This year has been full of shipping challenges, and research shows that organizations are most concerned about ongoing geopolitical tensions, new regulations, and cyberattacks as we draw closer to 2025. While these are worthwhile concerns, supply chain stakeholders have shown a remarkable ability to keep operations moving forward even in the face of constant disruptions.
Today, LSPs and BCOs are more digitized, having embraced the technology needed for today’s supply chain to varying degrees. And they are more experienced, too, having weathered the pandemic and many other issues that have emerged since COVID-19 started quieting down.
Each week, we look at headlines from across the supply chain, logistics, and transportation landscape. This week, those headlines include details on the latest supply chain disruptions — plus how LSPs and BCOs are making adjustments to deal with disruption. Continue reading to learn more, and get started with Cargologik if you’re searching for a supply chain orchestration platform designed for today’s challenges.
The Aftermath of Recent Supply Chain Disruptions
The big news items from the past week were a strike avoided and twin hurricanes that wreaked havoc in the Southeast United States. The back-to-back hurricanes were especially a challenge, and Milton’s arrival made it that much more difficult to recover from Helene. Milton also sent ripple effects around the globe.
Hacker Noon examined how the brief port strike impacted the global tech industry, and it also outlined how tech companies are adapting their logistics strategies to deal with constant disruption. The story highlights real-time visibility as essential to overcoming disruption, but it notes that 45% of supply chain stakeholders have “limited visibility beyond their first-tier suppliers.”
Against the backdrop of emerging disruptions is the lingering crisis in the Red Sea, where missile attacks have made one of the world’s most important and highly trafficked waterways impassable. The ongoing issues in the Red Sea are making shipping costs more expensive, transit times longer, and goods and products more costly for consumers. It’s not a good situation, and there appears to be no end in sight to this long-term disruption.
The Real-World Impact of Disruption
These ongoing supply chain issues have a real-world impact on organizations and the customers they serve. Aston Martin, for example, lowered its guidance for the remainder of 2024 in part due to supply chain disruption.
The company is taking longer to complete each vehicle because of these issues. Vehicle deliveries have been delayed, which hurts the customer experience, and efficiency across Aston Martin’s operations is down. This isn’t isolated just to this company or industry — organizations in different spaces are experiencing similar challenges related to ongoing supply chain issues.
The Fashion Industry Reflects on its Supply Chain Vulnerabilities
Speaking of other industries, Vogue Business writes about the fashion industry collectively reflecting on “supply chain vulnerabilities” in the wake of the brief U.S. port strike. While the strike was averted after only a few days this time around, the fashion supply chain is remarkably fragile and lacking in suitable alternatives — according to the story. A longer disruption in the United States could cause significant trouble for fashion companies.
Managing ‘Increasingly Volatile Conditions’
Experts weigh in on the evolution of supply chain management amid “increasingly volatile conditions.” One expert describes today’s environment as a “VUCA world,” which means highly volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous. The story states that the organizations that thrived through the pandemic “leveraged newfound capabilities to gain market opportunities.”
Tech Radar explores how to increase supply chain productivity for future generations, including “balancing technology with effective governance,” which simply means proper oversight and risk management related to the implementation of new technologies. Supply Chain Management Review adds that building a supply chain roadmap will be key to any organization’s future success, with an emphasis on reshoring and technology.
The Art of Winning at Supply Chain Technology
Supply Chain Management Review also writes about “the art of winning at supply chain technology,” including six critical considerations as organizations explore new tech. Those considerations include choosing the right vendors and building an ecosystem that supports the ultimate objectives — like visibility and collaboration.
Somewhat related, Supply & Demand Chain Executive writes about “technology sprawl” and the tension between IT professionals working on consolidation while also feeling overwhelmed by the task. Consolidation is essential to eliminating fragmentation.
Overcome Fragmentation With a Single Source of Truth
You can avoid technology sprawl with a single-source-of-truth supply chain platform that integrates with other tools that power your business. At Cargologik, we offer that single source of truth, an orchestration platform that manages everything from visibility to emissions tracking to document management. Our platform was designed to give LSPs and BCOs solutions to today’s most pressing supply chain challenges.
Ready for technology that helps you thrive in the midst of supply chain disruption? Get started with Cargologik.
