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Manufacturers unready for supply chain upsets

[ February 10, 2016   //   ]

Two fifths of manufacturing executives quizzed in a recent GT Nexus report said that they had suffered a supply chain disruption over the past 12 months. However, few have a dedicated manager to help them cope, according to the 250 senior staff polled in the logistics technology firm’s State of the Global Supply Chain Report.

Less than a quarter currently have a chief supply chain officer in place to help orchestrate the response, and an additional 41% said they have no plans to hire one.

Vice president of corporate marketing at GT Nexus. Greg Kefer, said: “It’s clear in the report that manufacturers expect to face major supply chain challenges in 2016 stemming from external factors beyond their control. The data suggests their execution roadmap may be misguided, being focused more on cost cutting, for example, than more mission-critical things like having a senior supply chain leader in place…With almost half of manufacturers reporting a disruption that impacted business in the past 12 months, this gap in strategic direction to address broader supply chain agility is a concern.”  

Surprisingly, 38% of respondents also said that they don’t believe their supply chain will be impacted by technology this year, which may suggest a lack of knowledge of its role in mitigating supply chain disruption and in supply chain strategy and control.

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