How to evaluate and improve your procurement maturity as a general manager

Understanding procurement maturity assessment

Why Procurement Maturity Matters for General Managers

Procurement is more than just buying goods and services. For organizations aiming to achieve their business goals, procurement maturity is a key driver of efficiency, risk management, and strategic value. Understanding where your organization stands on the maturity model helps you align procurement processes with long-term business strategy, optimize spend management, and improve supplier performance.

What Is a Procurement Maturity Assessment?

A procurement maturity assessment is a structured evaluation of your procurement function’s current capabilities. It measures how well your organization manages procurement processes, technology, people, and data. This assessment highlights strengths and gaps, helping you identify the stage your procurement teams are in—from basic manual processes to advanced, integrated strategies. The maturity model typically covers:

• People and process: How procurement teams are structured and how workflows are managed
• Technology and tools: The level of automation and digital solutions in place
• Data and spend management: The quality of data used for decision making and spend analysis
• Strategy and risk management: How procurement supports business strategy and manages supply chain risks

Procurement Maturity Stages Explained

Organizations progress through different procurement maturity stages. At the lowest level, procurement is often reactive, with manual approval processes and limited data visibility. As maturity increases, procurement becomes more strategic, leveraging technology, robust processes, and integrated supplier management. The ultimate goal is to reach a stage where procurement drives value, supports innovation, and aligns with the organization’s long-term objectives.

Understanding your procurement maturity is the first step towards improvement. It sets the foundation for identifying key indicators, overcoming challenges, and advancing your procurement function. For a deeper dive into how procurement maturity connects with advanced supply chain planning, you can explore advanced supply chain planning strategies that support entrepreneurial growth.

Key indicators of procurement maturity

What Signals Procurement Maturity?

Evaluating procurement maturity means looking at specific indicators that reveal how advanced your organization’s procurement function is. These indicators help you understand where your procurement stands and what needs improvement. Here are some of the most important signals to watch for:

• Spend management: Mature organizations have clear visibility over their spend data. They use technology and tools to track, analyze, and control procurement spend, aligning it with business goals.
• Supplier performance: At higher maturity levels, organizations regularly assess supplier performance using data-driven metrics. This supports better supplier relationships and long-term value creation.
• Processes and tools: Mature procurement teams rely on standardized, automated processes rather than manual tasks. The use of digital tools and integrated systems is a key sign of progress.
• Strategy alignment: Procurement is not just operational. In mature organizations, procurement strategy is closely linked to overall business strategy and risk management.
• People and skills: The maturity model considers whether your procurement teams have the right skills and training. A mature function invests in developing its people and refining the people process.
• Approval process: Efficient, transparent approval processes are a hallmark of maturity. These processes support faster decision making and reduce bottlenecks.
• Data and analytics: Mature organizations leverage data for continuous improvement. They use analytics to inform procurement decisions and measure progress against key performance indicators.

How to Identify Your Procurement Stage

Every organization is at a different procurement stage, from basic operational procurement to a fully strategic, integrated function. A maturity assessment helps you pinpoint your current capabilities and gaps. This is where a maturity model comes in handy—it provides a structured way to evaluate your procurement processes, technology, and people.

For a deeper dive into practical steps and best practices, check out this guide on how to implement procurement best practices for entrepreneurial success.

Understanding these indicators and your current stage is the foundation for improving procurement and aligning it with your business strategy. It sets the stage for overcoming challenges and advancing your procurement maturity.

Common challenges in procurement for entrepreneurs

Barriers That Slow Procurement Maturity

Entrepreneurs and general managers often face several hurdles when aiming to improve procurement maturity. These challenges can impact the entire procurement function, from operational procurement to strategic decision making. Recognizing these obstacles is essential for any organization looking to move up the maturity model and align procurement with broader business goals.

• Manual processes and outdated tools: Many organizations still rely on manual approval processes, spreadsheets, or disconnected systems. This limits data visibility and slows down procurement teams, making it hard to track spend, supplier performance, or risk management effectively. Manual process bottlenecks can also hinder the adoption of new technology and delay the transition to a more mature procurement stage.
• Lack of reliable data: Incomplete or inaccurate data makes it difficult to conduct a meaningful maturity assessment. Without clear spend management data or supplier information, organizations struggle to benchmark their current capabilities or identify areas for improvement. This can also affect the ability to develop a robust procurement strategy or model procurement processes for the long term.
• Limited alignment with business strategy: Procurement teams sometimes operate in isolation, disconnected from the organization’s strategic objectives. This misalignment can prevent procurement from contributing to business goals, such as cost savings, risk reduction, or supply chain resilience. It also makes it harder to justify investments in new processes or technology.
• Resistance to change: Shifting from a transactional to a strategic procurement model requires changes in people process, technology, and mindset. Teams may resist new tools or processes, especially if they are comfortable with the status quo. This resistance can slow progress through the maturity stages and limit the impact of improvement initiatives.
• Supplier management challenges: Managing supplier performance and relationships is a core part of procurement maturity. However, organizations often lack the processes or tools to evaluate suppliers consistently, manage risk, or drive long-term value from supplier partnerships.

These challenges are not unique to any one organization. They are common across industries and business sizes. Overcoming them requires a structured approach to maturity assessment, investment in technology, and a commitment to continuous improvement. For more on how information and knowledge management can support economic security and procurement maturity, see this guide on managing information and knowledge for economic security.

