The COVID-19 pandemic has affected every part of the value chain, from raw material sourcing to end customers. It continues to test the commercial, operational, financial, and organizational resilience of the majority of companies across the globe.
Business leaders are looking to gain an advantage when it comes to disruption and innovation, with 67 percent pledging to increase investment in disruption detection and innovation processes.
As the effects of the pandemic continue to impact the global supply chain, how should businesses seek to build resilience into their supply chains moving forward?
Let us explore some of the major disruptions affecting supply chains and strategies that are being rapidly deployed by leading organizations to help build resilience and agility.
Logistics disruption
The ongoing global logistics disruptions stemming from the pandemic continue to impact businesses and consumers as the flow of consumer goods into key markets such as North America and Europe, South East Asia, and India is restricted by the continued shutdowns of major global ports and airports.
The major logistics disruptions create a ripple effect across global supply chains that ultimately cause goods to pile up in storage. This restricts global trade flows and limits access for businesses to import products and refill their stocks of inventory.
Consumers need to reevaluate their expectations, as items requiring repairs and maintenance could also be delayed in lengthy service queues.
Companies must focus efforts to redesign alternative supply chain flows, inventory storage capabilities closer to their customers, and determine how to best enhance last-mile deliveries and returned goods.
Production delays
Manufacturers are competing for the limited supply of key commodities and logistical capacity, leading to consumers experiencing empty shelves and long purchase lead times. However, the pandemic has sharpened the focus on supply chain evaluation and evolution.
Forging alternate partnerships
As we emerge from the COVID-19 slump, many businesses recognize that it is important to enhance their supply chains by identifying alternative trading partnerships. They are actively seeking a broader list of suppliers, alternative markets or customers, and alternative transport and logistics providers.
Businesses can build greater agility and resilience into their supply chains by working with providers who provide new capabilities as a service. This can ensure a vastly diversified and strengthened supply chain with greater potential for risk and cost mitigation in the future.
Invest more in technology
As we move into 2022, you can expect to see an accelerated level of investment as enterprises seek to enhance critical supply chain planning capabilities by adopting more advanced digital enablers, such as cognitive planning and AI-driven predictive analytics.
A seamless flow of information across the value chain and insights drives faster decision-making. Organizations are leveraging spend analytics tools and software packages to increase the visibility of their spending behavior.
The way forward
Business leaders must ensure that they adopt a scalable, crisis management process, ensure they have sufficient leadership capability in place and document their experiences and learnings throughout the pandemic to ensure they can balance the short and long-term priorities so focus on essential change projects is not lost.
Also read: The Future Of Supply Chains