A new report by London Business School and Ariba, a software firm, says that the heads of the purchasing department at 70% of European firms now report directly to their boards, 20% up on a year ago. People who used to buy copiers and ballpoint pens now talk strategy with directors because, says Ariba's Steve Mud-diman, "their spend-management expertise is becoming highly valued." With this new clout comes a new title, CPO-chief purchasing officer-and elevation to the so-called c-level, a growing class of corporate executives (known in America as cxos) whose title begins with the word "chief" and ends with the word "officer".
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