Risk impacts as regards intellectual property, quality, lead-times, supply continuity, and inventory-holding will be familiar to seasoned supply chain professionals. But now they must also contend with broader issues becoming more important – corporate social responsibility (CSR), including ethics and sustainability, probably tops the list. The reputational and financial damage CSR issues can create cannot be overemphasized, irrespective of the truths behind such incidents. BP’s Deepwater Horizon experience and North Face’s foie gras debacle should serve as reminders.
Resilient and agile SCM capability that incorporates sound risk management and good CSR execution at the coalface will become one of the hallmarks of effective corporate leadership.