to know

By now, nearly everyone has experienced paying with a Virtual Card—perhaps for an online subscription or a one-off purchase. While consumer Virtual Cards are built using similar technology and offer some of the same benefits as corporate Virtual Cards, there are key differences. First and foremost, corporate Virtual Cards are purpose-built for business-to-business use.

Here are the main differences between consumer and corporate Virtual Card benefits.Corporate virtual cards:

	Corporate	Personal
Security	Protects corporations from misuse of funds through random account generation and by linking transaction limits to invoice amounts.	Protects the individual from fraud – card cloning – by generating one-use card numbers for use online or through a finance app
Technology	Varying levels of integration based on the solution; often, traditional virtual card programs offered by banks have costly, file-based integrations with ERP and expense management systems.	Mobile technology that allows you to access your digital wallet from anywhere, often allowing you to switch between currencies
Budgeting	Customizable parameters, where cards can be linked to specific business units or projects for improved monitoring, reconciliation, and invoice management.	Enable spend limits for daily, weekly, and monthly budgeting

The SAP Taulia difference:

• Accelerated payments allow suppliers to be paid sooner without requiring buyers to update payment terms within their ERP manually
• Integrate directly to ERP and accounting systems to make managing payments and reconciliation easier.
• Offer advanced controls for card administration, including for reissuance, card expiry adjustments, and card cancellations

Corporate Virtual Card benefits for treasurers

Virtual Cards are more than just a payment method; they can serve as a real strategic advantage. In fact, 94% of organizations say that Virtual Cards improved their transaction speed, detail, and security.

The top corporate virtual card benefits are:

• Accurate reconciliation and reporting: Every transaction is captured with rich data, including the invoice number, cost center, etc., ensuring the reconciliation process provides clear, real-time visibility into spending.
• Stronger spending controls and budget enforcement: Each Virtual Card can be locked to a specific amount, supplier, and time period, preventing unauthorized spending and reducing the need for exceptions or audits.
• Lower fraud exposure and minimized risk: Single-use or restricted card numbers make compromised data useless, increasing payment security for businesses and reducing fraud risk compared to physical cards.
• Efficient procure-to-pay operations: Virtual Cards allow you to automate tedious manual tasks. They can also eliminate the need for purchase orders for smaller buys, simplifying AP workflows.
• Improved payment timing and working capital flexibility: Virtual Cards enable reliable supplier payments and unlock opportunities to extend payment terms (DPO) while still ensuring suppliers are paid on time.

Three ways Virtual Cards create cost savings

It’s a common misconception that Virtual Cards are more expensive than other payment methods due to perceived high fees. However, when considering operational savings, fraud reduction, and liquidity benefits, Virtual Cards can be one of the most efficient payment tools available to treasury departments.

Here are three specific ways Virtual Cards generate direct cost savings:

Virtual Card programs offer financial rebates based on the volume of purchases. This has the potential to transform the accounts payable department from a cost center into a revenue generator, with savings flowing directly to the bottom line. For example, with SAP Taulia ERP-embedded virtual cards, you can unlock as much as $2M in savings for every $200M of payables.

Globally, financial fraud costs businesses about 8% of their revenue every year. Security features built into Virtual Cards help mitigate potential fraud expenses. This saves businesses not only the direct financial loss but also the costs of investigation, recovery, and reputation damage in the market.

Virtual Cards offer process efficiency gains. Manual payment processing and data entry carry a hidden cost, as they drain employee time spent on approvals, exception handling, and reconciling invoices. Automating processes with Virtual Cards gives treasury teams valuable time back to focus on higher-value initiatives in the business.

Key challenges of virtual cards for treasurers

With any process or policy change, adoption can be a challenge. Despite this, Virtual Cards are a sound, strategic option for treasury payment optimization. Each challenge can be addressed with careful planning and clear communication.

Managing supplier acceptance

Not all suppliers will accept Virtual Cards. Just as not all suppliers accept other forms of payment. While this may seem like a challenge, the solution is simple.

Businesses should adopt a multi-rail payment strategy, utilizing Virtual Cards when possible and prudent to do so. Other payment alternatives, such as ACH, can be used as an option when Virtual Card payments are unavailable. Flexibility with your payment types can help you work with suppliers and stay in good standing.

Streamlining internal change management

Whenever you introduce a new process, it is essential to train staff on the new protocols and procedures thoroughly. Making an effort to communicate the benefits of Virtual Cards up front can help get staff on board with the change. Additionally, modern financial platforms, such as SAP Taulia, are specifically designed for easy integration and user-friendly workflows to help you achieve value more quickly.

Configuring integrations

Treasury teams often worry that integrating a Virtual Card program with their existing ERP or accounting systems will be difficult. In practice, Virtual Cards don’t have lengthy or complex implementation timelines. They are designed to integrate directly with leading ERPs, like Oracle and SAP, allowing key payment data, invoice details, and reconciliation information to flow automatically. Most companies will experience a net positive impact on timelines due to the simplicity of implementation and productivity gains by implementing Virtual Cards.

Identifying the right time to introduce Virtual Cards

If you’re interested in Virtual Cards for your business, but are unsure if it’s the right time, use this series of questions to evaluate your readiness:

• Is your business struggling to manage a high volume of low-value invoices?
• Is minimizing payment fraud a significant concern and priority for your organization?
• Does your team need to streamline treasury operations because they spend too much time on manual payment processing and reconciliation?
• Are you seeking new, innovative ways to generate revenue or savings from your accounts payable process?

