What is Supply Intelligence?
Posted: Thu Sep 25, 2025 11:50 am
Also known as intelligent supply chain management , the importance of this concept has gained more and more ground in the modern market.
Purchasing departments need to regularly monitor external influences and consider them alongside market intelligence when making purchasing decisions. Furthermore, digital transformation continues to impact nearly every branch of every industry—from large-scale production and transportation to individual customer service and e-commerce.
Supply intelligence , or intelligent supply chain management, requires the implementation and leverage of modern technologies to optimize various facets of the supply chain.
With a smart supply chain, companies leverage modern technologies to collect data and develop insights to better optimize their supply chain. This can save costs, increase profitability, increase speed to customers, and stay ahead of the competition.
What is the function of Supply Intelligence?
Procurement cannot successfully obtain a product or service without understanding the market in which the supplier operates. Supply market intelligence ( supply intelligence ) is external verified tourism data information that companies use to find and manage the supply of goods and services. It includes information about markets, customers, competitors, and suppliers.
The importance of SMI (Strategic Market Intelligence) has emerged over the years as globalization has highlighted the need to understand all risks associated with the supply chain . This has led to a more focused examination of supplier intelligence and the need to understand the markets and industries in which suppliers operate.
For strategic sourcing, supply chain, and purchasing initiatives, supply intelligence is a widely recognized strategic component. Professionals in both large and small organizations find SMI challenging due to the valuable time it takes to gather information and the high cost involved in purchasing resources.
Thus, the function of supply intelligence is to provide market intelligence means collecting and analyzing data to support the management of specific categories.
How does Supply Intelligence help modern businesses?
With market intelligence, the purchasing department is better positioned to manage risks, negotiate with suppliers, ensure customer satisfaction, find cost savings, and gain competitive advantage.
Supply chain market intelligence helps category managers understand the following:
The supplier landscape : who are the main suppliers in your category, where are they located and how do they rate?
Market trends : What is the average price/cost of the product or service in your area? Are your suppliers offering prices above or below average? Commodity pricing should be closely monitored;
Demand and supply : When are you likely to experience increases or decreases in demand ? Are supplies likely to become limited in the future, and what will global capacity do to prices and availability?
Government and regulatory changes : What are the upcoming regulatory impacts on your supply chain and how will this affect purchasing?
Benchmarks : Are you getting good value from suppliers compared to industry benchmarks? This can include benchmarking price, quality, and more;
Negotiation levers : Is there information you could use in negotiations to leverage a better deal with suppliers? For example, suppliers may be willing to lower prices in response to new competition;
Data to support better decision-making : Operational decisions, budgets, financial targets and technology investments must be supported by SMI (Strategic Market Intelligence).
Where to start with Supply Intelligence?
If you have the capacity to build an in-house Strategic Market Intelligence (SMI) team, this capability is typically located in a procurement center of excellence (CoE). A recent supply chain study found that most companies dedicate between one and four employees to their market intelligence team.
Purchasing departments need to regularly monitor external influences and consider them alongside market intelligence when making purchasing decisions. Furthermore, digital transformation continues to impact nearly every branch of every industry—from large-scale production and transportation to individual customer service and e-commerce.
Supply intelligence , or intelligent supply chain management, requires the implementation and leverage of modern technologies to optimize various facets of the supply chain.
With a smart supply chain, companies leverage modern technologies to collect data and develop insights to better optimize their supply chain. This can save costs, increase profitability, increase speed to customers, and stay ahead of the competition.
What is the function of Supply Intelligence?
Procurement cannot successfully obtain a product or service without understanding the market in which the supplier operates. Supply market intelligence ( supply intelligence ) is external verified tourism data information that companies use to find and manage the supply of goods and services. It includes information about markets, customers, competitors, and suppliers.
The importance of SMI (Strategic Market Intelligence) has emerged over the years as globalization has highlighted the need to understand all risks associated with the supply chain . This has led to a more focused examination of supplier intelligence and the need to understand the markets and industries in which suppliers operate.
For strategic sourcing, supply chain, and purchasing initiatives, supply intelligence is a widely recognized strategic component. Professionals in both large and small organizations find SMI challenging due to the valuable time it takes to gather information and the high cost involved in purchasing resources.
Thus, the function of supply intelligence is to provide market intelligence means collecting and analyzing data to support the management of specific categories.
How does Supply Intelligence help modern businesses?
With market intelligence, the purchasing department is better positioned to manage risks, negotiate with suppliers, ensure customer satisfaction, find cost savings, and gain competitive advantage.
Supply chain market intelligence helps category managers understand the following:
The supplier landscape : who are the main suppliers in your category, where are they located and how do they rate?
Market trends : What is the average price/cost of the product or service in your area? Are your suppliers offering prices above or below average? Commodity pricing should be closely monitored;
Demand and supply : When are you likely to experience increases or decreases in demand ? Are supplies likely to become limited in the future, and what will global capacity do to prices and availability?
Government and regulatory changes : What are the upcoming regulatory impacts on your supply chain and how will this affect purchasing?
Benchmarks : Are you getting good value from suppliers compared to industry benchmarks? This can include benchmarking price, quality, and more;
Negotiation levers : Is there information you could use in negotiations to leverage a better deal with suppliers? For example, suppliers may be willing to lower prices in response to new competition;
Data to support better decision-making : Operational decisions, budgets, financial targets and technology investments must be supported by SMI (Strategic Market Intelligence).
Where to start with Supply Intelligence?
If you have the capacity to build an in-house Strategic Market Intelligence (SMI) team, this capability is typically located in a procurement center of excellence (CoE). A recent supply chain study found that most companies dedicate between one and four employees to their market intelligence team.