Steps to conduct a procurement maturity assessment

Preparing for a Thorough Procurement Review

Before diving into a procurement maturity assessment, it’s essential to gather a clear picture of your organization’s current procurement processes, tools, and data. Start by mapping out the end-to-end procurement function, from spend management and supplier selection to contract approval and risk management. This baseline will help you identify gaps and set realistic business goals for improvement.

Collecting and Analyzing Procurement Data

Data is at the heart of any maturity assessment. Collect quantitative and qualitative data on:

• Spend categories and volumes
• Supplier performance and relationship management
• Approval process timelines
• Use of technology and manual processes
• Compliance with procurement policies

Reviewing this data helps organizations understand their current capabilities and where they stand in the maturity model. It also highlights inefficiencies, such as reliance on manual processes or lack of integration between procurement tools and other business systems.

Engaging Stakeholders Across the Organization

A robust maturity assessment involves input from procurement teams, finance, operations, and even key suppliers. Gather feedback on what works, what doesn’t, and where the procurement function can better support strategic business objectives. This people process approach ensures that the assessment reflects the real-world experience of those involved in procurement activities.

Benchmarking Against a Model Procurement Framework

Use a recognized procurement maturity model to benchmark your organization’s current stage. These models typically define levels from basic, operational procurement to advanced, strategic procurement. Compare your findings to the model’s criteria for each stage, considering factors like technology adoption, process standardization, and supplier collaboration.

Identifying Gaps and Prioritizing Improvements

Once you’ve assessed your current level, identify gaps between your organization’s practices and those of higher maturity stages. Prioritize improvements based on their potential impact on risk management, supply chain resilience, and alignment with long term business strategy. This targeted approach helps management focus resources where they will drive the most value and support sustainable growth.

Strategies to advance procurement maturity

Building a Roadmap for Procurement Excellence

Advancing procurement maturity requires a clear, actionable strategy that aligns with your organization’s business goals. After assessing your current capabilities and identifying gaps, it’s time to focus on targeted improvements that move your procurement function to the next stage of maturity.

• Leverage Data and Technology: Transition from manual processes to digital tools that enhance spend management, approval processes, and supplier performance tracking. This shift not only streamlines procurement processes but also improves decision making by providing real-time data insights.
• Standardize and Optimize Processes: Develop standardized procurement processes across the organization. This includes refining the people process, implementing a robust procurement strategy, and ensuring consistency in supplier management and risk management practices.
• Invest in Procurement Teams: Equip your teams with training and resources to adapt to new tools and models. Building procurement expertise within your organization supports long term improvement and helps teams navigate the complexities of the supply chain.
• Enhance Supplier Collaboration: Move beyond transactional relationships by engaging suppliers in strategic discussions. Regularly review supplier performance and involve them in innovation and process improvement initiatives.
• Integrate Procurement with Business Strategy: Ensure that procurement is not an isolated function. Align procurement goals with overall business objectives, so that every procurement decision supports the organization’s growth and risk management priorities.

Using the Maturity Model to Guide Progress

A maturity model provides a structured framework to track your organization’s journey from operational procurement to a more strategic, value-driven approach. Regular maturity assessments help you measure progress, identify new areas for improvement, and sustain momentum. By focusing on data-driven management, technology adoption, and continuous process optimization, organizations can elevate their procurement maturity and deliver greater value to the business.

Measuring progress and sustaining improvements

Tracking Procurement Progress Over Time

Measuring progress in procurement maturity is not a one-time event. It requires ongoing monitoring of key indicators and regular maturity assessments. Organizations should establish clear benchmarks based on their current capabilities, business goals, and the maturity model they follow. Tracking improvements in spend management, supplier performance, and risk management helps general managers see where the procurement function is advancing and where more attention is needed.

Using Data and Technology for Continuous Improvement

Data plays a central role in evaluating procurement processes. Leveraging technology and digital tools can automate manual tasks, streamline approval processes, and provide real-time insights into spend and supplier performance. This data-driven approach supports better decision making and helps procurement teams identify gaps or inefficiencies in their processes.

• Implement dashboards to visualize procurement KPIs
• Regularly review supplier performance metrics
• Analyze spend data to uncover savings opportunities

Embedding Procurement Maturity in the Organization

Sustaining improvements means embedding new practices into the organization’s culture and people process. This involves ongoing training for procurement teams, updating procurement strategies, and aligning procurement goals with long term business objectives. Management should encourage collaboration across departments to ensure procurement is seen as a strategic function, not just operational procurement.

Adapting to Change and Managing Risk

The procurement stage of an organization is never static. As markets, suppliers, and technologies evolve, so should procurement processes and tools. Regularly revisiting the maturity assessment helps organizations stay agile, adapt their strategy, and manage supply chain risks more effectively. A proactive approach to risk management and continuous improvement ensures the procurement function remains aligned with the organization’s growth and resilience.

Area	What to Measure	How Often
Spend Management	Cost savings, compliance, spend under management	Quarterly
Supplier Performance	Delivery, quality, risk incidents	Monthly
Process Efficiency	Cycle times, manual vs. automated tasks	Bi-annually
Procurement Team Skills	Training hours, certifications, adoption of tools	Annually

By consistently measuring these areas, organizations can sustain procurement maturity and ensure their procurement function supports both immediate needs and long term business strategy.