If you answered yes to any of the above questions, Virtual Cards have the potential to positively impact your treasury operations.

Access untapped revenue and cost savings with Virtual Cards

Virtual Cards offer a multitude of benefits on their own, but their true power is unlocked when they’re deeply embedded into your broader working capital operations. SAP Taulia doesn’t just provide a Virtual Card solution—we integrate with your Oracle and SAP ERP to streamline how you manage cash, supplier payments, and liquidity.

SAP Taulia’s Virtual Card solution is part of a full-featured Payables platform. With no IT support required, you can optimize supplier payments, reduce risk, and gain both flexibility and control with our end-to-end system.

Ready to unlock savings and streamline treasury operations? Download our comprehensive data sheet to learn more about the power of SAP Taulia’s Virtual Card solution. Or, download our Whitepaper: Unlock your working capital potential with SAP Taulia Payables.

Treasury’s role in forging a cash-first culture

Making cash a shared priority is a strategic imperative for the treasury function. But what does a cash-first culture really look like? And which steps can treasury leaders take to embed cash discipline across the enterprise? Discover the tried-and-tested strategies shared by treasury leaders at a recent Taulia Treasurers Club event.

A cash-first culture can make the difference between navigating volatility successfully and falling victim to it. But what does this look like in practice?

In a nutshell, it’s about embedding cash discipline across the organization, and empowering the entire business to think ‘cash-first’. But to achieve that, treasury teams need to move beyond traditional financial policies and actively shape behavior, processes, and mindsets throughout the organization. This doesn’t happen by accident – rather, it’s achieved through deliberate design, partnership, and persistence that can only be achieved by following a practical framework.

A recent Taulia Treasurers’ Club event explored how a cash-first culture can help companies drive greater cash visibility, improve liquidity management and working capital management, and increase control and accountability over cash. Read on to learn about the peer-tested strategies discussed during the event and how they can be deployed to make cash a shared priority.

The blueprint: building a resilient and transparent foundation

A resilient culture starts with the ability to see clearly and plan for disruption. And for this, treasury teams need a clear view of their liquidity, both now and in the future.

Visibility over cash can be a challenge for companies with fragmented ERP systems and pooled accounts. However, by treating treasury as a ‘cash control room’ that brings together mission-critical information, treasurers can achieve the real-time, unit-level cash intelligence needed to plan ahead and optimize liquidity management.

When it comes to planning for disruption, it’s not enough to conduct periodic stress tests – a strategic treasury also needs to embrace dynamic cash flow forecasting that continuously adapts to new information as it arises. Scenario planning should be codified with ‘crisis playbooks’ that detail how the company would navigate different types of disruption.

The language of cash: redefining the metrics that drive behavior

In order to promote a cash-first mindset, it’s important to speak the right language – and that means using suitable metrics. Since traditional key performance indicators (KPIs) can be misleading, treasurers should focus on advanced metrics that can drive the right behaviors throughout the organization.

For example, it’s important to look beyond EBITDA – which overlooks changes in working capital – and introduce ‘behavior-safe’ KPIs that will encourage others in the organization to prioritize cash. For example, ratios such as the Cash Recycling Ratio and DSO (Days Sales Outstanding) can be more effective when it comes to measuring true operational health.

Attributing ownership clearly is also essential when it comes to driving behavior. For this, treasurers should assign cash flow responsibility at the business unit level using data enrichment and machine learning.

The cross-functional alliance: making working capital a team sport

Treasury may be the architect of the framework needed for a cash-first culture. But when it comes to executing the framework, the entire organization has a part to play. As such, effective cross-functional alliances are needed between treasury, commercial, procurement, and operations teams.

To make working capital a team sport, treasurers should consider forming a ‘cash council’ – in other words, a cross-functional team responsible for aligning goals and harmonizing data between different teams, as well as addressing any barriers to progress.

Working capital management programs such as supply chain finance and dynamic discounting should be framed around shared goals, such as supplier health and resilience, so that everyone understands the benefits.

And on the commercial side, companies should instill cash discipline by adopting cash-positive contract terms and billing hygiene.

Advanced smithing: mastering global cash and technology

In a global enterprise, forging a cash culture involves mastering complex challenges and choosing the right technology.

Challenges can arise when cash is trapped in particular jurisdictions, for example, due to local regulatory or tax constraints. To free up trapped cash, treasurers need to devise effective strategies for repatriation, including smart structuring, intercompany settlements, and coordinating closely with tax colleagues.

Additionally, technology plays a crucial role in supporting a cash-first culture. This means having the right tools for the job, such as electronic payables and virtual cards. However, these are targeted instruments, rather than cure-alls. When it comes to flexibility, there’s no substitute for an open, multi-funder platform that provides access to a diverse range of funding sources, as well as different levers for optimizing working capital.

Conclusion: culture is forged by leaders, not systems

Technology and platforms are essential enablers, but it’s important to remember that a true cash-first culture is ultimately driven by effective treasury leadership.

A cash-first culture originates from the top down and is embedded within the organization by fostering trust and educating its members. Above all, it means partnering effectively with people from the relevant functions – so rather than acting as ‘policy police’, treasurers should position themselves as strategic partners that empower the entire business to prioritize cash.

