UNCERTAINTY ADVANTAGE
A new book from Gary S. Lynch, introduces you to leaders who, when faced with great uncertainty, pursued it acutely and understood it in the context of the market and actors (customers, investors, strategic partners, regulators, competitors), developed unique talents, leveraged organizational skills and competencies, sought out innovative capabilities, and then, when the timing was right, pounced on the opportunity to unleash uncertainty as a market differentiator.
AT YOUR OWN RISK
Based on over thirty years of experience, recognized industry leader Gary Lynch reveals in this essential guide a game plan to identify and manage a range of risks faced in this brave new globalized world of changing market dynamics and complex high-tech value networks. This groundbreaking book articulates an experienced-based and spot-on assessment of risk management realities that all corporations should make core to their corporate cultures.
CHAPTER 12
One of the most critical issues facing supply chain managers in today’s globalized and highly uncertain business environments is how to deal proactively with disruptions that might affect the complicated supply networks characterizing modern enterprises. Supply Chain Disruptions: Theory and Practice of Managing Risk presents a state-of the-art perspective on this particular issue.
Supply Chain Disruptions: Theory and Practice of Managing Risk demonstrates that effective management of supply disruptions necessitates both strategic and tactical measures – the former involving optimal design of supply networks; the latter involving inventory, finance and demand management. It shows that managers ought to use all available levers at their disposal throughout the supply network – like sourcing and pricing strategies, providing financial subsidies, encouraging information sharing and incentive alignment between supply chain partners – in order to tackle supply disruptions. The editors combine up-to-date academic research with the latest operational risk management practices used in industry to demonstrate how theoreticians and practitioners can learn from each other.
As well as providing a wealth of knowledge for students and professors who are interested in pursuing research or teaching courses in the rapidly growing area of supply chain risk management, Supply Chain Disruptions: Theory and Practice of Managing Risk also acts as a ready reference for practitioners who are interested in understanding the theoretical underpinnings of effective supply disruption management techniques.
SINGLE POINT OF FAILURE
Over the past decade organizations have faced relentless customer demand for better value at less cost, individual customization, greater choice, faster delivery, higher quality, exceptional service, and more recently – increased environmental and social consciousness. The organization’s weapon of choice to address this increasing demand has been the supply chain. However, as the supply chain footprint changed (e.g. outsourcing, off-shoring and customer/vendor empowerment) so did the organization’s exposure to uncertainty. Organizations were taken by surprise since this exposure was unanticipated, complex and beyond their ability to manage. As customers become more demanding and change occurs at an even greater pace, supply chain risk continues to propagate like a parasite. Organizations and societies are at much greater risk of systemic failure because of the massive interdependency throughout global supply chains. The priority now is two-fold; play catch-up and address these massive gaps while deploying more intelligent and integrated strategies (i.e. social aware, instinctive, dynamic and predictive) for dealing with continuous change.
Single Point of Failure: The 10 Essential Laws of Supply Chain Risk Management uses analogies and dozens of case histories to describe the risk parasite that infects all supply chains while revealing methods to neutralize that parasite. The book addresses the questions: What are the “single points of failure”? How exposed are customers, investors, other stakeholders and ultimately the organization? What is the measurable impact (i.e. brand, financial, strategic, and non-compliance)? Who establishes the “risk paradigm”? How does the organization efficiently and effectively allocate precious resources – time, people, management attention, and capital? How is success measured? This book is both technically powerful and effectively realistic, based on today’s complex global economy.
STRATEGY+BUSINESS: THE UNCERTAINTY ADVANTAGE
We call this strategy the uncertainty advantage. It’s an approach in which corporate leaders leverage disruptive change by making targeted, bold moves toward new market opportunities. Many companies confront risk with a tactical framework based on mitigating and managing the potential consequences (as in the common expression of passivity, “We’ll manage”), but that approach might build bigger protective walls without guarding against the greatest risks — the ones that are unknown. The uncertainty advantage is something different: a strategy that compels managers to perceive the unknown as a market differentiator and an opportunity to unleash innovative solutions that appeal to customers, investors, strategic partners, regulators, and competitors. In short, it is a chance to go well beyond the typical meaning of risk management — that is, seeking ways to achieve the best of the worst outcomes — to create new and sustainable value out of confusion.
MAJOR CONTRIBUTOR
This report, Building Resilience in Supply Chains explores government and industry sector views on systemic supply chain risks and building a resilience framework to manage them. The report findings are based on expert level workshops and data gathering throughout 2012. Notable differences in perspectives stem from government responsibility for public security and long-term risks compared to industry’s focus on ensuring that supply chains work effectively on a day-to-day basis.
SINGLE POINT OF FAILURE 