With the complex nature of supply chains , supplier risk management is a task that has been plaguing leaders in this field for centuries .

As the complexity and risks associated with supply chains rapidly grows , so does the importance surrounding the understanding of the types of risk out there and the strategies to defend .

“ Failing to consider these supplier risks ahead of entering into an agreement with a new supplier , or neglecting to continually monitor their risk profile throughout your relationship , can lead to surprises that can significantly impact your supply chain ’ s health , and therefore your operations ,” said Taulia .

So what are the risks ? While there are many risks , typically they can be broken down into four core areas :

• Financial

• Legal

• Operational

• Reputational

In order to effectively manage risk , procurement functions must identify , evaluate and then mitigate risks . This starts with correctly assessing whether a risk is known ( losing some customers to competitors ) or whether it is unknown ( extreme weather conditions , pandemics , or accident ). “ Unknown risks tend to be more dangerous as they are unexpected and it is difficult to anticipate the damage they will cause ,” commented Taulia . “ It ’ s important to have a continuity plan in place to help manage these events when they do happen .”

� ADNOC ADNOC announces its plans to invest up to US $ 6bn in procurement awards to enable drilling growth . The investment comes as the ADNOC boosts its crude oil production capacity to five million barrels per day by 2030 and drive gas selfsufficiency for the UAE .

� PAYHAWK B2B spend management startup , Payhawk , raises US $ 112mn in its Series B funding round taking its value to US $ 570mn after just three years of operations .

� DICKINSON STATE UNIVERSITY Investigations into Dickinson State University ( DSU ) by North Dakota University System ( NDUS ) finds that DSU was not in compliance with North Dakota Century Code , conducting improper procurement for Instructional Design .

� UK GOVERNMENT The UK government faces public concerns regarding the transparency around PPE procurement contracts and the UK ’ s military procurement contracts wasting billions .

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