More than half of chief supply chain officers (CSCOs) are unclear on the return on investment (ROI) of their artificial intelligence investments, even as AI now accounts for the majority of supply chain digital spending, according to a new survey from Gartner Inc.
The business and technology research firm found 55 per cent of CSCOs could not clearly identify the ROI of their AI investments, while 67 per cent of supply chain digital investments are now allocated to AI.
“Organizations are getting better at executing change for individual initiatives,” said Lorraine Gavin, senior principal analyst in Gartner’s Supply Chain practice. “The bigger challenge today is deciding where to invest limited change management resources so that they support the business outcomes that matter most. AI is making that decision more important than ever.”
Gartner surveyed 394 supply chain professionals from organizations with annual revenue of at least $250 million between November 2025 and February 2026 to assess digital investment allocation. The company also surveyed 135 senior supply chain leaders between January and April 2026 to examine AI use cases and ROI.
The research found rapid AI adoption is creating more use cases than organizations can effectively support with existing change management approaches. Gartner said supply chain leaders need to move beyond individual project-focused change methods and develop broader AI change strategies that align investments with business outcomes.
Gartner predicts that by 2030, organizations that tailor their change management efforts to specific AI initiatives will achieve twice the ROI compared with those continuing to rely on traditional approaches.
The company recommends CSCOs establish formal AI change strategies, prioritize change management resources toward high-value initiatives, adopt flexible approaches based on project scale and context, and develop leadership capabilities to support AI-enabled transformation.
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