If one theme dominated the conversations at DPW Amsterdam 2025, it was this: procurement is no longer simply evolving – it’s transforming.
Across conference stages, demo pods, and hallway debates, the consensus was clear – artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer a theoretical disruptor. It’s becoming an operational imperative. But this year, the conversation went deeper than what automation can do for procurement teams. What stood out at DPW was the sense that we are entering a new phase – one where AI is tasked not just with accelerating procurement but fundamentally redefining how value is created.
The question on every CPO’s mind wasn’t if to use AI – it was how to deploy it meaningfully, and where to begin. One question kept surfacing: where can AI deliver real value, fast? Increasingly, the answer people were seeing was tail spend.
From prompt engineering to goal-driven procurement
One of the most significant shifts discussed was the move from traditional prompt-based AI usage to agentic AI – systems that can take a goal and autonomously break it down into tasks, navigate obstacles, and deliver an outcome. This goal-oriented approach is poised to change procurement’s role entirely – moving teams from transaction handlers to strategic orchestrators.
But the technology alone won’t solve everything. As many speakers and attendees noted, AI’s value will only be realised when it’s paired with a redesigned operating model. Incremental optimisation won’t be enough. That’s why procurement leaders are now looking to areas like tail spend as both the pain point and the proving ground.
Tail spend comes out of the shadows
Long treated as a compliance and cost nuisance, tail spend is now being seen for what it truly is – a lever for savings, supplier diversity, innovation, compliance, and agility. And critically, it’s a space where AI can deliver real results now, not just in theory.
Buyers across industries shared similar frustrations: fragmented supplier ecosystems, time-consuming onboarding, compliance risks, and limited visibility into low-value purchases that collectively make up 20% of enterprise spend but account for the vast majority of supplier transactions.
For many, tail spend has become the clearest case for change. It’s where legacy systems fall short, but where AI + human oversight can deliver fast, measurable results. That’s why the joint session hosted by Nick Petheram, CEO of Nomia, and Ninian Wilson, Global Supply Chain Director at Vodafone and CEO of Vodafone Procure & Connect, resonated so strongly.
Vodafone and Nomia: AI and human intelligence in action
Nick’s and Ninian’s fireside chat at the DPW conference – “Tail Spend & The Human Element in the World of AI” – drew a packed audience and immediate engagement from enterprise procurement leaders. The discussion focused on how Vodafone is transforming tail spend into a strategic advantage by combining AI-powered automation with expert human oversight.
The session underlined a message that echoed across the event: human intelligence (HI) is not being replaced – it’s being repositioned. In tail spend, this means applying AI to rapidly match and score suppliers, automate high-volume, data-heavy tasks across the procurement lifecycle, and surface the best-fit options — while experienced category professionals validate decisions, guide negotiations, ensure strategic alignment, and manage risk and compliance. The result: faster cycle times, better control, and access to a wider range of innovative suppliers that might otherwise be overlooked.
The session was a compelling demonstration of AI + HI in action: smart tech for speed and scale, human expertise for judgment and trust.
Rewiring the Procurement Operating Model
DPW also made it clear that real value from AI won’t come from tech upgrades alone. It will require new procurement operating models – ones that are designed for orchestration rather than administration. Siloed systems, manual supplier sourcing, and static, checkbox-driven compliance processes aren’t built for AI-enabled, agile procurement – and they won’t keep up.
Many attendees shared that they were piloting AI in pockets of strategic spend. But there was growing consensus that tail spend offers the fastest path to AI ROI – and that addressing it at scale requires both automation and service.
That’s where Nomia’s model – acting as a single vendor aggregator across the tail, with embedded AI and human expertise – generated strong interest.
A Human-Led, AI-Powered Future
What was striking at DPW wasn’t just the acceleration of AI—it was how human the future of procurement felt.
With AI handling volume, process, and data matching, procurement professionals are freed to focus on what matters most: stakeholder engagement, supplier collaboration, and strategic decision-making.
At DPW 2025, it was clear: this shift isn’t coming. It’s already here.
