SUPPLY CHAIN

Unpacking the key supply chain trends impacting marketers in 2023

By our News Team | 2022

Pandemic-induced challenges in the global supply chain are likely a thing of the past. Watch out for new hurdles and opportunities in 2023.

his year, supply chains have had to work towards recovering from the pandemic and reaching stability. So, what is in store for 2023?

The IMM Graduate School recently published a blog post listing several of the key supply chain trends it foresees for the new year. Among them:

1.Businesses within supply chains will become more proactive

The pandemic was a major disruption within supply chains and led to many other smaller interruptions. Businesses and supply chain professionals fought to overcome these obstacles and have finally reached a point where things are normalising. To prevent this from happening again, many organisations will review their supply chain strategies and business models to see what can be improved to handle potential crises in the future.

Supply chain

Photo by Frans van Heerden from Pexels

2. Carrier rates will decrease

During the pandemic, consumer spending increased and capacities decreased. This led to carriers increasing rates for transportation while their service standards decreased due to labour shortages, global lockdowns and backlogs. This demand has decreased, so capacities have normalised and backlogs have lessened. Because of this, carriers are likely to decrease their transportation rates and improve on their service standards. Businesses now have an opportunity to become competitive within their field again and build customer loyalty through better service delivery.

3. Businesses will start reducing their stocks

Before the pandemic, businesses tended to practice lean inventory management. This is a smart tactic, but it backfired when the global lockdowns were implemented. Because of this, organisations along supply chains did not have stock for long periods, which negatively affected businesses. Once lockdowns were eased, companies increased their stocks to prepare for possible additional lockdowns. But since the pandemic seems to be in its end stages, businesses are likely to go back to lean inventory management.

4. Digitisation will remain a priority

Digitisation decreases the need for paperwork and allows supply chain managers to increase visibility across supply chains, enabling them to track materials and goods throughout the process.

5. Wars will affect supply chains

Geopolitics will always affect supply chains. One such example is the Russian-Ukrainian war, which has negatively impacted supply chains across the globe. Another geopolitical event that could disturb supply chains is worsening trade relations between China and the United States.

6. Cyber security will be prioritised

Software supply chain attacks continue to grow and are becoming more sophisticated. Cyber hackers could attack a supply chain to access its data and use it for financial gain or to steal confidential customer information. Businesses within supply chains, and many other industries, will focus on assessing their business for risks and improving their protection against such attacks.

7. Sustainability

Businesses across supply chains will strive to reduce their carbon footprint because of customer demands and stricter government regulations. Ways to do this include finding sustainable raw materials and using circular supply chains. The latter refurbish used products to sell back to consumers.

The Bottom Line

“No matter what trend is being implemented, following new trends can be risky and difficult. Businesses should evaluate the specific trends they would like to make use of, ensuring that the actions taken would be beneficial to the business,” the IMM Graduate School concludes.

Read the full blog post here. 

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