Companies will sign 20 per cent more procurement outsourcing deals next year, a new report from Everest Group claims.

Its 2012 Market Prediction report claims buyers will expand outsourcing deals across the rest of the supply chain such as inventory management and logistics.

The report says global sourcing activity is projected to be slow in early 2012, but business confidence should be restored toward the end of the year.

Everest also predicts next year will see increased attention to global sourcing management and consolidation initiatives as companies seek advantages from their existing sourcing channels.

"The demand environment for service providers will remain tentative in 2012 given the watchful approach of global buyers, and optimisation will be a strong focus for organisations looking to extract more value from their sourcing models," said Eric Simonson, managing partner of research at Everest.

In addition, the report says companies will continue to adopt hybrid captive/third-party sourcing models, while firms will try to improve captive value by focusing on high-value processes.

Source: Purcon