EY + ISM Panel — Procurement Instincts & AI Reality

A candid panel on how instincts, intake, and intelligent automation are changing procurement’s role inside the enterprise.

In this PLAN panel, two respected industry voices—Armijn Verweij from EY and Jim Fleming from ISM—come together to discuss the human side of procurement transformation and the rising importance of AI-driven intake and decision-making.

The conversation begins with an honest look at where procurement leaders spend their time today: managing complexity, validating details, resolving ambiguity, and acting as interpreters across business needs. Both panelists argue that this cannot scale—and that procurement’s real value lies in judgment, influence, and stakeholder partnership, not administrative burden.

The session explores how AI is changing this balance. Intelligent intake systems reduce back-and-forth inquiries. Document-reading agents eliminate manual interpretation. Autonomous orchestration executes routine steps consistently. As automation grows, human instincts shift toward shaping business strategy rather than triaging operational noise.

The panel also challenges several misconceptions about AI adoption. It’s not about replacing talent—it’s about giving teams leverage. It’s not about futuristic automation—it’s about removing friction today. And it’s not about workflows—it’s about clarity, context, and outcomes.

For leaders responsible for organizational change, talent strategies, or digital procurement roadmaps, this session offers practical guidance: how to prepare teams, how to design processes that complement AI, and how to evolve procurement into a function that operates with greater speed, influence, and business intimacy.