At the DPW event in Amsterdam, global procurement leaders shared insights on the critical shift from technology deployment to strategic orchestration and cultural change necessary for effective AI adoption in procurement.
At the recent DPW event in Amsterdam, procurement leaders from major global organisations converged to discuss the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in procurement and the critical need for strategic orchestration beyond mere technology de...
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ployment. Moderated by Andrew Bartolini, founder and chief research officer of Ardent Partners, the session titled “Fast-Track to AI: Procurement’s Roadmap for Effective Adoption” featured insights from Anne Eling of Tesa, David Armstrong from BP, and Ilona Piekoszewska of Givaudan. Their collective experience underscores a crucial point: AI adoption in procurement represents not just a technological shift but a profound organisational transformation.
The panelists highlighted the complexity and scale that shape their AI journeys. For instance, Givaudan manages a €4 billion procurement spend focused on flavours and fragrances, BP oversees $28 billion in third-party spend with 31,000 suppliers and 45 ERP systems, while Tesa handles €1 billion in procurement globally with a harmonised tech stack and an already AI-first culture. These examples illustrate how data diversity, organisational readiness, and operational scope inform AI strategies.
Givaudan began cautiously, experimenting with five pilots within a year, driven by supply chain complexities and workload pressures, which revealed tangible benefits leading to broader adoption. BP launched its AI efforts amid ERP transformation fatigue and the fast-growing array of new technologies, setting up a “Digital Garage” team dedicated to scanning technologies, running pilots, and scaling successes. BP’s approach emphasises identifying business problems first through hackathons and employing governance models that vet solutions rigorously before deployment. Tesa, benefiting from a unified technology infrastructure and leadership buy-in, nurtured an AI culture with strong employee engagement, developing AI agents at various complexity levels to build continuous learning and innovation within procurement.
Yet, across these efforts, the hardest challenge is driving adoption rather than deploying technology. Tesa combats resistance with mandatory training, ambassador programmes, and innovation contests that empower employees to experiment with AI. Givaudan shifted KPIs from savings to technology adoption, realigning incentives to foster engagement. BP employs change squads and digital ambassadors to ensure sustained uptake, recognising that adoption unfolds over multiple years rather than overnight.
Underlying all these initiatives is a robust data strategy, critical for sustaining AI capabilities. BP faces the daunting task of harmonising data across 45 ERP systems with inconsistent taxonomies, appointing a procurement CTO and embedding data scientists within teams to establish a pragmatic “clean enough” data mindset. Tesa has transitioned from process-driven pilots toward building harmonised data layers to unlock advanced spend analytics. Givaudan advocates flexible, co-creative vendor partnerships over rigid RFP processes, fostering experimentation with startups to keep pace with AI innovations.
Procurement leaders agree on balancing rapid wins with a long-term vision. Quick, focused pilots build credibility and momentum while strategic, scalable platforms underpin enterprise transformation. Looking to 2027, Givaudan envisions seamless collaboration between human teams and AI agents, BP imagines an insights-driven, transparent procurement function accessible to business users, and Tesa foresees procurement evolving as an ethical steward of AI ecosystems, combining innovation with governance.
Broader industry context reinforces these insights. Market research and case studies reveal that AI-powered procurement platforms yield significant cost savings, sometimes up to 30% on vendor spend, and improve operational efficiencies such as spend analysis, contract management, and risk mitigation. Early adopters report high satisfaction, with over half achieving tangible spend reductions and sustainability gains. Practical implementation advice stresses the importance of data quality, continuous training, pilot iterations, and strong change management frameworks to support adoption and ethical AI use.
Moreover, generative AI is poised to enhance procurement content creation, information synthesis, and decision-making processes, expanding the range of AI applications in the function from document automation to supplier identification. However, scepticism remains about generative AI’s impact, underscoring the need for procurement leaders to lead thoughtfully with clear governance and employee engagement.
Ultimately, the consensus from DPW and industry analyses is clear: AI in procurement transcends technology. Success depends on cultivating a culture prepared to learn fast, adopt broadly, and scale wisely, supported by solid data foundations and change management. Organisations embracing this comprehensive transformation will shape the future of procurement, delivering enhanced value, innovation, and ethical stewardship in an increasingly AI-driven world.
Source: Noah Wire Services
