Big business could be saving millions of dollars per year - a full margin point or more - on their indirect spend: areas like IT, logistics, marketing, and energy that may not be a part of a business's core product, but have a big impact on the bottom line.
More than half of Fortune 1000 executives are focused on cost reduction strategies for delivering earnings and funding growth in 2012, according to a recent survey commissioned by Procurian, formerly ICG Commerce, and conducted by Harris Interactive. Administered to more than 300 Fortune 1000 executives, the survey finds that in the coming year 60 percent of respondents will focus on non-people-related cost reductions as the major source of funds for investments in innovation and growth.