For decades, direct procurement operated quietly in the background, measured by savings and built for a predictable world.

Today, that model is broken. With direct materials now serving as the “spine of the P&L,” organizations face an average annual financial impact of $16 million from procurement-related disruptions. 

While 72% of companies expect procurement to become a strategic competitive advantage within three years, most are failing to close the gap between ambition and capability. 

This livestream, hosted by Scott Luton and Karin Bursa and featuring guest speaker Mark Schenecker with Coupa, explores why throwing more money at technology isn’t working and how industry “Leaders” are building a different kind of foundation—one rooted in automated visibility, continuous intelligence, and cross-functional influence. 

We break down the three-pillar framework—Infrastructure, Intelligence, and Influence—that separates organizations pulling ahead from those simply accelerating their own inefficiencies.

To move from a transactional cost-center to a strategic powerhouse, organizations must stop “plugging in” new tools and start building procurement as native, core business infrastructure.