Procurement masters are , says Accenture , ‘ rebasing ’ their business cost structure through the use of both innovative technology and immersing themselves in the granular – analysing and understanding the finer details to ensure visibility of the complete picture . Doing so will enable you to develop and implement forward-looking targets and KPIs of exactly what your costs ‘ should be ’. Do this by using innovative digital technologies to enable improved , data-driven decision-making that can create radically different cost bases .

Today ’ s business leaders expect CPOs to be accountable and to accept ownership of budgets . According to Accenture , procurement masters should be as accountable as budget holders . In practice that means making sure that all your strategic procurement principles are adhered to , as well as doing things like placing experts that can deliver on those principles throughout the company and understanding exactly what ’ s driving demand .

52 April 2018