Digital Transformation: Five Tools Every CPO Should Consider in 2022

Digital transformation is a hot topic for procurement in 2022. In fact, three out of four CPOs consider digital uplift a top priority, according to a recent Deloitte survey.

It also found a significant tech gap between high-performing CPOs and everyone else. The best performers were five times more likely to be using analytics tools and twice as likely to be using automation.

It’s no wonder CPOs around the world are prioritising implementation of procuretech.

So, if you’re a CPO considering a digital uplift in 2022, where should you start? According to VendorPanel research, here are the five areas most businesses are focusing on.

1. Contract Management

If there’s one area where organisations are seeing the most value, it’s in improving the tech that handles their contracts. Around 70% of business operations are governed by contracts. It’s also a well-known figure that up to 41% of costs can be reduced by dealing with contract inaccuracy and noncompliance.

Given it’s such low-hanging fruit, it’s no surprise that this is the focus area for many CPOs. There are a number of success stories about CM uplift (such as Melbourne Airport and Yarra Valley Water).

To learn how businesses are benefiting from contract management software, read our article: “The Ultimate Guide to Contract Management Software.”

2. Procurement Planning

The second most popular area for digital uplift? Procurement planning. Many businesses are now adopting a dedicated procurement planning solution.

These solutions allow procurement teams to make sure staff comply by default with procurement policy. It is a mature, well-tested form of procuretech.

For a full breakdown on this topic, read our article: “How the Right Software Can Improve Your Procurement Planning.” Alternatively, check out this handy infographic to see if your current planning process meets best practice (and if it would benefit from an uplift).

3. Interactive Policy Guides

The idea of interactive policy guides is new, but already it’s attracted a lot of interest from CPOs. This type of solution asks users a series of questions upfront about their procurement (e.g., cost bracket, risk level of the procurement). Once it has this data, it guides them to the right procurement plan.

The big win? Staff aren’t left wondering what policy they need to follow. Compare this to when they have to find and interpret a policy document on their own (and then might get confused).

This solution is used performed before procurement even begins, and therefore helps ensure compliance right from the start.

Want to learn more about policy guide solutions? Click here.

4. Reporting & Analytics

Remember how we mentioned the best performers were five times more likely to be using analytics? For many businesses, improving their reporting is all about getting the good (spending insights) and avoiding the bad (noncompliance).

One great example is Cenitex, a Victorian state-owned enterprise charged with providing ICT services to the state’s public sector. They quickly reaped the benefits of implementing a procurement solution with reporting functionality.

“With VendorPanel, I have complete visibility across the whole procurement process. I can easily download audit-ready reports,” said Cameron Male, Procurement Transformation & Reporting, Cenitex.

5. Source-to-Pay Suite

In many organisations, staff still use email to get supplier quotes, then need to manage the process manually. All this manual handling reduces efficiency and transparency.

To fix this, these organisations are bringing everything together in one online tool. According to VendorPanel research, this can result in demonstratable savings of 9.54% and 4.5 less admin hours per RFx.

To learn more about the VendorPanel Source-to-Pay solution, organise a demo today.