Kearney launches “supply chain institute” as more companies seek resilience plans

The global consulting firm Kearney has launched a “supply chain institute” to meet growing interest in supply chain resilience in the face of economic disruption, the Chicago-based firm said Tuesday.

The Kearney Supply Chain Institute (KSCI) is intended to help business leaders integrate fragmented operational efforts and to transform their supply chains as they strive to navigate a growing array of challenges, according to Kearney associate partner Rupal Deshmukh, who will serve as the institute’s global lead.

"Understandably, supply chains have been a regular topic of discussion in the news and top of mind for executives over the past few years," Deshmukh said in a release. “Supply chain excellence has long been critical to business success, and now more than ever there is a strong need for agile end-to-end supply chains to avoid disruption and supply shocks while ensuring that product gets to market in a timely fashion.”

Kearney says the new institute will help to promote its legacy operations studies and competitions, including the annual Assessment of Excellence in Procurement (AEP), Global Factory of the Year competition, Reshoring Index report, and State of Logistics Report. The firm will also use the institute to promote efforts like its work with the World Economic Forum, which led to the creation of The Resiliency Compass, a framework companies use to assess their value chain resilience across eight key dimensions. Additionally, the institute will partner with Kearney's Global Business Policy Council, which translates macro insights at the market, sector, and firm level to improve strategic planning and performance.