As the global economy adapts to a period of long-term uncertainty, procurement teams are being tasked with diversifying the supplier base of the organization in order to maintain business continuity and avoid risks, all while delivering quality outcomes. Challenges on the global stage include tariffs, uncertainty surrounding Brexit and the Euro-zone, developing economies in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, as well as coping with regulations within each market in which
the organization operates. This report seeks to contextualize the performance and alignment of Procurement departments both within the larger organizations they serve and amid their place in the global economy.
Both direct and indirect procurement are set to be impacted by changes within the global marketplace, and they both share some common strategies for how they plan to prepare for the potential of disruption. Increasing supplier diversity is one fairly common tactic. However, managing supplier diversity also comes with the drawback of reducing Procurement’s traditional reliance on economies of scale to obtain favorable economic outcomes. For this reason, growing due diligence into global suppliers and sourcing from local suppliers are two tactics that are increasingly being explored.