Building a Successful Supplier Diversity Program with Baker Hughes

At Baker Hughes, supplier diversity is integral to its business strategy. In Australia, diverse suppliers are defined as organizations where at least 51% of ownership, operation, or control rests with a specific underrepresented group, such as those owned by minorities, women, veterans, Indigenous people, LGBTQ+ individuals, or people with disabilities.

We will explore this strategy through valuable insights from three leaders: Anoop Kurup of Baker Hughes, Sharna Collard of Kooya, and SAP Taulia’s Bob Glotfelty.

The purpose of Baker Hughes’ supplier diversity program is to promote inclusion for a fair and meaningful chance for everyone, while also strengthening local economies by fostering job creation in underserved communities. Tapping into a diverse supplier base also drives innovation in procurement practices, as diverse suppliers, according to Anoop, “bring unique ideas, agility, and niche expertise that can lead to better products and services,” contributing to business growth.

The program also reflects Baker Hughes’ corporate responsibility values that are core to its operations. As supplier diversity metrics become a contractual requirement for corporate procurement practices, Anoop states that social responsibility is “no longer a choice or an option,” but a “core expectation from modern consumers and clients.”

The Impact: A Story of Transformation and Reciprocity

For Sharna, CEO of Kooya (a supplier to Baker Hughes), supplier diversity programs have a transformative impact. The program with Baker Hughes has not only opened up opportunities that they may previously not have had access to, but has also “created a platform for us to showcase our quality and innovation that we bring to the table.”

This partnership balances purpose and profit. For Kooya, this means starting with smaller opportunities and showcasing their value, paving the way for them to scale and grow alongside an organization. Sharna notes that genuine partnerships like this have been “the key to Kooya’s success.”

Built on reciprocity, Kooya extends this principle through its non-profit arm, the Bibbulmun Fund. Established in 2014, this community investment initiative fosters leadership and entrepreneurship, aiming to create economic independence for Indigenous communities. By channeling 5% of Kooya’s net profits into the Bibbulmun Fund, supplier diversity partnerships achieve a far-reaching social impact.

The Steps to a Successful Program

Scaling a supplier diversity program for a large organization like Baker Hughes is more complex than it might seem. As Sharna states, it must be “led from the top down” and “needs to be intrinsic within the organization and requires everybody’s buy-in.”

Baker Hughes followed a robust approach. The Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) in Australia provided a structured framework to take meaningful action on reconciliation with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. This marked a strategic shift towards inclusive procurement practices that embed social, environmental, and economic value.

Cross-functional communication was also key. Awareness and training sessions were conducted across internal teams to educate stakeholders on the importance of supplier diversity and inclusive procurement.

To ensure the program’s longevity, Baker Hughes collaborated with external organizations to build partnerships with diverse suppliers, such as We Connect International and Supply Nation. As Australia’s supplier diversity leader, Supply Nation links corporates and government businesses with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander businesses. This was where Baker Hughes was connected with Kooya.

A key part of Baker Hughes’ strategy is measurement, and clear KPIs were set to track spend with both Tier 1 and Tier 2 diverse suppliers. This commitment is evident in their results: in 2024, Baker Hughes reported approximately $632 million USD spent globally with its diverse and small business suppliers.

Ultimately, it’s this blend of process and genuine commitment that ensures success. Sharna notes that what stands out with Baker Hughes is that “It’s not just this tick and flick. There are real relationships, meaningful outcomes, and most importantly, a fantastic way to build credibility and capability…”

Technology is key

A critical pillar supporting the Baker Hughes program is technology designed to empower suppliers. Baker Hughes has partnered with SAP Taulia to offer early payments to its diverse suppliers, empowering them with faster and reliable access to liquidity, a crucial element for managing working capital and fueling growth. Over the past five years, the early payment program has scaled to support Baker Hughes’ suppliers globally, from APAC, all the way to North America.

As Bob explains, the supplier-centric program is optional and user-friendly. Suppliers receive an invitation and can enroll in just 90 seconds, gaining free access to a portal that provides full visibility into their invoice status.

Once an invoice is approved, suppliers have the option to request early payment at a favorable rate based on Baker Hughes’ strong credit rating, a significant advantage over traditional financing.

SAP Taulia’s flexible program is more than a convenience; it’s a tangible way Baker Hughes invests in the resilience and sustainability of its valued diverse suppliers.

Strategic Takeaways

The journey of Baker Hughes and Kooya spotlights a clear blueprint for success. Supplier diversity thrives when it is intrinsic to a company’s operations, supported by robust processes, and enabled by flexible technology like SAP Taulia that strengthens supply chain resilience.

For businesses looking to establish a supplier diversity program, the leaders have provided powerful advice from both sides of the partnership. Sharna encourages Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander businesses to “know your value and tell your story clearly,” emphasizing that while diversity is a strength, communicating the unique value of one’s products and services is crucial. Noting the importance of building strong partnerships with like-minded businesses, Sharna advises that mutual commitment to a collective goal and objective is key to success.

For corporations, Anoop recommends going beyond one-time purchases by “actively investing in the growth and sustainability of diverse suppliers” through mentorship, training, and flexible access to capital via supplier-friendly technology such as SAP Taulia.

These principles form the cornerstone of an impactful program. By building meaningful and lasting partnerships that fuel mutual growth, companies can create a more equitable business ecosystem for all.

