Traceability, Sustainability and ESG

Traceability, Sustainability and ESG: Building Supply Chain Authenticity

A recent Logility webcast featured industry heavyweights Mark Burstein, Logility EVP and industry principal, and Edward Hertzman, EVP of Fairchild Media, where they offered their own unique insights on a variety of hot topics in supply chain management, particularly around building supply chain authenticity, including:

● The rise of eCommerce thanks to the pandemic
● Sustainability claims and their reliance on end-to-end supply chain traceability
● The U.S. government’s WRO targeting China’s XUAR, and what to expect next
● Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) gaining traction

Crumbling brick and mortar? Not so fast. Yes, the pandemic caused a dramatic shift in shopping habits from traditional physical locations to direct-to-consumer. But both Burstein and Hertzman are now seeing growth in both channels. In fact, demand filtered by almost any attribute you can think of – channel, region, sector – surges and plummets quickly now, highlighting the need for agile supply chains. 

Hard lessons. The pandemic taught us lessons we needed to learn. Will we slip back into old, bad habits? Our hosts think companies embracing digital supply chain platforms will succeed. Those grappling specifically with supply disruptions should embrace these strategies: shared components, accelerated delivery cadences, postponement (remember Just In Time?), and repurposing production facilities as DCs.

The results are impressive:
● Lead times reduced 8-10 weeks
● PO release to ex-factory time down from 17 weeks to 4 weeks

Vendor management got real. Real fast. Companies that were once comfortable with Tier 1 visibility are scrambling to create a ‘digital thread’, mapping their entire supply chain and creating compliance and chain of custody documents as goods and ingredients move downstream. U.S. government rules related to China’s XUAR are grabbing the spotlight now, but this is just the beginning.

Sustainability and ESG are not fads. Thanks to 68 million Gen Z-ers in the U.S. alone, and those to follow, companies are doubling down, not backing away, from sustainability initiatives. Our hosts discuss the key role that traceability plays in proving sustainability claims. They also touch on how an AI-directed supply chain strategy minimizes environmental impact. We’re reminded that data isn’t the challenge – there’s plenty of it to go around. It is managing all that data in a single, comprehensive platform that derails projects.

You’ll also hear some thoughts on how corporate boards are warming to the three pillars of ESG – environment, social, and corporate governance – and which one is not part of supply chain’s remit.

Watch the webcast now on demand.

Jo Chapman

Written by

Jo Chapman

Short bio

Jo Chapman is a Logility content manager. With a background in branding and corporate communications, she brings 15+ years' experience producing, optimizing, publishing and maintaining high-quality content across a broad range of media for the business audience. Supply Chain Brief

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