The Buzz: Why Procurement Is More Important Than Ever

As supply chain disruptions continue, costs climb, and artificial intelligence reshapes the industry, procurement professionals are facing new challenges and opportunities. How can organizations move beyond traditional strategies to build stronger supplier relationships, embrace emerging technology, and prepare for the future? In this episode of The Buzz, powered by Altium, host Scott Luton and co-host David Shillingford welcome Ben Farrell, MBE, Global CEO of the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (CIPS), for a conversation about the evolving role of procurement and supply chain leadership. The discussion explores the biggest barriers to scaling AI, including poor data quality and disconnected systems, along with new research from CIPS revealing rising transportation, technology, and food costs heading into the holiday season. Ben shares why long-term supplier collaboration is essential for navigating disruptions, how procurement professionals can deliver greater strategic value, and what skills future leaders will need. The conversation also examines CIPS' plans to modernize professional development, the growing importance of trust and ethical leadership, and why procurement deserves a stronger voice in business decision-making. Key Takeaways: Rethinking supply chain priorities: Discover why recovering quickly from disruptions, making fewer decisions, and designing for change may be more valuable than predicting every challenge or pursuing complete automation. Overcoming AI adoption barriers: Explore how poor data quality, disconnected systems, governance challenges, and unclear ROI continue to prevent organizations from realizing AI's full potential. Preparing for rising supply chain costs: Learn what CIPS' Q3 2026 Global Pulse Survey reveals about anticipated price increases in transportation, technology, and food, and how businesses can prepare. Building stronger supplier relationships: Understand why long-term collaboration, trust, and flexible supplier networks are becoming essential for managing disruptions and controlling costs. Developing the next generation of procurement leaders: Explore how AI, ethical decision-making, communication, and problem-solving are reshaping the skills procurement professionals need. Elevating procurement's strategic influence: Discover why procurement must move beyond traditional purchasing functions to become a stronger driver of business outcomes, resilience, and organizational success. From navigating rising costs and global disruptions to embracing AI and developing future-ready talent, procurement has never played a more important role in business success. Tune in for insights from Ben Farrell and David Shillingford on strengthening supplier relationships, overcoming technology challenges, and positioning procurement professionals as strategic leaders in an increasingly complex global economy. Additional Links & Resources: Altium Develop: https://bit.ly/Try-Altium-Develop With That Said: https://bit.ly/WTS-18-Oct-2026 David's Post: https://bit.ly/Keynes-On-AI Sneak Preview: Q3 2026 U.S. Bank Freight Payment Index: https://supplychainnow.com/us-bank/ Download your free copy of the U.S. Bank Freight Payment Index: https://bit.ly/Freight-Payment-Index Inside the Future of Intelligent Warehousing with EPG: https://bit.ly/Scott-and-Jett-MODEX2026 2026’s most overrated and underrated supply chain priorities: https://bit.ly/Overrated-And-Underrated-SCM-Priorities The CIPS Global Pulse Survey for Q3 2026: https://bit.ly/Survey-Says-Q32026 Altium Agile Teams: https://www.altium.com/agile/teams Connect with Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-farrell-mbe/ Connect with David on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shillingford/ Upcoming Live Programming: https://supplychainnow.com/upcoming-live-programming/ Supply Chain Now Resource Hub: https://supplychainnow.com/resource-hub/ Learn more about our hosts: https://supplychainnow.com/about Learn more about Supply Chain Now: https://supplychainnow.com Watch and listen to more Supply Chain Now episodes here: https://supplychainnow.com/program/supply-chain-now Subscribe to Supply Chain Now on your favorite platform: https://supplychainnow.com/join Work with us! Download Supply Chain Now’s NEW Media Kit: https://bit.ly/3XH6OVk Learn more about Blue Yonder Cognitive Solutions: http://blueyonder.com/cognitive Learn more about M.F.G.inc’s Frontline Leadership Certificate: MFG.inc/training WEBINAR- Supply Chain Planning Reimagined: Agentic AI for Decision-Centric Planning: https://bit.ly/3VD1Nka WEBINAR- Rethinking the Supply Chain Management Classroom: https://bit.ly/4xJIkM2 WEBINAR- Detect, decide, deliver: improving disruption response across the supply chain: https://bit.ly/4rXhmiI WEBINAR- Merck Animal Health's Journey to Rewiring Planning for Reliability, Agility and Trust: https://bit.ly/4B6Iq3f This episode was hosted by Scott Luton and David Shillingford, and produced by Triha Cordes, Joshua Miranda, and Amanda Luton. For additional information, please visit our dedicated episode page at: https://supplychainnow.com/buzz-why-procurement-more-important-than-ever-1651 The content in this episode, including all audio, videos, visuals, and graphics, is the property of Supply Chain Now and is protected by copyright law. Unauthorized use, reproduction, distribution, modification, or re-uploading of this content in any form is strictly prohibited without explicit written permission from Supply Chain Now. For licensing inquiries or permissions, please contact us at [email protected] © 2026 Supply Chain Now. All rights reserved. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.