Most discussions about the procurement talent shortage focus on recruitment. CASME's benchmarking and practitioner discussions suggest the bigger challenge is not finding people but building the commercial, digital and leadership capabilities that modern Procurement requires.

Organisations are competing for professionals who combine sourcing expertise with commercial judgement, data literacy, digital confidence and stakeholder influence. Yet far fewer are investing in the entry routes, practical experience and development needed to create a stronger pipeline of talent internally.

CASME’s research illustrates the imbalance: while 44% of organisations primarily recruit experienced procurement professionals, only 12% mainly focus on entry-level recruitment and internal development. Rather than increasing the overall supply of talent, organisations are competing for the same experienced professionals.

Closing the gap will require more than recruitment. Organisations must develop talent earlier, build capabilities deliberately and give procurement professionals compelling reasons to join, grow and stay.

This article combines findings from CASME benchmarking with practical observations shared by procurement practitioners to explore how organisations can strengthen their long-term talent pipeline.

What is Causing the Procurement Talent Shortage?

The procurement talent shortage is being caused by rising demand for broader capabilities, limited awareness of Procurement as a career, unclear entry pathways and an overreliance on experienced hires. Organisations are seeking professionals who can analyse data, influence senior stakeholders, lead change and apply digital tools rather than simply run sourcing processes. Yet many invest too little in the early-career roles, mentoring and practical experience needed to develop those skills.

AI is also changing employer expectations. As routine procurement activities become increasingly automated, organisations place greater value on commercial judgement, critical thinking, stakeholder influence and the ability to work effectively alongside AI-enabled tools. The result is a growing gap between the capabilities organisations need and those available in the market.

When employers expect people to arrive fully formed, they compete for the same limited pool of experienced professionals rather than expanding it.

Which Procurement Skills are Hardest to Recruit?

CASME’s procurement transformation research found that organisations are seeking professionals with stronger:

• Analytical capability (52%)
• Digital expertise (41%)
• Stakeholder influence and relationship-building (41%)
• Innovative commercial thinking (34%)
• Supplier relationship management (28%).

Although generative AI has transformed how many of these activities are performed, it has increased rather than reduced demand for higher-order skills. AI can analyse information and generate recommendations, but people still need to frame the right questions, test the output, exercise commercial judgement, challenge assumptions and influence stakeholders to act. 

Many professionals develop deep expertise in sourcing, supplier management and contract negotiation but have fewer opportunities to lead cross-functional change, communicate complex insights to senior stakeholders or influence decisions without formal authority.

As Procurement becomes more strategic, organisations increasingly value capabilities such as:

• Interpreting and communicating data effectively 
• Influencing stakeholders without direct authority 
• Aligning procurement objectives with wider business priorities 
• Leading organisational change 
• Applying digital technologies to improve decision-making 
• Building collaborative supplier and stakeholder relationships.

For many organisations, this is the real procurement talent shortage. Recruiting specialists in every emerging discipline is rarely practical, making internal professional development increasingly important.

How AI is Changing Procurement Talent Development

AI is removing many of Procurement’s traditional learning opportunities. 

Early-career professionals learned procurement by doing foundational work: analysing spend, researching suppliers, supporting tenders, reviewing quotations and drafting contracts. Much of that work is now being automated or accelerated by AI.

Automating repetitive work improves productivity, but it also creates a development risk. The task may have been mundane, but the learning was not. Repetition taught people to recognise patterns, question anomalies, understand supplier behaviour and learn from low-stakes mistakes. If junior roles become little more than reviewing AI outputs, future procurement teams may lack the nuanced judgement that only experience can develop.

Leaders need to redesign early-career roles so that AI accelerates learning rather than replaces it. That means supervised use of AI, exposure to live stakeholder and supplier discussions, rotations across categories, opportunities to challenge AI outputs and regular feedback from experienced practitioners.

Why Recruitment Alone Won’t Solve the Procurement Talent Shortage

CASME research found that 44% of organisations primarily recruit experienced procurement professionals from other organisations, while only 12% focus mainly on entry-level recruitment and internal development.

Hiring experienced professionals can address immediate capability gaps, but it does little to increase the overall supply of procurement talent. When many organisations rely on the same strategy, competition intensifies, salaries rise, vacancies become more difficult to fill and succession pipelines remain thin, particularly for the most sought-after skills.

A more sustainable approach combines targeted recruitment with workforce planning, internal mobility and structured talent development. It starts by identifying current strengths, future capability gaps and which skills should be recruited externally, developed internally or strengthened through peer learning.

