The Hackett Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: HCKT) has published a set of AI World Class Procurement benchmarks, according to a company press release. The research quantifies performance differences between organizations that redesign procurement processes around artificial intelligence and those that apply AI to automate existing activities.

The benchmarks cover procurement processes including sourcing, supplier management, purchasing, purchase-to-pay and supplier performance. According to the research, organizations classified as AI World Class generate up to 3.7 times greater procurement return on investment and up to three times greater savings impact compared to peers.

The research also projects that purchase-to-pay process costs can decline by up to 80%, while staffing requirements per billion dollars of spend can fall by up to 81%. Additional findings include a 97% increase in competitive bidding, a 110% improvement in guided buying and catalog adoption, a 69% reduction in maverick spend, a 76% decline in invoice errors, and a 74% acceleration in invoice processing.

"Most organizations are still trying to justify AI investments one use case at a time," said Tim Yoo, principal and Procurement Transformation practice leader at The Hackett Group. "Our research shows the greatest returns come when organizations redesign procurement processes with AI as a key enabler, allowing better decisions to build value throughout the end-to-end process."

"Procurement creates the greatest value before an order is placed," said Jeff Gilkerson, principal at The Hackett Group. "AI gives procurement teams the capacity to spend less time administering transactions and more time making better supplier and commercial decisions that strengthen enterprise performance."

The benchmarks are part of a broader AI World Class portfolio spanning 16 end-to-end enterprise processes. The Hackett Group states the findings draw on more than 30 years of benchmark data from organizations including 90% of the Fortune 100.