Including CSR and ESG criteria to better assess risks and opportunities related to sustainability is becoming an important step during the tendering process for many companies and it's more important than ever that suppliers take this responsibility seriously.

Most will agree that the main role of procurement is to ensure that the best possible deal is made and that the company is spending its money wisely while ensuring full visibility of what and how much each business unit is spending.

Large companies with operations in the European Union could start being held responsible for environmental violations or human rights abuses committed by the business and their supply chains under a new law proposed in late February by the European Commission.

Regardless of industry, organisations face common challenges when it comes to achieving the best possible savings along with making a robust strategic spending plan. Fragmenting spending between direct and indirect, among multiple locations, categories, departments, and units is not easy and can make the job of capturing new savings opportunities much harder.

While the past two years showed procurement and supply chain professionals that disruption can appear fast and without warning, 2022 has so far been one heavy on planning and preparedness as companies begin to build back.

The term digital transformation has been around for a while now and most small to mid-sized companies would be forgiven for thinking it was a process reserved for only large organisations. However, in most cases, this most certainly isn't the case.

In early October, a global survey conducted by Jaggaer and Tealbook found that 70% of organisations are prioritising supplier diversity, but most of them are struggling to find diverse suppliers.

The majority of companies are investing big in technology. At least that's what the 2021 PwC’s 24th annual CEO survey reported: 4,446 CEOs from 89 countries and territories responded that more than half of them will increase their digital investment by 10% or more in the next year – the biggest spending increase than any other category.

Bringing sustainability to procurement is one of the most important priorities for most companies and has been a popular topic around supply chain leaders, especially when it comes to identifying how to start and where to apply good sustainable procurement practices that will bring results and be maintained as time goes by.