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Strategic risk management plans needs to be at the top of your list.

”Proximity is key to speed,” says Brian Gibson, a professor at Alabama’s Auburn University.  Events like the blockage of the Suez Canal, the current container shortage, or port congestion on the West Coast highlight the risk inherent of global supply chains.   Using proximity as a value driver, a business case to be made for reshoring.

The pandemic and the associated disruptions across the global supply chain – notably in transportation – popped up on many dashboards over the past year.  Don’t be deceived.  Reshoring has been in action plans for many smart operators.   According to the Reshoring Initiative, about 1 million jobs have reshored since 2010.

Published late in 2020, the latest installment of the multiyear study “Logistics 2030: Navigating a Disruptive Decade” a multiyear study designed to assess the strategies, requirements, and tools that will shape supply chains and drive success over the next 10 years. Brian Gibson and Rafay Ishfaq of Auburn University’s Center for Supply Chain Innovation are conducting the research.
 
Strategic risk management plans needs to be at the top of your list.  It’s a brave new world.  Discover America.

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5 scary thoughts about disasters and disaster relief

It’s almost Halloween, and if your town is anything like mine, your neighbors’ yards are already littered with ghosts, witches and tombstones. 

Clearly some of us enjoy giving other people a scare. Just as clearly, some of us enjoy getting a scare.  

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Keep a clear focus on enterprise priorities.

"Spot solutions are needed to help a company get through a sudden shock, but the only way to ensure agility and resilience going forward is by addressing systemic issues in a way that is intentional and focused on the long term and brings together clear priorities, well-designed repeatable processes, robust governance, and a skilled team." - Harvard Business Review

From Low Cost to Best Cost

An article published by McKinsey & Co. in August observed, “over the past year, many companies have made structural changes to their supply networks by implementing dual or multiple sourcing strategies for critical materials and moving from global to regional networks.”

This structural change pivots on the difference between low cost and best cost.  The shift extends through Tier 1 Suppliers through lower tiers.  The intent of a low-cost supply chain strategy is to present a low price to customers. A best-cost strategy adds factors beyond cost to the equation, like risk, lead time, and responsiveness.

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Digital Freight Execution: Making Win-Win Connections

As global supply chains become increasingly complicated, there are now more digital connections and business collaborations in the global shipping industry than ever before. Holding freight data in opaque, disconnected silos and relying on outdated methods of communication is not just inefficient - it’s unsustainable.

The global supply chain is no longer a linear process. Whereas before it was simply about moving freight from point A to B, now there is now a multitude of options for transporting that freight, each with its own unique set of capabilities and constraints. 

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No wonder we are short of labor in the supply chain.

America’s posture in world trade, and the underlying supply chains, are more than robust.  According to the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, the United States balance of trade in goods and services deficit dropped to $70.6 billion in July.  Exports hit the highest level in real dollars since tracking began over 70 years ago.  During the recovery from Covid,, with reshoring and shifting market demands, are holding imports flat..

This success is happening despite the global disruption caused by Ukraine.  Expect our labor shortages to continue.  Expect wage pressure to continue.  Expect inflationary pressures across the supply chain to continue.

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