Supply Chain

Some data shows competing against the platform can help sellers, if not consumers

The chaotic scene of 100 ships waiting to unload their containers at the twin Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach in October 2021 is the forgotten past. At one point in March, only 15 vessels were at these two ports, 50% below the median in normal times before the pandemic.   

Just 3 percent of all Covid-19 vaccine doses shipped in 2021 went to Africa, home to a fifth of the world’s population, according to the World Health Organization. In the massive debacle of global immunization equity, it was Africa that lagged furthest behind as the pandemic raged and had the least leverage to negotiate treaties.

Beyond the headlines and the politics, many people outside of Ukraine have little idea of how the country is carrying on day-to-day while war rages.

Disruptions and shortages during the Covid-19 pandemic exposed weaknesses in global supply chains, which already faced threats from trade wars.

The commercial relationships between retailers and their suppliers that shifted under the strains of the Covid-19 pandemic are transforming again as companies cope with continuing changes in consumer spending and high costs across their supply chains.

In much of the national conversation over supply chain challenges and possible solutions over the past year, the one factor that has often been overlooked has been the matter of trust.

Propelled by government investment and shareholder demand, manufacturers are pushing to get bio-based products into the marketplace. Made from plants, fungi, and microbes, these new materials aim to replace those that contain toxins and are difficult to recycle or reuse.

Just as in 2021, most European consulting firms did very well last year, with over 80% generating more profit in 2022 than in the previous year. When 29 consulting firms were asked what types of projects they had carried out, sales & operations planning (S&OP) scored the highest, followed by supply chain strategy projects and network optimization projects. Notably, there were several acquisitions in the consulting market over the past year, plus various proprietary software applications have been developed. All of these changes are visualized in the tenth edition of the SCM Consulting Subway Map of Europe.

As supply chain complexity increases and business disruptions grow more pronounced, supply chain education programs at the undergraduate and graduate level are responding to bolster the skill sets of upcoming and current supply chain practitioners.