The Future of Supply Chain Finance: Trends to Watch

In a recent Deloitte finance trends report uncertainty was reported as the number one concern for CFOs and their finance managers. And navigating a landscape this unpredictable requires more than just steady hands; it means getting on the front foot when it comes to understanding and embracing the technologies and strategies reshaping the industry.

We will take you through those critical trends defining the future of supply chain finance, and show you how you can leverage them to build a competitive edge.

1. AI & Automation for Predictive Finance

What is it?

We are moving beyond basic forecasting into the era of autonomous agents and predictive finance. This trend involves using AI to fuse purchasing, manufacturing, and finance operations into a single, cohesive plan. Instead of static spreadsheets, AI agents analyze historical data and real-time market trends to model risks and project demand with unprecedented precision.

Areas of importance

• Regulatory Compliance: Meeting strict reporting standards to avoid fines and reputational damage.
• Scope 3 Tracking: Gathering data on emissions produced by suppliers and logistics providers.
• Sustainable Sourcing: Prioritizing localized and green options over purely low-cost ones.

Benefits to business

• Early Warnings: Automated alerts allow for intervention before a small issue becomes a crisis.
• Optimization: Identifying and removing bottlenecks that slow down production.
• Data-Driven Decisions: replacing gut feeling with real-time analytics.

Potential impact on business

10/10 – AI is rapidly becoming a baseline requirement, not a luxury. Companies failing to adopt predictive tools risk being outmaneuvered by faster, data-driven competitors.

SAP Taulia recommendation

Look at areas where AI can drive maximum impact for the business such as AI-powered Cash Flow Acceleration. SAP Taulia uses “Intelligent Decision Automation” to analyze supplier behavior and recommend the optimal timing and discount rates for early payments. By using predictive spend analysis, you can maximize early payment adoption, ensuring your suppliers are funded while you optimize your own working capital yields.

2. Resilience & Risk Management (Antifragile Design)

What is it?

This is the shift from “just-in-time” efficiency to “antifragile” design—building systems that don’t just survive volatility but leverage it. Strategies include nearshoring operations, multi-sourcing critical components, and utilizing dark stores (dedicated fulfillment hubs without in-store shopping) to speed up local delivery.

Areas of importance

• Diversification: Reducing dependency on single suppliers or regions.
• Proactive Monitoring: Tracking weather events, labor strikes, and geopolitical shifts before they halt production.
• Logistics Flexibility: Using dark stores to handle online order surges without disrupting retail operations.

Benefits to business

• Continuity: The ability to maintain production schedules when competitors are stalled.
• Agility: Faster reaction times to market changes or logistics failures.
• Customer Trust: Delivering on time, regardless of background chaos.

Potential impact on business

9/10 – As noted by Dassault Systèmes, disruption is now the norm. Resilience is your insurance policy against revenue loss.

SAP Taulia recommendation

Look for win-win scenarios that can benefit both you and your suppliers such as Flexible Funding. Resilience relies on the financial health of your suppliers. Taulia allows you to switch seamlessly between using your own cash (Dynamic Discounting) and third-party bank money (Supply Chain Finance) to pay suppliers early. This ensures your suppliers always have the liquidity they need to survive disruptions, securing your supply chain without straining your own balance sheet.

3. Deepening Visibility & Digital Twins

What is it?

A Digital Twin is a virtual replica of your entire supply chain that links supply, demand, and capacity data. When combined with IoT (Internet of Things) sensors and end-to-end visibility tools, it allows managers to track goods, financial health, and raw material prices in real time.

Areas of importance

• End-to-End Tracking: Monitoring everything from raw material sources to final mile delivery.
• Supplier Health: Using data to identify if a supplier is facing financial distress before they miss a shipment.
• Simulation: Running “what-if” scenarios in the digital twin to test responses to potential constraints.

Benefits to business

• Early Warnings: Automated alerts allow for intervention before a small issue becomes a crisis.
• Optimization: Identifying and removing bottlenecks that slow down production.
• Data-Driven Decisions: replacing gut feeling with real-time analytics.

Potential impact on business

8/10 – You cannot manage what you cannot see. Visibility is the prerequisite for all other optimizations.

SAP Taulia recommendation

Focus on increasing transparency by leveraging tools such as Cash Analytics. Taulia provides a “financial digital twin” view of your supply chain by giving you deep visibility into cash flow and supplier payment behaviors. Use this data to identify which suppliers might need early payment support and to forecast your own liquidity needs with greater accuracy.

4. Sustainability & ESG Integration

What is it?

Sustainability is no longer optional; it is regulatory. Companies must now track Scope 3 emissions (emissions from the entire value chain) to comply with regulations like the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and Germany’s Supply Chain Due Diligence Act.

Areas of importance

• Regulatory Compliance: Meeting strict reporting standards to avoid fines and reputational damage.
• Scope 3 Tracking: Gathering data on emissions produced by suppliers and logistics providers.
• Sustainable Sourcing: Prioritizing localized and green options over purely low-cost ones.

Benefits to business

• Risk Mitigation: Avoiding non-compliance penalties and “greenwashing” accusations.
• Brand Value: Meeting the rising ethical expectations of consumers and investors.
• Long-term Viability: Ensuring your supply chain is compatible with a low-carbon future.

