Spend Analysis versus Spend Intelligence: More Than a Semantical Difference

In a September 1st, 2006 article titled “Spend Intelligence: The Next Wave of Spend Analysis” the author made the following observation: “As corporate procurement organizations are charged with securing products and services of the best quality at the lowest possible cost, their enterprises are counting on them to be much more than just “order takers.” To accomplish that, procurement organizations must develop capabilities in spend intelligence. Spend intelligence takes spend analysis a step further. It enables the enterprise to take what it knows from the spend data it has gathered and use it to act on forward-thinking initiatives. In other words, spend intelligence provides actionable information.” While the above assessment of the differences between Spend Analysis and Spend Intelligence has its merits, there are still many within the mainstream of current thinking that disagree with its conclusions. Joining me today is an esteemed and diverse panel of experts to discuss and even debate the "apparent" differences between two trains of thought in which the implications extend beyond mere semantics. Segment Sponsor: The Zycus Spend Intelligence Resource Group on LinkedIn (http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=2066738)