Capgemini: Supply chain disruption has broad impact

A new study reveals that disruption poses a significant and continuing challenge to supply chain operations.

According to a survey of 1,000 global supply chain executives conducted by Capgemini, three-quarters of respondents have been impacted by closing facilities, supply chain disruptions, employee absence, and remote work in the past three years. Furthermore, fewer than 20% of respondents feel equipped to handle the impacts of these changes. 

The Capgemini Research Institute study, “How Greater Intelligence Could Supercharge Supply Chains,” also reveals that the most pressing concerns of respondents are reducing CO2 emissions across all tiers of the supply chain (95%) and growing e-commerce volumes (90%). However, only 13% of respondents feel equipped to reduce emissions.

About 92% of respondents said that the ongoing relocation of the global supply chain will impact them, but only 15% are equipped to deal with this. On average over the next three years, respondents plan to increase their investment in supply chain transformation by 17%, and expect to double their business outcomes in terms of growth, profitability and sustainability.

In other sustainability findings, the study indicates that reducing Scope 1 emissions is the most popular sustainability initiative among respondents (38%), compared to scope 2 and 3 emissions, which account for 22% and 27% of respondent initiatives in this area, respectively.

Capgemini also found that only one in four respondents have started scaling sustainability initiatives in their supply chains. Read the full study here.

“There are numerous building blocks that need to come together to create a future-ready supply chain network and provide differentiated offerings that customers are looking for. The last few years have highlighted the need for organizations to build agile and resilient supply chains, not only to cope with disruptions but also to help them stay ahead of the curve, especially from a sustainability perspective,” said Mayank Sharma, global supply chain lead at Capgemini. 

“It is clear that there’s no one-size fits all solution, but organizations that lay the foundation for a data-driven, technology enabled, scalable, and sustainable supply chain are the ones that will reap the most impressive returns in terms of driving improved customer loyalty, creating more business value and meeting sustainability goals," said Sharma.  

[Survey: Supply chain disruption to continue; here’s the impact and actions taken]

Capgemini surveyed large organizations from across 13 countries in industries such as consumer products and retail, manufacturing, and life sciences. As part of the research, 1,000 supply chain executives were surveyed, working across a variety of functions including corporate strategy, demand and supply, customer support, finance and controlling, sustainability, and engineering and design.