Potential impact on business

9/10 – Regulatory pressure is escalating rapidly. As PwC notes, Scope 3 emissions often account for the majority of a company’s carbon footprint.

SAP Taulia recommendation

Ensure your supply chain is not overlooked in your ESG strategy and adopt Sustainable Supplier Finance. You can use your supply chain finance program to incentivize ESG behavior. Taulia allows you to offer preferential early payment rates to suppliers who meet specific sustainability metrics (e.g., ESG ratings). This turns your accounts payable process into a powerful tool for driving Scope 3 reductions and tracking compliance across your network.

5. Workforce Evolution & Upskilling

What is it?

The role of the finance professional is undergoing a fundamental shift. We are moving away from manual data entry and reactive reporting toward a model where AI agents act as colleagues.

This trend isn’t about replacing people; it’s about upskilling teams to become data-literate strategists who can interpret complex AI-driven insights and oversee autonomous agents handling daily tasks.

Areas of importance

• Data Literacy: Upskilling staff to understand, question, and act upon the complex data streams provided by real-time analytics.
• AI Collaboration: Learning to work alongside AI agents that handle reporting, exception identification, and forecasting.
• Strategic Shift: Moving staff focus from “gathering data” to “making decisions based on data.”

Benefits to business

• Speed: AI agents can rapidly analyze vast datasets, providing management with options as circumstances change.
• Precision: Reducing human error in forecasting and routine processing.
• Empowerment: Staff are freed from repetitive tasks to focus on high-value activities, such as supplier relationship management and strategic planning.

Potential impact on business

8/10 – Technology is only as good as the people wielding it. Without a workforce capable of interpreting AI insights, your expensive tools become expensive paperweights.

SAP Taulia recommendation

Leverage Automated Workflows to Elevate Your Team. SAP Taulia’s platform automates the heavy lifting of invoice processing and supplier onboarding.

This directly supports workforce evolution by freeing your procurement and finance teams from transactional drudgery, allowing them to focus on strategic resilience and “exception-based” management—where they only intervene when the AI flags a specific issue.

Shifting Tech Landscape (XaaS & Edge Intelligence)

What is it?

The rigid, monolithic software of the past is being replaced by Everything as a Service (XaaS) and localized Edge Intelligence. This shift favors flexibility over ownership, allowing businesses to access powerful supply chain tools via the cloud on a pay-as-you-go model, while “Edge” tech enables faster decision-making closer to where the data is created (e.g., at the warehouse or port).

Areas of importance

• XaaS Adoption: Moving to cloud-based services to eliminate large upfront capital costs and ensure automatic software updates.
• Scalability: The ability to scale tech resources up or down instantly as business complexity grows.
• Mitigation Planning: Using advanced tech to run “what-if” scenarios (e.g., “What if a key supplier goes bust?”) before they happen.

Benefits to business

• Cost Efficiency: shifting from CapEx to OpEx with predictable pay-as-you-go models.
• Agility: Automatic updates mean you always have the latest features without lengthy upgrade projects.
• Resilience: Edge intelligence enables localized decision-making even when central connections are disrupted.

Potential impact on business

7/10 – Operational agility is a key differentiator. The ability to deploy new capabilities (like a new financing program) in weeks rather than years is a massive competitive advantage.

SAP Taulia recommendation

Adopt a Cloud-Based Working Capital Platform. SAP Taulia is a prime example of the XaaS advantage—it integrates deeply with your ERP (like SAP S/4HANA) but resides in the cloud.

This means you can deploy new capabilities, such as switching from Dynamic Discounting to Supply Chain Finance, instantly without a heavy IT lift.

Providing you with the “what-if” agility to adjust your funding strategy quickly in response to market volatility.

How is procurement evolving in Singapore?

Southeast Asia’s largest port, Singapore has long been known as a major global centre for logistics and trade.

However, despite this reputation, Singapore has not been immune to recent global supply chain challenges. This means procurement teams here, like anywhere else, face mounting pressure to deliver greater cost efficiencies and become more resilient and proactive.

Here’s how procurement leaders in Singapore are responding to these pressures, and how AI is shaping the future of the function.

Procurement challenges are increasing in Singapore

During SAP Taulia’s recent research, 68% of leaders surveyed said they had experienced more procurement-related challenges in the last year. While this is clearly a high proportion, it’s important to note that it is lower than the global result (72%) – and notably lower than some other regions such as the UK (74%) and France (73%). Local factors may play a role in these differences. Singapore is a stable trade and logistics centre with strong government support for building supply chain resilience and a high level of digital maturity.

Despite this, the sentiment in Singapore still shares some similarities with the rest of the world. The most cited challenge among respondents here was managing the impact of macroeconomic shifts (36%), which mirrors the results of other regions (UK: 37%, France: 34%, US: 35%).

A predictive evolution in procurement priorities

Over half (51%) of respondents in Singapore say their biggest priority today lies in optimizing their cash flow and reducing financial risk. This is also similar to findings from the US (49%), although only 42% of respondents in the UK and 35% in Germany shared this view.

Looking ahead, the top areas where respondents expect to make the greatest impact are ensuring compliance with regulations and internal policies (rising from 36% today to 47% in the future) and reducing overall business costs through supply chain efficiency (46% in the future vs 42% today).

