If 2024 was the year everyone talked about AI, then 2025 was the year procurement teams actually put it to work, in real workflows, on real categories, solving real business problems (and occasionally reminding us that change is definitely a team sport).

Of course this year brought incredible new technology, but even more so, it highlighted the people behind the screens: the buyers juggling 400 competing priorities, the category managers trying to find five more hours in their day, the suppliers attempting to decode yet another spreadsheet template, and the leaders pushing procurement toward a smarter, leaner future.

Through all of that, one thing became crystal clear: our customers and this procurement community are what keep the industry moving forward. And we couldn’t be more grateful for the trust, honesty, and partnership you’ve shared with us this year.

So let’s take a look back at the trends that shaped 2025, what we accomplished together, and where we're headed as we step into 2026.

What Really Happened in Procurement in 2025

AI Moved From “Cool Demo” to “Actually Saving You Hours”

Remember when AI was mostly something people talked about in conference rooms with slightly too much enthusiasm? This year, that changed.

Teams stopped piloting and started doing. Real sourcing events, real workflows, real results, powered by agentic AI that is fast and finally helpful.

Buyers leaned on AI for supplier identification, outreach, data gathering, and even event setup. And no one missed the manually built bid sheets. Not once.

Efficiency Wasn’t Optional, It Was the Mandate

If your CFO asked you to “do more with less” this year, congratulations: you were part of a global trend.

Across industries, procurement teams were pushed to:

• Reduce cycle times
• Cut manual work
• Prove ROI down to the decimal

But this wasn’t just about trimming the fat. Many teams found themselves rethinking long‑standing processes, adopting new workflows, and redefining what “efficient” even meant. The pressure forced clarity: if a step didn’t add value, it had to go. If a tool didn’t integrate, it slowed everything down. And if a process couldn’t scale, it became a bottleneck.

Automation and analytics weren’t nice-to-haves this year, they were lifelines. They gave teams breathing room, consistency, and the kind of insight that helps procurement lead rather than chase.

Supplier Data Finally Got the Glow-Up It Deserved

2025 saw organizations realize something we’ve all known for years: garbage in, garbage out. Cleaning up supplier data wasn’t glamorous, but it became one of the biggest unlocks of the year.

Companies invested in:

• Cleaner vendor masters
• Real-time supplier intelligence
• Standardized data structures
• Better integration across their tech stack

And as the data improved, so did everything else. Suddenly, teams could trust their reporting. Recommendations became smarter. Risk signals actually meant something. The result? Fewer compliance surprises, smoother workflows, and more confident sourcing decisions.

Tail Spend Stopped Being the Trouble Child

Tail spend quietly graduated from “ignored problem” to “strategic opportunity.” Teams demanded deeper visibility, tighter control, and stronger governance, and many began using automation to manage the growing volume of small but necessary purchases without stretching their teams any thinner.

This shift marked an important realization across procurement: tail spend is not an afterthought but a meaningful source of value and efficiency gains when managed intentionally. As organizations refined their processes, they uncovered clearer spend patterns, strengthened compliance, and gained more predictable sourcing experiences for internal stakeholders.

Honestly, tail spend becoming a priority was long overdue.

Procurement Started Predicting Instead of Reacting

With better data and smarter tools, organizations shifted toward:

• Forecasting demand
• Anticipating risk
• Automating recommendations
• Using AI to inform strategy

But this shift didn’t happen overnight. Teams spent the year learning how to blend human judgment with machine intelligence, experimenting with new decision frameworks, and building trust in AI-informed insights. The breakthrough of the year wasn’t the predictions themselves, but the growing confidence teams felt in acting on them.

In many ways, this was the quiet beginning of a more proactive procurement era, one where teams could look around the corner instead of constantly playing catch‑up. And we’re here for it.

What We’re Excited About in 2026

Procurement is changing fast, and 2026 is shaping up to be a year defined by intelligence, automation, and adaptive technology that meets teams where they are. Here’s what we expect:

1. Autonomous Procurement Agents Step Up

Autonomous procurement agents will continue maturing into reliable partners that help orchestrate sourcing activities from beginning to end. Instead of handling isolated tasks, these agents will be able to progress an event through key stages, prompt stakeholders when information is needed, and surface insights that help buyers make informed decisions without digging through multiple systems.

