Euna Solutions' 2024 State of Public Procurement Report Highlights Critical Gap Between Project Demand and Workforce Capacity

With a 19% increase in projects and only a 1.8% rise in staffing, Euna's annual report emphasizes the use of network-powered procurement to drive efficiency and innovation

Euna Solutions®, a leading provider of purpose-built, cloud-based solutions for the public sector, today announced the release of its 2024 State of Public Procurement report. This year’s report provides an in-depth, end-to-end analysis of the current state of public procurement, offering actionable insights for overcoming procurement challenges and capitalizing on upcoming opportunities.

The State of Public Procurement report draws from survey responses from over 100 respondents, data from government and industry sources, and anonymized information from Euna’s procurement portfolio, which has expanded beyond sourcing and contract management to include marketplace and invoicing automation. This year’s report highlights the rise of network-powered procurement, where procurement teams leverage peer resources, insights, and larger supplier networks to address some of the most significant challenges they face today.

“In our 2024 State of Public Procurement report, it’s evident that adopting end-to-end, network-powered procurement is not just a forward-thinking strategy but a necessity for modern procurement teams as they are tasked with doing more with less,” said Tom Amburgey, CEO at Euna Solutions. “By leveraging technology, public procurement teams can establish a powerful network that enhances supply chain efficiency, fosters knowledge sharing, and opens up co-procurement opportunities. This year’s report benchmarks the top issues at play and demonstrates how we, as a procurement community, can work together to tackle these challenges, adapt to changes, and improve public service delivery, ultimately helping our communities to thrive.”

The report’s key findings include:

• Staffing and Capacity are Top Concerns: Better processes are essential for improving staff retention and productivity. Complex processes and staffing shortages are the top internal challenges, with more than half (51%) of respondents stating they are not confident, little confident, or neutral in their ability to manage increasing project volumes, up from 46% in 2023.

• Financial Uncertainty, Higher Costs, and Supply Chain Worries Loom: Survey respondents said the top two external challenges they’re most concerned about are the rising costs of goods and services and unreliable supply chains. These issues are compounded by the looming fiscal cliff, which is the result of persistent deficits and growing debt that, if not addressed, can lead to abrupt, severe economic disruptions. To navigate these challenges, procurement teams are increasingly turning to their peers for support to share best practices, gather insights, and leverage their collective buying power.

• Procurement Pros Want to Collaborate: Collaboration among procurement professionals is on the rise, with 54% of respondents engaging with peers on a monthly or weekly basis. Interest in peer insights and resources, specifically peer project templates, has surged by 265% since 2023. Procurement professionals find the most value in cooperative and piggyback contracts, peer RFx templates, and insights from other public procurement teams.

• Strategic Programs are Driving Innovative Approaches: New approaches to procurement can be explored to boost creativity and accountability. These include challenge-based procurement, where organizations define problems and invite suppliers to propose solutions, and outcome-based contracting, which focuses on results rather than processes.

• Networks Can Reduce Costs: Finding new ways to facilitate connections internally and externally can save significant time and improve transparency. Teams using cooperative contracts can lower purchasing costs by up to 7.5% and reduce transportation costs by up to 55%.

• End-to-end Procurement Builds the Foundation for “Network-powered Procurement:” Comprehensive end-to-end solutions provide access to a vast network of suppliers, cooperative contracts, and peer resources. This approach creates a foundation for “network-powered procurement,” which leverages communities and shared resources among organizations to enhance efficiency, innovation, and cost-effectiveness in sourcing and supply chain management.

“Network-powered procurement is the future of public procurement,” said John Alexander, Chief Product Officer at Euna Solutions. “Our report shows how it can mitigate risk, enhance outcomes, and enable procurement professionals to collaborate with each other. Network benefits can work to lessen a wide range of public sector procurement obstacles, such as managing rising costs and concerns about supply chain reliability, workforce efficiency and capacity. It can also help to build stronger supplier relationships, while improving the ability to source new suppliers and increase supplier diversity. By leveraging a network, procurement professionals can unlock new possibilities by connecting with individuals from other agencies, leveraging their expertise, collaborating on challenges, or learning new ideas to increase both efficiency and effectiveness.”

For more information about Euna’s 2024 State of Public Procurement report or to download a copy, visit www.eunasolutions.com/state-of-public-procurement-2024

Methodology

The 2024 State of Public Procurement report is derived from a collection of survey responses from over 100 participants who identify as public procurement professionals, information from government and industry sources, and anonymized data from Euna Procurement’s own system. The online survey was conducted between May 10 and June 6, 2024.

About Euna Solutions

Euna Solutions® is a leading provider of purpose-built, cloud-based solutions that power critical administrative functions and financial operations for the public sector. Euna Solutions offers trusted, easy-to-use solutions for procurement, payments, grant management, budgeting, and special education administration that are trusted to increase operational efficiency, transparency, collaboration, and compliance. Working with more than 3,000 government and public sector organizations across North America, Euna Solutions strives to build trust and enable transparency in our communities. Euna Solutions is recognized on Government Technology’s GovTech 100 list, an annual list of the top 100 companies focused on, making a difference in, and selling to state and local government agencies across the U.S. To learn more, visit www.eunasolutions.com.

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