The shift in priorities points to a progression from immediate, reactive financial management towards long-term operational resilience as procurement leaders in Singapore seek to strengthen their businesses amid persistent economic pressures.

How is AI used by procurement teams in Singapore?

In Singapore, the most popular task respondents use AI-powered procurement tools for is invoice processing and automation, cited by 41% of respondents. However, in the UK, the most popular task is forecast demand or pricing (40%), compared to risk monitoring and mitigation in the US (50%) and spend analysis and categorization in Germany (42%).

Procurement-specific AI tools are also widely used for risk monitoring and mitigation (39%) and preparing presentations or stakeholder briefings (38%) in Singapore. Meanwhile, the least cited task was supplier identification and evaluation (23%), which is an emerging opportunity for this region as AI advances rapidly in the coming years.

What are the priorities for AI investment and growth in Singapore?

The most cited priority from Singapore-based leaders is data analytics and business intelligence (43%). This compares to just 34% of respondents in the UK but 46% in the US, which shows how priorities vary across different regions.

The future of AI in procurement

In the future, the most cited area where Singapore procurement teams expect AI to have the greatest impact is developing procurement strategy or business cases (39%). Other key opportunities include spend analysis, risk monitoring, and contract management (all 38%). A common theme arises: procurement leaders in Singapore are looking beyond using AI for basic process automation, instead using it as a tool to make smarter, high-level strategic decisions.

While AI presents many opportunities, it is important to address the concerns too. Most (76%) of procurement professionals in Singapore are worried about the long-term impact AI could have on their functions, while about two in five (41%) fear procurement may be absorbed by other parts of the business due to this technology.

It is important to address these concerns, which are shared by procurement leaders in all global regions, and emphasise the benefits of adopting and scaling AI successfully. Our research shows that AI, when used appropriately, can be a powerful tool for improving productivity, efficiency, and resilience. One of the main advantages of AI is its ability to perform data-intensive, arduous tasks in a fraction of the time they would take humans.

The importance of building resilient procurement teams

Nikolaus Kirner, Chief Procurement Officer at SAP Taulia, says AI can help procurement teams move from being reactive to adopting a proactive approach, strengthening their ability to mitigate risk.

It can also strengthen interoperability between procurement, finance, and supply chain teams, which helps procurement leaders gain more visibility over their supply chain performance, working capital, and payment cycles.

Overall, AI is expected to play a significant role in the evolution of procurement in Singapore and the rest of the world.

Our research shows that its benefits go far beyond operational efficiency: it can also help procurement teams mitigate supply chain risks, strengthen operational resilience, and improve supplier relationships.

Procurement teams in Singapore that don’t embrace this technology risk falling behind as C-suite expectations for long-term value and resilience continue to rise.

How AI Is Shaping the Future of Procurement in France

Amid economic uncertainty and heightened sustainability expectations, French procurement leaders face an evolving landscape.

A survey of 100 senior decision makers in procurement with responsibility over supply chains in France, conducted by SAP Taulia in August 2025, paints a picture of a profession ready to invest in the right tools, capabilities, and leadership support to build resilient artificial intelligence (AI)-driven strategies.

Supporting sustainability goals

While procurement in France is still closely associated with core financial responsibilities, professional leaders expect their future influence to extend beyond this into risk foresight and intelligent planning.

At present, the biggest impact for leaders on business outcomes lies in optimizing cash flow and reducing financial risk (38%), alongside shaping supply chain strategy to support long-term business growth (also 38%).

However, looking ahead, the proportion who believe their biggest future impact will be supporting sustainability and corporate responsibility goals stands at 38%, compared to just 24% today. Likewise, one in three (33%) expect to drive innovation through deep collaboration with suppliers, compared to 26% today.

The message appears to be clear: procurement’s role in France is becoming more strategic and innovation-driven.

It also highlights a contrast between France and its closest neighbour, the UK. While France expects procurement’s impact to grow most in sustainability and innovation, the UK sees a larger rise in risk-management responsibilities.

Challenges getting stronger but leadership priorities lagging

A complex environment means that there are some barriers to progress, but encouragingly there is widespread perception that artificial intelligence (AI) can help solve many of the challenges French professionals face.

Nearly three quarters (73%) of respondents say that procurement challenges have increased over the past year, with almost one in five (18%) seeing a significant rise. Over one in three (34%) cite navigating geopolitical risks as the biggest issue, while balancing internal and supplier priorities, managing macroeconomic shifts, and ensuring supply continuity while achieving best value each concern 31% of respondents.

This points to the growing need for better tools and decision-making support, which is where AI represents a major opportunity; consequently, most procurement professionals in France (81%) believe that AI could have a major or moderate impact on addressing their challenges, with 37% expecting a major impact.

However, leadership teams are not yet fully aligned. When asked where their organizations are focusing AI investment as a priority, procurement and supply chain management sat in a distant fourth place at 36% behind three other sectors.

This apparent disconnect seems to signal a gap between procurement’s needs and organizational investment focus, not least because the overwhelming majority (91%) of procurement professionals say it is important for leadership to act to help them overcome current challenges, 63% of which call it very important.

AI adoption on the rise

While AI is already gaining traction in France, adoption is uneven across tool types. Almost half (45%) of those surveyed currently use AI-powered procurement tools while 57% already use generative AI (GenAI) tools.

