I believe we are at a similar inflection point today with “social” technologies. Many companies are treading slowly and cautiously toward the “Social Era,” echoing the same fears and concerns they had about the Internet and Web 20 years ago.
In fact, 30 percent of the supply chain professionals we recently surveyed reported that their companies currently block access to social media sites (Exhibit 1).
At the same time, however, 45 percent of the respondents said that “social networks will make supply chain processes more efficient, responsive, and cost effective” over the next five years. Another 30 percent said that “social networks will transform supply chain processes (for the better) in ways we can’t imagine today” (Exhibit 2).