How to Make Supply Chains “Antifragile”

Cost savings has been the number one priority for heads of procurement and finance across industries. Unfortunately, there is a common misconception that this must be achieved through lean, just-in-time processes and a focus on limited inventory.

COVID-19 exposed just how quickly this can create shortages in critical industries like food and manufacturing — in turn severely limiting cash flow and shutting businesses down. To address these issues and restore supply chains in a post-pandemic world, we must ensure they are “antifragile” and more transparent across the board.

Industries ranging from farming to manufacturing run on supply chains made up of dozens of smaller, individual supply chains. Organizations looking to achieve overarching transparency must be able to collect real-time data that then creates the necessary flows and pathways in those supply chains.

For example, artificial intelligence can analyze this data in large amounts, allowing organizations to create a network crucial to achieving visibility across each level. When data about inspections or product origin, for example, better flows through each of these individual supply chains, the parties involved can better identify disruptions and communicate a solution effectively. This will only become more and more important to pandemic recovery if businesses want to change detrimental processes and prevail now and in the future.