Indirect Procurement

Gain expert insights into the Indirect Procurement job market, including in-demand skills, salary trends, and hiring advice from our specialist recruiters.

What's something candidates are now asking for in interviews that they weren’t previously?

Commitment to organisational stability is something candidates are asking about more often in interviews. With ongoing changes across the UK public sector, including local government reorganisation, nationalisation programmes and mergers between housing and public sector organisations, candidates want reassurance about an employer's long-term plans. Many are looking closely at how organisations are investing in their procurement and contracts teams before deciding whether to apply.

How is AI impacting the Indirect Procurement sector?

AI is creating new challenges for both hiring managers and candidates across the public and not-for-profit procurement market. One of the biggest challenges for employers is assessing whether an AI-generated CV accurately reflects a candidate’s skills and experience. This can lead to recruitment processes ending without an appointment when candidates are unable to demonstrate the experience presented on their CV. As a result, early-stage conversations and thorough screening have become increasingly important.
AI is also raising questions about the future talent pipeline. As organisations automate more administrative tasks, many entry-level procurement roles are changing or disappearing. This reduces opportunities for people to build experience early in their careers and raises an important question: where will the next generation of experienced Category Managers come from if procurement coordinator and officer roles become increasingly automated?

Access our complete Salary Guides by clicking the button below for the latest salary benchmarks, hiring trends, and insights to support your hiring plans.