In fact, GenAI is being used significantly more often than procurement-specific AI tools for strategic tasks such as contract management and compliance tracking (32% vs. 20% respectively) and developing procurement strategy or business cases (30% vs 18%).

This points to a perception that while purpose-built AI is useful to automate operational efficiencies, GenAI is being used to shape strategic procurement activities.

The benefits for strategic capability

For the majority who already use some form of AI, there are clear benefits in three key areas:

• Operational efficiency – saving time and money, boosting productivity and reducing repetitive tasks
• Compliance and risk – enhancing contract analysis and negotiation
• Predictive capability – better demand forecasting/spend analysis and enabling more proactive decision-making.

There are some grey areas of concern – almost twice as many French respondents than UK (48% v 25%) had job cut fears, while just over two in five (42%) thought AI could reduce the procurement function’s overall importance.

Nonetheless, the tide is turning. Almost nine in ten (87%) rate their organization’s data quality as good when considering AI’s full potential, with a clear majority agreeing that advanced analytics in procurement is helping the function move from reactive to proactive (78%), shifting from manual processes to strategic, value-adding work (85%).

Looking to the future: humans and AI in harmony

One of the key takeaways was the message that balancing AI and human leadership is crucial. While French procurement professionals see AI delivering the most impact in invoice automation (35%), spend analysis and cost-saving identification (32%), and procurement strategy development (30%), they are selective about the areas in which AI should lead.

For instance, they are comfortable with AI being central to timesaving, automated tasks such as contract drafting and review (43%) and spend analysis or reporting (40%).

However, when it comes to navigating real-world compromises, they strongly prefer human leadership when it comes to supplier negotiations – 44% want humans to lead direct negotiations compared to 31% for AI.

Perhaps this points to the future of AI in procurement in France taking on a hybrid role. One in which organizations harness the power of AI to accelerate insight, efficiency and compliance, while human expertise is the engine behind the relationships, operational resilience and decision-making that drives long-term supply chain value.

How AI is reshaping procurement in Australia from strategy to interoperability

In procurement, being a strategic partner for the business is no longer optional – it is the baseline. Today, C-suites in Australia and beyond have placed much higher demands on their procurement functions to become more operationally resilient and predictive amid global supply chain volatility.

Our research conducted by SAP Taulia shows that over two thirds (68%) of procurement leaders in Australia say their challenges have increased in the last year. This compares to 74% in the UK, 66% in Germany, 68% in Singapore and 72% globally.

What are driving these challenges?

• Mounting stakeholder pressures, as outlined above
• Ongoing supply chain disruptions
• The expectation to produce more value with fewer resources

However, before we discuss in more detail, it’s important to emphasise that not everyone is experiencing these challenges. Australia was one of the countries reporting the highest proportion of decreases in procurement challenges (15%) of respondents. This data hints that procurement leaders here may be adapting or responding slightly more positively to AI than other world regions.

How is AI reshaping procurement in Australia?

Our research shows that half (50%) of procurement professionals in Australia use AI in their roles, while only 10% admit to not using these tools.

48% of respondents who use AI-powered procurement tools apply them to develop procurement strategies and business cases. GenAI tools in particular are more often used for spend analysis and categorization (44% of respondents using these tools).

Most respondents agree that AI will impact their roles and departments

About 80% of procurement leaders in Australia say AI will have a major or moderate impact on their function.

However, this technology is advancing faster than many of these organizations can keep up – and there are some concerns about the long-term implications of AI as more procurement teams adopt and scale it. Our research has revealed that many procurement leaders worry that AI may reverse its evolution into a strategic, resilient partner.

39% of our Australia-based respondents also believed that AI will make it harder for procurement to demonstrate value to stakeholders. Just over a third (35%) felt AI will lead to too much emphasis on cost savings rather than strategic value, similar to our global findings.

But one expert believes the opposite is true

Gordon Donovan, Global Vice President of Research for Procurement & External Workforce at SAP, in Melbourne, Australia, believes AI is the best opportunity for procurement teams to make their final move to become more resilient, commercially integrated partners.

He explains that as procurement leaders grapple with higher demands and unpredictable supply chains, it’s more important than ever to break down the deep silos that are still holding them back.

How AI can prevent late payments and support business continuity

AI has the potential to support the integration of procurement with finance and supply chains. Donovan highlights late payments as a prime example of this.

“Paying late is one of the fastest ways to damage supplier relationships,” Donovan says.

“Procurement often confirms they’ve approved a payment but the accounts payable team may not have paid it. AI can finally help share this data across teams so everyone understands what the consequences are,” he added.

In Australia, supply chains are particularly vulnerable to global shocks, due to its high reliance on exports and imported manufactured goods.

This can intensify the pressure on those supplier relationships due to the increased likelihood of disruption during these events. That’s why it’s important for procurement teams to improve their day-to-day operational performance and build stronger relationships with suppliers, minimize cash flow risk, and support long-term business continuity, even during shocks.

Australia’s potential supply chain vulnerability could be a reason why respondents here were significantly more likely to cite procurement and supply chain management as their leadership teams’ top priority for AI investment and growth. In comparison, just 20% of respondents in the UK and 36% in France gave this response.

AI can help by:

• Detecting risks such as delayed payment runs
• Automating invoice-matching processes to accelerate payment times
• Providing real-time updates of supplier performance
• Sharing intelligence between procurement, accounts payable, and the rest of the supply chain

Focusing on strategy and resilience

Automating more operations can help procurement teams spend more time on refining strategies and becoming more resilient.

