Procurement has never been better informed. Today’s organisations have unprecedented visibility into their supply chains through spend analytics, supplier performance data, ESG metrics, and real-time risk insights.
Yet despite this progress, many organisations continue to struggle with a critical issue: turning insight into action.
The CIPS Global State of Procurement & Supply 2026, a global survey-based report produced by the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply in partnership with GEP, highlights this tension clearly. The report is based on responses from 555 procurement and supply chain leaders worldwide, many of whom operate at senior levels such as CPOs, procurement directors and heads of function. Collectively, these leaders represent organisations managing billions in spend across multiple industries and regions.
The findings show that procurement functions are becoming more influential and more embedded in strategic decision-making, yet delivery remains inconsistent. Many organisations are still struggling to translate insight into measurable outcomes.
This disconnect between knowledge and delivery is what we call the execution gap - and it is rapidly becoming the defining challenge for modern procurement teams.
At its simplest, the execution gap is not a data problem, it’s an operational one.
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