Source-to-Pay trends Chapter 2:
DATA DATA DATA

We have identified a series of Source-to-Pay, Procurement and Finance trends to watch. The first of looked into AI…but people-focused AI, so we will now concentrate in the importance of DATA.

As markets evolve, effective information management is an essential requirement to achieve control of spend and a healthy bottom line. For many organisations, this takes the form of data-driven spend management, i.e. strategic purchasing, cost reduction, and supply chain management informed by in-depth data.

But data and analytics are also the foundation for AI and machine learning. Essentially, data and analytics drive AI, as AI can’t "learn" when there is no electronic data. Even as far back as December 2023, Forbes was stating that Artificial Intelligence Without The Right Data Is Just... Artificial. So, if an organisation wants to utilise AI to its fullest, there needs to be at least a foundational level of data, and process automation.

As organisations strive to leverage AI, and particularly Generative AI, they often encounter a gap between its promising potential and realising actual business value. After all, the answers provided by AI are only as good as the original data.

Generative AI models are undeniably powerful; however, their true value emerges when combined with the knowledge that’s captured in an organisation’s rich data. This is where data orchestration will play a vital role – transforming unstructured data into a consistent format suitable for AI processing – such as the conversion of unstructured data into electronic invoices – making it a potential dividing line between Generative AI success and failure. This is particularly prominent where disparate IT systems and fragmented databases are present.
 

In order to maximise return on investment, achieve absolute efficiency, and create long-term value for an organisation, teams need to be able to access comprehensive data*. And so do systems. For example, if you can access a clear picture of eProcurement and purchasing activities, from transactions through to summary analysis, you can gain total visibility of spend in near real-time, to help make informed business decisions. And if AI data is available, machine learning capabilities can capture invoices and convert unstructured data into truly electronic invoices.
 
Data insights are already transforming the way we live, operate and work, so they should be available to analyse and control spend, monitor compliance and risk, and identify process improvements. Insights from a single source of truth are becoming more and more accessible, where organisations can unlock and harness the power of their data to make better informed decisions and pave the way for future success.
 
* For Procurement, comprehensive data relates to supplier performance data, ESG data, insurance levels, company profile information, supplier financial data, contract data. Purchasers can then be guided to that supplier having had Procurement determine which suppliers should be used, either.
 
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