Recent events such as the US tariffs and geopolitical tensions have upended global supply chains and created much more uncertainty for procurement.

Ultimately, AI gives procurement leaders the predictability and stability they need to operate with confidence and certainty, even if the macroeconomic environment remains highly unstable and uncertain.

The future of AI in procurement

Currently, just over a third (35%) of procurement leaders in Australia believe AI will drive strategic value, such as value creation, innovation, and resilience, in the years ahead.

However, through the automation of routine- and data-intensive tasks, procurement teams are better equipped to identify and mitigate risks, allowing them to respond quickly to supply chain disruption.

As Gordon Donovan says: “AI-driven automation frees up time and resources across procurement, allowing teams to focus on the bigger challenges and build real resilience into supply chains. So, the question is, what are you going to do with that extra time?”

AI Procurement in Germany: A shift to data-driven decisions

German procurement teams are on the cusp of a quiet but meaningful shift. A survey of 100 senior decision-makers in finance or procurement with responsibility over supply chains in Germany, conducted by SAP Taulia in August 2025, reveals that many increasingly see AI as a powerful tool to tackle rising challenges and drive strategic value through predictions and resilience.

At present, procurement professionals see their strongest contributions to business outcomes in supporting corporate sustainability goals (43%) and improving the quality and reliability of products or services delivered (41%). Looking ahead, however, leaders expect their influence to grow most significantly in areas tied to long-term strategy.

By the near future, 44% expect their biggest impact to come from shaping supply-chain strategy, up from 38% today. Additionally, 36% believe their role in enabling smarter, data-driven decision-making will increase, compared to 31% now, which is where AI is likely to become a factor.

Challenges getting complex

The emphasis on strategy comes hand in hand with intensified pressure. Two-thirds (66%) of German procurement professionals report an increase in procurement-related challenges over the past year, with one in five (18%) noting a significant rise.

Principally, challenges centered around supply chains, such as ensuring supply continuity while achieving best value (37%), managing working capital without compromising supply chain performance (36%), and balancing internal priorities with supplier needs (33%).

The findings highlight the challenges of juggling competing priorities while trying to build a more resilient and strategic function. It brings into sharp focus how important German procurement leaders see building relationships with suppliers, to plan intelligently, optimize cash flow, and minimize risks.

Germany’s major priority was not shared by respondents elsewhere, however. From the survey, managing impacts of macroeconomic shifts such as inflation and tariffs was named as the biggest challenge globally,yet only 23% of procurement leaders in Germany highlighted this compared to the UK (37%), Singapore (36%), and the USA (35%).

The opportunities AI can bring

Interestingly, there is widespread belief that a greater use of AI could help resolve many of procurement’s mounting pressures. More than four in five (82%) German procurement leaders believe AI will have a major or moderate impact on solving their challenges, and nearly half (49%) expect that impact to be major.

Yet despite this confidence, senior leadership’s AI investment agenda doesn’t see procurement and supply-chain management as a major priority, ranking at 34% and outside the top three, behind finance (47%) and product innovation (36%). This gap is striking given that 96% of procurement professionals say leadership action is important, and two-thirds (65%) view it as very important.

It comes as adoption of AI tools in Germany is steadily progressing, with 57% currently using procurement-specific AI tools, and 58% using general generative AI (GenAI) tools for procurement tasks.

The figures show that organizations are using GenAI for influencing supply chain strategy, with data-driven decision-making (41%) and risk monitoring and mitigation (31%) all areas where procurement professionals want to maintain a human touch but welcome additional support from AI to enhance their decision-making capabilities.

Conversely, AI-powered procurement tools lead in areas that may require more structure and data processing, such as spend analysis (42%), invoice processing (37%), and contract management (40%).

The benefits for German procurement leaders

The main areas the survey highlighted are operational efficiency, compliance control, and strategic enablement. Rather than focusing on cost savings, the most positive benefits from AI raised are in saving time (33%) and improving productivity (31%). This, in turn, supports better contract analysis and negotiation and increases compliance with procurement policies.

AI also frees up teams for higher-value work, with almost one in three (30%) saying it has enabled more strategic procurement planning, and others highlighting how it has improved cross-department collaboration (24%).

Despite optimism among those surveyed, over four in five (81%) worry about AI’s impact on the function, while some saw hurdles in the speed at which AI can be successfully adopted in the procurement function.

However, the overall sentiment was that AI is helping procurement shift from being proactive to predictive, with advanced analytics improving resilience and strategic decision support.

The road ahead: where AI will create value

For AI to shape procurement successfully in Germany, leaders see its biggest impact to make procurement decision-making smarter and faster, particularly through supplier evaluation (40%), risk monitoring and mitigation (31%), and spend analysis (35%).

Looking five years ahead, leaders expected the biggest shift to be in data-driven strategic decision-making (31%), followed by improved market and category intelligence (30%) and tendering process optimization (27%).

Overall, a vast majority (87%) of German procurement leaders rate their organization’s data quality as good, and are comfortable with AI automation in tasks like reporting and invoice processing (54%). However, human oversight remains crucial in tasks focused on managing supplier relationships, particularly supplier performance monitoring (32%). A balanced approach combining AI automation with human expertise is likely to be essential for future procurement success.