PROCUREMENT STRATEGY
CREDIT: WAGNERLOGISTICS
“ By mapping Tier 2 and Tier 3 relationships, organisations can identify upstream constraints, such as tariff exposure on sub-components or raw material shortages, and act before they impact production or service,” he says.
“ Bringing suppliers directly into the planning process allows companies to align cost, capacity and service decisions in real time, even amid tariff volatility, supply shocks, and regulatory change.” The goal is not only to know who your suppliers are, but understand how disruption at any point in the network can affect inventory, production, customer commitments and financial performance and to take action before it becomes a crisis.
“ No company has perfect visibility into every node of a global supply chain,” adds Anand.“ The differentiator is the ability to connect available data, identify hidden dependencies and rapidly model alternative sourcing, inventory and fulfilment scenarios when disruptions occur.”
Reading the signals early That same forward visibility extends into how both Joe and Anand think about forecasting and sourcing.
“ Predictive analytics is most powerful when it helps organisations identify changing patterns early enough to act,” says Joe.
“ While no model can perfectly predict the future, predictive analytics helps, at a minimum, to facilitate a better conversation between 3PL and customer and subsequently improve decision-making by providing earlier signals and greater confidence in planning assumptions.”
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