From backroom buyers to boardroom “orchestrators of value”, the procurement workforce is undergoing just as radical a transformation as the function that they perform.
Less visible—-or framed as a labour shortage—than the adoption of new technologies and methodologies is the fact that, while procurement teams may have adequate staff and skills to address the demands of the industry today, very few procurement leaders are confident in their talent’s ability to meet the future demands of the function—just 14% according to a recent Gartner report.
The procurement skills shortage
CPOs are increasingly facing a shortage of skills as procurement becomes increasingly saturated with complex technologies requiring a minimum level of technological know-how to make the most of newly adopted technology like advanced data analytics.
This would be enough of a problem by itself, but Gartner’s study found that technology was far from the only at-risk area with regard to the gap between current ability and future demand. A staggering 96% percent of respondents reported at least a small gap in their needs for technology and data skills, while 86% reported the same when it came to business acumen.
“Procurement leaders are aware that the competencies required to drive transformation are different from traditional procurement skills, and that there are significant gaps between their current and future needs for the most important competencies,” said Fareen Mehrzai, Senior Director Analyst in Gartner’s Supply Chain Practice.
According to Scott Berkman, chief procurement officer at Elior North America, the answer lies not in seeking to hire staff with the technology and business acumen necessary to meet future need, but rather identifying employees with the ability to acquire those skills with proper development and training, as well as the right attitude and approach to the role.
Hire for the DNA, train for the skill
“On the procurement side, it’s DNA. You hire for DNA and train for skill,” he said in a recent interview.
Communication, curiosity, and the ability to function within a team are all key criteria for a good potential hire, Berkman added. However, he also noted “there is competition for talent, so based on that, in the hiring process, you have to be able to offer a differentiating environment.” Offering training on new technologies should be seen for the win-win that it is. By doing so, organisations allow procurement professionals to strengthen their skillset while also meeting the evolving needs of the business.
The CPO of a technology company, interviewed as part of McKinsey’s 2024 procurement industry report, noted that “Procurement professionals are going to need to be much more digitally fluent, so that they can learn from the data that is available to them. Just figuring out what are the right questions to ask the data is something that more and more supply chain professionals are becoming adept at, and that’s really going to help people be more surgical in making selections, measuring supplier performance, and building future plans.”
At the same time, developing the business acumen side of things in order that procurement can step into the function’s increasingly strategic role successfully. Whatever technology, skill, or strategic competency CPOs need to ensure their function can handle the demands of the decade to come, however, McKinsey’s report emphasises the need to “gain, retain, and develop talent.”
