There’s an unexpected supply chain disruption lurking in the coming months. It could be labor- or weather-related or geopolitical in nature. There’s no way to know for sure. But we’re starting to see signs that the disruptions of recent years have helped us get better at managing through them — in part due to help from technology and visibility.
This week’s headlines include notes on the lessons learned from recent supply chain disruptions, plus more on the role that technology and visibility play in overcoming disruptions. Continue reading to learn more, and get in touch with us to discover how the Cargologik platform can help your organization keep its supply chain moving forward in the midst of constant disruptions.
Lessons Learned From Supply Chain Disruptions
The learning process began in early 2020. It all started with COVID-19, and since the pandemic has waned we’ve dealt with labor stoppages, geopolitical issues, weather events, and more. Supply & Demand Chain Executive recently wrote about three key lessons to learn from these regular disruptions. Foremost is that any organization needs “the right tools and technology” to “enable supply chain teams to operate at a high velocity when the crisis does come.”
The article also suggests that “old-school visibility won’t cut it anymore,” and that the days of manually pairing vessels to shipments and orders are long gone. Without technology in the modern age, supply chain stakeholders risk falling behind.
The Damage Done By Supply Chain Silos
A lack of modern technology can hurt an organization’s ability to navigate the modern supply chain. So too can silos, according to FreightWaves.
The supply chain is simply interconnected links that work in concert to move products from manufacturing and warehousing to end consumers. Silos create weak and disconnected links that can cause serious downstream issues.
At Cargologik, our platform is designed to eliminate the fragmentation that can be so detrimental to operational efficiency across the supply chain. Silos make it difficult for various supply chain stakeholders to communicate and collaborate. The Cargologik platform brings unity and strength where once there may have been silos, fragmentation, and general disconnectedness.
Tech Convergence is Inevitable
A Gartner executive suggested that technological convergence is inevitable at the recent Momentum 2024 conference by Manhattan Associates. The executive, Brock Johns, said that activities over time will converge into a single platform (like a TMS or WMS) as an organization grows and goes through digital transformation. There’s simply no future where a successful organization relies on multiple, fragmented technologies with separate interfaces and user experiences. Eventually, for organizations to be successful in the supply chain, they need a single-source-of-truth technology.
Supply Chain Disruptions Remain a Concern
The New York Fed says that “supply chain disruptions are still a concern” and that these ongoing disruptions continue to affect business activity even though some progress has been made. Disruptions continue to impact everything from corporate tax implications for international shippers to pressure on specific industries (like the pressure the crisis in the Red Sea is placing on the apparel space).
We’re Getting Better at Managing Disruptions
Some experts suggest that the supply chain industry is learning lessons from the past and that the response to the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore demonstrates how the U.S. has gotten better at responding to disruption. Semiconductor Engineering shared a similar sentiment, stating that many companies are changing their “supply and demand formula” in response to lessons learned from disruptions — but that there remains work to be done to mitigate these disruptions' impact.
The Keys to Navigating Today’s Landscape
A recent Forbes article examined how to navigate logistics in 2024 specific to e-commerce. The four main recommendations included in the piece were:
- Invest in technology and implement other strategies to increase efficiency.
- Improve inventory management.
- Use alternative sourcing to reduce costs and supply chain risk.
- Achieve a level of visibility that allows for regular updates and increases trust.
These aren’t exactly novel recommendations in 2024. Many experts and publications are pushing technology and visibility as must-haves for supply chain and logistics management this year and beyond. However, the repetitive nature of these recommendations underscores just how much organizations are risking if they do not seek out the right technologies and achieve an acceptable level of visibility.
A Platform for Overcoming Today’s Supply Chain Challenges
Navigating the supply chain and logistics landscape is challenging in 2024. At Cargologik, we make it easier for BCOs, LSPs, and others by providing a single-source-of-truth orchestration platform that handles everything from visibility to document management. Make sure your business is prepared for the challenges to come, both expected and unexpected, by implementing modern technology that delivers efficiency and ROI.
Ready to take your supply chain technology to the next level? Get started now.
