Does your supply chain give you competitive advantage?
Latest Supply Chain Worldwide Survey states 57% of firms consider their Supply Chain as a competitive advantage.
According to the latest survey from GEODIS; In the wake of globalisation and rampant digitalisation, commercial trade flows have evolved dramatically. Both the volume and the scope of services managed within Supply Chain have reached unprecedented levels.
In this context, 70% of the survey’s respondents say their Supply Chain is either ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ complex. They also emphasize the strategic position it has reached in their overall organization. Supply Chain has become more customer-focused and mostly considered as a lever to win competitive advantage. The survey also confirms that achieving extended visibility of their Supply Chain is one of the major objectives of respondents in order to efficiently manage it.
The survey was on the responses of 623 professionals in 17 countries from various functions (Supply chain, Finance, Operations, Marketing, Strategy, Information Technology…)
The Report goes on to say "!Not long ago, Supply Chain was mostly about delivering products on-time and in-full. Today, it covers a larger range of objectives, dedicated to enhancing firms’ growth and competitiveness. Thus, the Supply Chain function has started its mutation to position itself as a crucial lever for business performance.
Some key points:-
- 67% of Supply Chain leaders are positioned either at Top-Management or Corporate level
- 57% of firms consider their Supply Chain as a competitive advantage, enabling the development of their company
- 66% of firms dedicate between 5% and 15% of their turnover to Supply Chain spends
STAY COMPETITIVE AND ON TOP OF CUSTOMERS’ DEMAND: TWO MAJOR CONSTRAINTS THAT SUPPLY CHAIN NEEDS TO TACKLE
- Over the last few years, developments such as volatile market conditions, globalization of exchanges or radical transformation in demand patterns and consumption behaviours have gained influence.
- In this context, survey respondents emphasize their need to stay competitive. Their concern is primarily the containment of their costs (32%), which is a necessary requirement as they are increasingly called upon to face global competition (28%).
- On the other hand, they must cope with the challenges of a dynamic market environment: adapt to changeable customer expectations on quality (27%) and improve their capability to reduce delivery times to customers (26%).As a consequence, respondents also position the need to develop a reliable
TO COPE WITH THE COMPLEXITY OF THEIR SUPPLY CHAIN, COMPANIES SHARE AN AMBITION TO INCREASE END-TO-END VISIBILITY
- 77% of the firms asked have either no visibility or a restricted view. Only 6% have complete visibility.
- In the experience of GEODIS, full visibility of a Supply Chain incorporates a wide range of flows (physical, logical, financial) throughout both the entire supply and value chains. In addition, real-time monitoring has also become a crucial asset in achieving this visibility.
- Overall, improving end-to-end visibility enables complexity in Supply Chain to be tackled as it leads to:
- A closer collaboration with partners and a reduction in disputes
- Better risk anticipation
- Enhanced flexibility
- An extended degree of control over processes
- Elevated customer satisfaction