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What Every Business Needs to Know about Future Supply Chains

Supply chains matter. A healthy supply chain is essential to the success of almost every organization. History is filled with stories of mighty armies that were defeated not by superior enemies, but by a poor supply chain. The British in the Revolutionary War and the German advance on Russia in World War II are just two examples.

The Challenge: Shifting Expectations and Widespread Fraud

Modern businesses are highly interconnected. Complex products may contain thousands of components, sourced from hundreds of suppliers. Supplies often cross continents, oceans, and customs borders. Businesses need dependable supply chains. In 2011, devastating floods in Thailand sent shockwaves through the entire IT industry. At the time, Thailand was the world's number two supplier of hard disk drives (HDDs) and the flood resulted in a 30% shortage in HDD supply for several quarters. Nobody in the PC industry escaped. Beyond the obvious impact to HDD companies, every PC manufacturer's results were crushed because they couldn't meet demand. Vastly reduced PC sales hit every other supplier to the PC industry, devastating their results, too. Many corporate IT projects were delayed by a year due to a lack of PC supply. The Thai flood had global consequences. In a complex, interconnected world, supply chains matter more than ever.

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