Procurement teams are heading into a period of intense change, and a new survey suggests many organisations are not preparing them well enough for it. Research from Procurious indicates that capability gaps are already undermining procurement’s ability to help businesses cut costs, improve productivity and reduce supply chain disruption.
The survey, published on 27 October under the title “The Procurement Skills and Training Gap”, found that more than 90% of procu...
Continue Reading This Article
Enjoy this article as well as all of our content, including reports, news, tips and more.
By registering or signing into your SRM Today account, you agree to SRM Today's Terms of Use and consent to the processing of your personal information as described in our Privacy Policy.
rement leaders believe shortfalls in skills are already affecting their ability to meet business goals. That is a striking warning for a function that has become central not only to purchasing, but also to resilience, compliance and wider commercial performance.
The findings suggest the problem is not simply one of finding the right people, but of building a system that develops them properly. Almost 60% of respondents said their organisations did not have a formal procurement capability or skills framework, while 60% said their training budget was insufficient. In other words, many teams are being asked to deliver more strategic value without the structure or investment needed to support that ambition.
AI and digital fluency emerged as the most important capabilities procurement leaders expect to need by 2030. But the survey also points to a broader blend of skills. Behind technology competence, respondents highlighted stakeholder engagement and influence, followed by commercial acumen. That mix reflects procurement’s evolving role: less transactional, more strategic, and increasingly expected to work across finance, operations, sustainability and risk.
The consequences of failing to close the gap could be significant. Respondents said they expect unresolved skills shortages over the next 12 to 24 months to hurt savings and cost avoidance, reduce team productivity, increase compliance and audit exposure, and heighten the risk of supply chain disruption. For an area already under pressure from inflation, geopolitical volatility and supplier fragility, those are not minor concerns.
The survey drew on 67 respondents, most of them based in Asia-Pacific, with others in Europe, the US, the Middle East and Africa. Two-thirds were chief procurement officers, heads of procurement or supply chain, while the remainder held director, manager or specialist roles.
The Procurious findings align with a wider body of recent research pointing to the same tension: procurement is becoming more digital, but the people working in it are often not being reskilled quickly enough. Gartner said in 2023 that only 14% of procurement leaders believed their teams had the capabilities needed for the future, even though many were confident in current talent. In that survey, 96% reported at least some gap in technology and data capability, and 86% said business acumen was lacking.
Other studies point in the same direction. KPMG has argued that procurement organisations need to build teams that can work effectively with generative AI and analytics tools, while still strengthening skills in supplier management and strategic decision-making. A ProcureAbility white paper similarly said automation and AI would reshape procurement roles, making continuous learning more important as routine tasks become easier to machine-handle and more time is spent on analysis, negotiation and cross-functional collaboration.
That wider trend helps explain why the latest Procurious survey places such emphasis on digital fluency. AI is no longer being viewed as a specialist add-on; it is increasingly treated as a core capability. Yet the report also suggests that technology alone will not be enough. Procurement professionals will still need judgement, influence and commercial understanding if they are to turn digital tools into measurable business value.
The message from the research is clear: procurement’s remit is expanding, but many teams have not yet caught up in terms of training, funding or workforce planning. Unless organisations act soon, the gap between what procurement is expected to do and what many teams are equipped to deliver may widen further.
Source: Noah Wire Services