Building future expertise requires more than hiring experienced professionals. Sustainable success depends on building capability alongside targeted recruitment. Organisations need clear career pathways, mentoring, exposure to strategic projects and opportunities to gain experience across different categories, business functions and transformation initiatives. Together, these elements create a stronger pipeline of future procurement leaders and specialists.

How to Attract, Develop and Retain Procurement Talent

CASME members consistently report that the most effective procurement talent management strategies connect recruitment, development and retention rather than treating them as separate challenges.

Organisations that consistently attract and retain high-performing procurement professionals take a long-term approach, combining strategic positioning, career development, succession planning and a working environment where Procurement can make a meaningful business impact.

1. Create Clear Entry Routes into Procurement

Procurement still lacks the clearly understood career pathways associated with professions such as finance, law or marketing. This challenge is increasingly recognised by industry commentators calling for clearer pathways into procurement careers.

Partnerships with schools, universities, apprenticeship providers and career-change programmes can raise awareness, but employers must also offer credible entry-level roles. Job descriptions should distinguish between capabilities that can be developed and those genuinely required from day one; otherwise, organisations risk filtering out the very people they need to develop.

2. Develop Capability Through Real Work

CASME benchmarking research found that 52% of organisations identified career planning and development programmes as successful retention strategies, while 52% also highlighted learning and development initiatives focused on emerging capabilities.

Formal training matters, but commercial judgement, stakeholder influence and negotiation skills grow through practice. Give people opportunities to contribute to category strategies, lead supplier negotiations, collaborate with senior stakeholders and participate in transformation projects, while supporting them with mentoring and feedback. Rotations and stretch assignments can broaden experience without requiring employees to leave the organisation to progress.

Learning should not come only from formal training. Benchmarking against comparable organisations, participating in peer discussions and learning from practitioners facing similar challenges can accelerate capability development while broadening commercial thinking beyond a single organisation's experience.

3. Position Procurement as a Strategic Career

CASME benchmarking found that 71% of organisations identified positioning Procurement as a respected strategic partner as one of the most successful ways to attract and retain talent. A further 61% highlighted opportunities to collaborate with senior stakeholders as an important retention factor.

Ambitious professionals are more likely to join and stay when they can influence business decisions, engage directly with senior stakeholders, work on commercially important problems and see a credible route to leadership or a long-term career, rather than simply managing procurement processes.

4. Build a Succession Plan Before Vacancies Appear

Succession planning should begin long before critical roles become vacant. Identify critical positions, scarce capabilities and potential successors early to reduce disruption and preserve organisational knowledge. 

As AI automates more routine procurement activities, organisations must ensure early-career professionals still have opportunities to develop commercial judgement, stakeholder management skills and business understanding through meaningful work. Succession planning must consider not only who will fill future leadership roles, but also how future leaders gain the skills and experience to succeed.

5. Create a Career People Want to Stay In

Pay matters, but retention also depends on meaningful work, flexibility, recognition, continuous development and clear career progression. CASME members identified competitive compensation, flexible working arrangements and career development opportunities among the most successful practices for attracting and retaining skilled procurement professionals.

People stay where they continue learning, make a visible contribution and can see a clear future for their careers.

How Benchmarking Helps Close Procurement Skills Gaps

Benchmarking helps procurement leaders identify capability gaps, understand which strengths matter most, compare development approaches, and learn how peers have addressed similar workforce challenges. CASME's benchmarking draws on independent peer organisations rather than suppliers or consultants, providing insights grounded in real procurement practice.

Benchmarking enables Procurement to validate priorities, learn from proven approaches and make better-informed decisions without automatically defaulting to another permanent hire or consultancy engagement. 

It complements internal capability development by exposing teams to real-world experience, effective strategies and lessons from organisations facing similar workforce challenges.

The Future of Procurement Depends on Building the Talent Pipeline

The procurement talent shortage will not be solved by moving experienced professionals between organisations. Long-term success depends on expanding the pipeline of talent, developing commercial judgement through experience and ensuring future procurement leaders have opportunities to grow alongside advances in technology.

Organisations that invest in practical learning, structured capability development, meaningful career opportunities and long-term workforce planning will be better placed to attract talent, retain expertise and build resilient procurement functions. The organisations that succeed will be those that treat talent development as a strategic capability, not simply a recruitment challenge.

Strengthen Procurement Capability Through Benchmarking

Recruiting specialist expertise for every emerging challenge is rarely practical. 

CASME's Benchmarking Services help procurement leaders identify capability gaps, validate priorities and learn from comparable organisations facing similar challenges.

When every new challenge cannot justify another hire or consultancy engagement, independent peer insight helps procurement teams build capability, learn faster and make better-informed decisions across category management, stakeholder engagement, digital transformation and wider procurement strategy.