As procurement teams grapple with fluctuating global trade policies and rising tariffs, a report finds that over half (53%) of chief procurement officers have increased their source to pay tech budget compared to the previous year.

This is according to a new report from Ardent Partners, which explores procurement’s top priorities and emerging market trends, has been published. The second annual study based on surveys of procurement leaders across the world, assesses changes in technology strategy, focus, and investment at large organisations.

As investment in source to pay technology increases, AI is transitioning from theory to practice, with nearly half of all chief procurement officers (CPOs) utilising AI in some form.

“As external challenges evolve and supply chains recalibrate from recent disruptions, organisations are re-evaluating costs, dependencies, and resilience. Procurement is once again stepping into the spotlight, with technology now central to business performance,” said Vishal Patel, SVP product marketing at Ivalua.

Calls for Digital Transformation

With 90% of CPOs anticipating 2025 to be more challenging than 2024, procurement’s top priorities are to deliver cost savings (71%) and reduce supply risk (42%), closely followed by driving digital transformation (37%).

Within this challenging operational context, nearly half of CPOs (47%) plan to adopt integrated S2P technology to streamline operational processes and better manage complexities in supply chains. Additionally, a majority of CPOs (53%) have allocated more money to technology this year than last, a significant jump from 30% in 2024, indicating growing confidence in digital investment as a lever for performance.

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AI A Strategic Asset

Most respondents (72%) believe AIs impact will either be transformation or significant, and nearly half of all CPOs report using AI in some form today.

Approximately one in three are leveraging AI for one or more of the following activities: supplier discovery, spend analysis, contract analysis, sourcing, and more. At the same time, many CPOs recognise that AI’s success depends heavily on strong master data, a clear business case, and thoughtful implementation.

The vast majority of CPOs (79%) indicate productivity gains as their top AI objective. Beyond automation, AI is gaining traction as a strategic asset: 49% of CPOs expect AI to enhance decision-making, while others look to AI for improved stakeholder engagement/satisfaction (30%) and smarter forecasting (27%). Another 40% cite efficiency as a critical goal, and 32% see AI helping increase savings.

The Role of Data

As more companies seek to digitally transform their processes and start to truly leverage AI, the role of data has never been more important. Almost one in two CPOs surveyed in this year’s study (48%) agree that the best way to take their current performance to the next level is with “better data visibility and analytical capabilities.”

S2P platforms enable procurement teams to respond faster, make better-informed decisions, and operate with greater consistency.

Yet even the most advanced tools cannot deliver meaningful insights without clean, consistent data. The most common barrier to S2P technology performance is poor data quality and/or limited data access within the solutions themselves, according to 42% of respondents.

“To fully realise AI’s promise and maximise its impact, organisations must treat data as a core enabler of transformation and innovation. That requires investing in data quality, building AI literacy, and adopting integrated S2P platforms built on strong data foundations. The AI transformation will be a continuous journey that demands agility, trusted data foundations, and the ability to adapt at scale,” concluded Vishal Patel.