Red Sea Attacks Impact Supply Chain Volatility, The Growing Influence of CPOs, Effective Direct Sourcing Strategies and More

The GEP RoundUp brings you the latest and greatest from GEP, and the world of supply chain and procurement.

Featuring the top stories, insights and events curated by our experts, partners and clients, we cover everything from the newest innovations and technologies to the biggest challenges and opportunities facing the industry – so you can stay up to date and in the know.

1. CPOs Have Become Strategic Decision-Makers, Says ProcureCon CPO Report

Besides managing ground-level operations, the chief procurement officer is today also participating in business strategy, technology implementation and sustainability. How will these additional responsibilities transform the CPO’s role? According to the 2024 ProcureCon CPO Report, procurement leaders have the opportunity to get their voices heard and exercise more influence in decision-making.

The report, sponsored by GEP, takes a deep dive into the evolving role of procurement leadership in enterprises.?

2.?Red Sea Attacks Drive Transportation Costs to 15-Month High: GEP Global Supply Chain Volatility Index

The GEP Global Supply Chain Volatility Index rose to -0.12 in January, from -0.44 in December, its highest level since last April, indicating that spare capacity across global supply chains has shrunk notably. Although this is the ninth successive month of excess capacity at global suppliers, the downturn eased to its weakest since last April.

The biggest impact from the Red Sea disruption was to transportation costs, which rose to a 15-month high in January, as commercial ships took the lengthier route around the Cape of Good Hope. There was also a slight pickup in safety stockpiling, with reports from businesses of inventory building due to supply or price fears at the highest since last June. Know More.

3. Hydrogen Economy an Opportunity for Oil & Gas Companies

Hydrogen can diversify the energy mix and help meet stiff sustainability goals. However, most of the hydrogen is consumed where it is produced because of distribution limitations. Oil & gas companies that are keen to take advantage of the increased interest in hydrogen as a fuel need to develop new distribution plans. A new GEP whitepaper explains how they can avoid significant capital costs to develop new transmission and distribution infrastructure by leveraging existing natural gas infrastructure.

4. Strategies to Succeed in Direct Material Sourcing in 2024

Direct material procurement has become more complex than ever amid cost fluctuations, demand variability, supply uncertainties and expanding sustainability goals. Procurement leaders must assimilate learnings from the past years and rethink their priorities and metrics.

In this new GEP podcast, our experts discuss the most pressing challenges in direct material sourcing and walk you through proven strategies to overcome them.

5. AI Can Streamline Auditing and Taxation Services

In a survey of over 750 finance executives, 73% acknowledged AI could help accounting firms modernize processes and improve accuracy to deliver more value to clients.

How can accounting firms fast-track their investments in the latest tools to meet demand?

This new GEP bulletin outlines an aggressive strategy for procurement to identify target areas for maximizing efficiency and achieve meaningful visibility into their audit and tax engagements.

6. How to Make M&As Work in the Life Sciences Industry

A potential value loss of an estimated $200 billion from expiring patents by 2030 has accentuated the need for strategic mergers and acquisitions in the life sciences industry.

How can life sciences companies succeed in a dynamic M&A landscape?

The latest GEP bulletin discusses four strategies that can help enterprises ensure sustainable deal-making in today’s evolving market.

7.?Time to Refresh Sourcing Methods in the High-Tech Industry

More than 90% of decision-makers in high tech say they have notable, avoidable expenses. How can they improve their sourcing strategies and respond to ongoing cost pressures?

This new GEP bulletin can help high-tech procurement pros refresh their sourcing approach in today’s uncertain business environment.

8.?Top 3 Use Cases of Generative AI in Procurement

Procurement leaders are keenly tracking developments in the Generative AI space to identify potential high-impact use cases across the source-to-pay value chain. Processes that require creative content generation and innovative problem-solving capabilities are best suited for deploying this technology. This GEP blog discusses the top 3 use cases of Generative AI in procurement.

9.?GEP and Bayer Win SIG Awards for Innovations in Outsourcing

GEP and Bayer have won the SIG Future of Sourcing Awards in the Innovations in Outsourcing category. Join GEP’s Jamie Ogilvie-Smals, VP of Consulting and Dr. Frank Kobor, VP Head of Procurement Rapid Deployment Team at Bayer as they talk about the achievement in a recent episode of The Sourcing Industry Landscape podcast.

The two leaders explore the partnership that successfully revamped Bayer’s procurement function, spotlighting the shift to a centralized global model, substantial cost savings and the establishment of highly efficient operations.

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