Table 6

Process-based roadmap for AI in procurement

Procurement stageAI applicationsEnabling requirementsKey risks/constraints
S1. Demand and market analysisSpend analysis, forecasting, market intelligenceAvailability of structured historical procurement data; data integration across sourcesData quality issues; difficulty extracting relevant insights from large datasets
S2. Supplier selection and evaluationSupplier scoring, risk assessment, decision supportAccess to supplier data (internal/external); standardised evaluation criteriaIncomplete or inconsistent supplier data; limited transparency of AI outputs
S3. Contracting and negotiationContract analysis, support for negotiation processesDigitised contractual data; formalised negotiation parametersLegal and interpretative risks; limits of automation in complex negotiations
S4. Supplier managementPerformance monitoring, anomaly detection, risk monitoringContinuous data flows; KPI systems; data sharing with suppliersData silos; limited supplier integration; organisational resistance
S5. Strategy optimisationDecision support, process optimisation, strategic analyticsCross-functional data integration; analytical capabilities; organisational alignmentLack of skills; unclear performance metrics; strategic misalignment
O1. Requirements definitionDemand prediction, automated planningIntegration with ERP/planning systems; real-time data inputsData inconsistency; system integration challenges
O2. OrderingOrder automation, RPA in purchasing processesStandardised and digitised workflowsAutomation errors; over-standardisation of processes
O3. Delivery monitoringTracking, delay prediction, logistics analyticsAccess to real-time logistics dataLimited visibility; data latency
O4. Goods receipt and qualityAI-supported quality control (limited evidence)Digital quality data and inspection systemsVery limited research coverage; underdeveloped applications
O5. Invoice and paymentInvoice automation, fraud detection (very limited evidence)Structured financial and transactional dataStrong research gap; implementation uncertainty
Source(s): Authors’ own work

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