Procurement has evolved into one of the most strategic and resilient arms of modern business operations. As 2025 unfolds, Ardent Insights on CPO Priorities highlight how the role of the Chief Procurement Officer (CPO) is being redefined—no longer limited to cost-cutting but increasingly central to driving enterprise-wide transformation, innovation, and risk mitigation.
Ardent Partners’ landmark report, Procurement Metrics That Matter in 2025, provides critical insights into what top-performing procurement leaders are prioritizing. It draws on data from 326 CPOs and procurement executives surveyed in early 2025. This blog breaks down the top CPO priorities revealed in the report, and relates them to practical technology solutions—particularly those offered by Zycus—to help organizations meet and exceed these goals.
1. Savings Still Reigns Supreme
According to Ardent Partners, 71% of CPOs rank savings as their number one priority in 2025—a finding that aligns with the ongoing need to combat inflation, supply volatility, and global economic turbulence.
Despite new U.S. trade policies and tariffs that add unpredictability to global sourcing, CPOs remain confident: they’re targeting a 7.7% savings rate in 2025, up from 6.6% achieved in 2024.
How Zycus Helps:
Zycus’ AI-powered Spend Analysis and Sourcing Solutions help uncover cost-saving opportunities across direct and indirect categories. The Merlin Autonomous Negotiation Agent even autonomously negotiates tail spend to secure additional savings— aligning directly with the CPO savings mandate.
Explore Zycus Spend Analysis Solutions
2. Managing Supply Risk Is Non-Negotiable
42% of CPOs list risk management as a top 2025 priority, reflecting lessons from persistent supply chain disruptions caused by the pandemic, geopolitical shifts, and climate crises.
As the report explains, risk management now goes beyond cost and supply assurance. It involves proactive supplier risk scoring, alternate sourcing scenario planning, and integrating ESG and compliance checks into every step of the procurement lifecycle.
How Zycus Helps:
Zycus’ Supplier Risk Management module enables real-time risk scoring, alerts, and third-party risk feed integration, helping procurement teams de-risk their supply base before issues materialize.
Discover Zycus Supplier Risk Management
3. Digital Transformation and AI Accelerating
34% of CPOs prioritize digital transformation in 2025, and 28% are specifically focused on learning and applying AI, marking a pivotal moment for procurement tech adoption.
Per the report, AI is no longer experimental: nearly 50% of procurement teams use AI today, and that figure is expected to jump to 80% within a year. CPOs see AI as a driver of productivity (80%), decision support (49%), and efficiency (40%).
How Zycus Helps:
Zycus leads the AI revolution in procurement with its Merlin Agentic AI Platform. From drafting contracts to processing invoices and enabling voice-assisted procurement, Zycus AI transforms routine tasks into intelligent, autonomous workflows.
Learn About Merlin AI-Powered Procurement
4. Supplier Relationship Management is a Strategic Imperative
The report reveals that 57% of CPOs plan to improve their supplier relationship management (SRM) capabilities in 2025. This reflects an industry-wide understanding that long-term value comes not from cost alone, but from collaboration, innovation, and transparency with suppliers.
Procurement teams that excel in supplier enablement—such as the Best-in-Class organizations noted in the report—are seeing measurable improvements. These top performers have enabled 61.7% of their suppliers digitally, compared to just 44.2% for others.
How Zycus Helps:
Zycus’ Supplier Management solutions simplify onboarding, monitor supplier performance, and support continuous improvement—all within one centralized system.
Explore Zycus Supplier Management Suite
5. Driving Contract Compliance to Plug Leaks
The report warns that non-compliant or “maverick” spend costs companies 12% to 18% more, and only 62.2% of spend in 2025 is contract-compliant across organizations. However, Best-in-Class firms show contract compliance rates nearing 80%.
CPOs are increasingly viewing contract compliance not just as a legal necessity but as a performance and savings enabler.
How Zycus Helps:
Zycus’ Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) tool, automates clause analysis, flags risks, and helps ensure contract terms are actively enforced across procurement workflows.
View Zycus Contract Management Tools
6. Empowering Procurement with Better Data
The need for data visibility is echoed throughout the Ardent report. It highlights that Best-in-Class organizations are 60% more likely to have full visibility into enterprise spend, which directly enables them to outperform in sourcing, compliance, and supplier performance.
Better data is also a top improvement strategy for 47% of CPOs looking to elevate their operations in 2025.
How Zycus Helps:
With real-time dashboards, anomaly detection, and customizable reports, Zycus’ Analytics and Spend Insights suite empowers procurement teams to make informed decisions fast.
Zycus Spend Analytics Overview
7. The Human Element: Talent, Training, and Agility
As digital tools evolve, so must the people using them. One in four CPOs in the Ardent report are prioritizing talent development, and another third are focusing on better internal collaboration and alignment.
While technology enables, it’s skilled talent that drives outcomes. CPOs now invest more in AI training, change management, and cross-functional alignment.
How Zycus Helps:
Zycus provides intuitive interfaces, AI-assisted help bots, and training resources designed to minimize the learning curve and promote adoption across user types—from novice to expert.
Conclusion: Leading Through Transformation
The Ardent Partners 2025 report paints a clear picture: CPOs are no longer just guardians of cost—they are strategists, technologists, risk managers, and innovators. The road ahead demands agility, intelligence, and resilience in every aspect of procurement.
Zycus, with its holistic Source-to-Pay platform and AI-driven solutions, aligns directly with the top procurement priorities of 2025. From supplier enablement to autonomous negotiation, Zycus provides the digital muscle CPOs need to lead transformation in an uncertain world.
Related Reads:
- Emerging Supplier Risk Management Trends and Technologies to Watch Out For
- White Paper: The CPO’s Guide to Mastering Generative AI in Procurement
- eBook: Illuminate Your Procurement- Mastering Risk Management
- Top 10 Supplier Risk Management Best Practices For Procurement Professionals
- Proactive vs. Reactive: The Importance of a Supplier Risk Management Plan
- Riding the Digital Wave: The Evolution of Supplier Risk Management in Procurement
- 9 Steps to Effective Supplier Risk Management Tool
- Supplier Risk Management: Why It Matters More Than Ever
