Procurement in 2025: What ‘good’ looks like for commercial managers

Construction is under pressure.

Demand is up. Capacity is flat. Costs bite. Productivity is the lever. Digital procurement is where you’ll get the biggest, fastest wins.

This post distils a recent conversation with Alastair Blenkin (ProcurePro) into practical moves for UK main contractors. Short, sharp, usable.

Procurement is where ambition meets reality

Tenders aren’t “admin”. They set margin, programme, and risk.
The modern playbook is simple: one connected workflow from precon to signed subcontract — a live procurement schedule, standardised scopes, structured tenders and price breakdowns, apples-to-apples comparisons and recommendations, click-to-compile contracts, and eSign.

Proof it works:

• Mount Anvil (UK): 50% faster procurement.
• McNab: cut procurement time by 50%.
• Novati: thousands of hours saved.
• Erilyan: slick, efficient procurement.

Redefine “value”

Value ≠ cheapest.
Value = the right sub for this job: capability, capacity, track record, and timing.
Structure the decision with Comparisons & Recommendations and back it with vendor ratings and performance data so awards are defensible. If your team still equates value with “lowest number”, share this explainer: Why the cheapest price isn’t always best.

Break the silos

Projects behave like mini businesses. That hides risk and overloads favourite subs.
A single, live procurement schedule gives leadership and commercial teams day-by-day visibility — not just on reporting day. Use Supply Chain Insights to spot over/under-burdened subcontractors and balance load across projects.

Further reading: How visibility prevents budget blowouts.

Volatility favours the fast

Post-COVID pricing made speed-to-contract a competitive edge.
Click-to-compile Contract Creation plus Electronic Signature remove days or weeks from award cycles and reduce unsigned-contract risk. If you’re comparing tools, here’s the DocuSign integration. For a plain-English benefits overview, see: 7 benefits of eSignatures in subcontracts.

Kill the “dirty dozen” procurement problems

Low visibility, manual process, disconnected workflow, delays, weak exec reporting, inconsistency, poor scalability, supply chain strain, scope gaps, unsigned contracts, avoidable errors, burnt-out teams.

A single, standardised workflow tackles most of these in one go. If scopes are your Achilles’ heel, build (or upgrade) a Scope of Works Library and grab the free resources:

• Scope of Works Library eGuide
• Scope of Works templates (UKI & ANZ)

Case in point: Digital transformation lessons from innovative builders.

Practical AI that helps today (not hype)

AI won’t replace commercial managers; it amplifies them.

High-impact use cases in procurement:

• Auto-levelling quotes. Ingest mixed formats; get a clean comparison; spend time on exceptions, not data entry. See “AI trends to watch in 2025” and “The AI-enabled surveyor.”
• Pricing intelligence. Surface historical, comparable packages (scope, size, location) to benchmark and reduce re-tendering for “information”. A good primer: “Why AI needs humans in the driver’s seat” and “AI maturity: from experiments to impact.”

Broader context: “The complete guide to AI construction innovations” and “10 ways AI is reshaping construction.”

What to do this week

1. Map the friction. Where are you re-typing data or duplicating steps? Use this checklist: Top procurement features you actually need.
2. Standardise scopes. Build a Scope of Works Library to kill scope gaps and apples-to-oranges comparisons.
3. Centralise the workflow. Move schedules, tenders, comparisons, approvals, contracts, and eSign into one system.
4. Instrument reporting. Give leadership visibility without shoulder-tapping: Managing Risk analytics.
5. Pilot AI on one package. Start with auto-levelling; measure hours saved. For quick wins, skim the Practical AI use cases cheat sheet (internal or campaign asset).
6. Tighten supplier loops. Track invites, quotes, awards, and hit rates; share feedback. If you do fit-out, this will resonate: How fit-out contractors are digitising procurement.

Why ProcurePro?

• All-in-one: live schedule, scopes library, tenders, comparisons, contracts, eSign, vendor management & ratings, lessons learnt.
• Proven at scale: explore the Customer Stories hub and the Newsroom.
• Fast to value: unlimited users & projects, all features included, and support in <60 seconds with a real human.

Want more? Browse the Knowledge Bank or jump straight to an expert walkthrough: Unlocking procurement potential.