Buyers will have more room to focus on strategic work, supplier relationships, and internal alignment while agents carry the operational load. The shift may take some adjustment, especially the first time an event runs smoothly with minimal human intervention, but the consistency and time savings will quickly become indispensable.

2. Adaptive RFx Becomes the Standard

The traditional approach of duplicating last year’s RFP or manually adjusting templates will start to fade as adaptive RFx capabilities gain traction. In 2026, organizations will increasingly rely on intelligent systems that shape event structures based on real context, such as category complexity, supplier maturity, regulatory requirements, and historical performance patterns.

Adaptive RFx frameworks can reshape:

• Requirements
• Bid sheets
• Questionnaires
• Scoring criteria

This evolution will elevate sourcing quality by ensuring every event is designed for its specific purpose instead of following a generic one-size-fits-all template. Buyers will spend less time preparing administrative components and more time refining strategy, while suppliers benefit from clearer, more relevant requests.

3. Supplier Intelligence Goes Real-Time

Supplier intelligence will move toward continuous updates rather than periodic reviews. Teams will have access to insights that shift in near real time, reflecting changes in financial stability, ESG commitments, delivery performance, compliance standing, and market behavior.

This level of real-time visibility creates a stronger foundation for decision-making. Procurement teams can spot issues sooner, engage suppliers more proactively, and adjust sourcing strategies on a timeline that aligns with evolving business needs. With clearer data at the moment decisions are made, organizations will rely less on instinct and more on evidence.

4. End-to-End Workflow Automation Becomes Reality

Gaps between ERP, P2P, and S2P systems have historically forced procurement teams into manual workarounds that slow down sourcing cycles. In 2026, expanded interoperability and smarter automation will help eliminate these friction points. Data will move more freely between systems and handoffs between stages will require less human intervention.

This level of operational flow will reduce delays, improve accuracy, and help procurement teams maintain clearer oversight of every step in the process. Stakeholders will experience smoother engagements and teams will reclaim time previously lost to navigating cumbersome system workflows. It is a practical shift that brings real relief to daily work.

5. Predictive Insights Get Sharper

Predictive models will become more precise as organizations feed them better data and connect them to broader sets of market signals. Procurement teams will gain earlier visibility into shifts in pricing, supplier capacity, logistics constraints, and broader market dynamics.

With stronger predictive insight, teams can prepare sourcing strategies before disruptions occur, coordinate more effectively with internal partners, and position procurement as a proactive advisor rather than a last-minute responder. This forward-looking capability will help organizations build resilience into their operations and take advantage of strategic opportunities sooner.

6. Tail Spend Moves Toward Full Autonomy

Tail spend has long required disproportionate effort compared to its strategic value. In 2026, advancements in automation and adaptive event design will significantly reduce the manual burden associated with managing these lower-value purchases. AI-driven workflows will be able to initiate events, identify suitable suppliers, adjust requirements, and progress tasks through completion with limited oversight.

For organizations with large volumes of tail transactions, this shift represents meaningful operational relief. Teams will finally be able to redirect their time toward complex categories, supplier development, and enterprise initiatives that move the business forward. Tail spend will no longer drain time and energy that could be better spent on high-value priorities.

Stepping into 2026

As procurement transforms, one thing will remain steady: we’re committed to walking this journey with you, not ahead of you.

We will keep innovating by pushing AI further, expanding workflows, and improving intelligence, and we will do it while staying right beside you. No team will be left behind. Not the ones exploring automation for the first time. Not the ones rebuilding foundational processes. Not the ones juggling forty competing priorities before lunch.

We’re here as your partner, your coach, your sounding board, and yes, sometimes your procurement therapist.

Thank you for being part of this community, for challenging us, and for helping shape what the future of procurement can be.

Here’s to 2026, a year of autonomy, adaptability, and all the things we will build together.