Januar y 2, 2023 | Journal of Commerce 109 www.joc.com
EXECUTIVE COMMENTARY
2023 ANNUAL REVIEW & OUTLOOK
Logistics
logistics industry is automation
working in tandem with STP and
ensuring the systems have the
knowledge.
There are areas, however, that
cannot be automated, including
anything that requires human
touch. The human component of
working with suppliers cannot be
replaced, as relationship building,
responsiveness, and being likable
with stakeholders throughout the
processes play a key role in business
success.
The future for supply chain
visibility is similar to Ethernet
availability. In 1995, Ethernet was
not standard on PCs, and those who
wanted to be tapped in to access
the internet had to purchase an
adapter, made by several compa
-
nies at the time, for the capability.
had
faded. However, the companies
that provided true optimization and
solutions fared well. This proves that
some companies and technologies
make it out of the hype cycle, and
some don't.
Organizations should be
embracing automation, and many
already have. However, there are
many supply chain leaders who still
look to antiquated industrial pro
-
cesses when evaluating their own
productivity,
hindering their profit
margins without even realizing it.
The core principle for logistics
is harnessing straight-through
processing (STP), where there is no
human intervention needed for 99.5
percent of operations. Automation
exists with delivery vehicles, dark
warehouses, and even in some port
terminals, but the future of the
Highway" will more closely resem-
ble a switchboard rather than a
rest
stop. If data comes to rest in a
centralized data store, even for a
moment, latency and decay places all
dependent parties at risk.
Operational necessities force
data integrity within the execu
-
tional systems of record. Access to
instantaneous
actionable informa-
tion, as opposed to "rested" data,
gives
intermodal stakeholders the
ability to leverage applications,
tools, and automated processes,
fed in real time, to become more
of a direct controlling party to the
freight orchestration. Commercial
value will be created as operational
layers are removed and executional
decision-making shifts to the appro
-
priate parties.
Blume Global
Pervinder Johar
CEO
blumeglobal.com
Machine
learning (ML)
and artificial
intelligence
(AI) are
driving inno-
vation and
remain
largely
untapped. Our world is heavily
paper-based, and a lot of the industry
knowledge and processes still live in
people's heads. With ML/AI, there
are so many applications of it show
-
ing progress in systemizing this
information
and bringing organiza-
tions to the next level.
Conversely,
many technologies
experience a hype cycle, and visibil-
ity is one that has plateaued. Having
worked
through three or four major
recessions in my career, visibility
pops up repeatedly. Whenever the
economy is in a growth period, and
when demand is greater than supply,
organizations make it a point to
focus on visibility. However, visibil
-
ity phases out in a recession, which
is
an area we are entering now with
demand experiencing issues, not
supply. A good example would be the
dot-com boom in 2000, when a lot
of visibility companies popped up;
by 2002, a lot of those companies
Association for Supply Chain
Management
Abe Eshkenazi
CEO
ascm.org
No supply chain organization made
it out of the pandemic unscathed or
unchanged. As the chaos turned to
complete pandemonium, it became
apparent that visibility must rise
to the top of company priority lists
as a mission-critical capability. But
this leaves a few key questions to be
answered, the most pressing of which
is "How?"
With a keen eye fixated on
emerging trends, it's clear that many
organizations are starting to prioritize
and pursue supply chain visibility
through a number of different (yet
often connected) avenues. A good
example is the introduction of smart logistics and
making use of internet of things (IOT) devices to
improve insight and agility across each supply chain
process. Not only does accessing near-real-time trans
-
parency offer valuable information, but collecting
data
related to shipment location, speed, atmospheric
conditions, and more enables supply chain teams to
improve planning activities and manage disruption
across their networks.
The adoption of digital supply chain technol-
ogy further perpetuates these visibility initiatives
through
advanced automation.
Large-scale IOT sensor deployment
and implementation leads to better
insight, and automation can enable
supply chain organizations to pivot
more easily during uncertain or unpre
-
dictable periods. This also spills into
risk,
resilience, and security, offering
a more complete view of supply chain
processes and enabling companies to
develop a layer of immunity in the
face of adversity.
It's critical to note that as compa
-
nies invest in technology, they should
match
that investment in talent.
Competent and capable human capital
can provide insight into data inputs
and outputs leading to more informed
decisions, which should enable greater
transparency and visibility.
To give supply chain visibility a
nudge in the right direction, ASCM
has sponsored the Economist Intel
-
ligence Unit to develop the Resilient Supply Chain
Benchmark.
This tool assesses performance and
analyzes operational and strategic supply chain
resilience to identify the most promising solutions.
ASCM members also have access to the Supply Chain
Visibility microlearning, enabling them to achieve a
high-visibility supply chain, adjust quickly to unantic
-
ipated change, and enjoy a clear view of internal data,
data
from supply chain tiers, and data from end cus-
tomers — establishing essential transparency among
all
stakeholders.
"It's clear that many
organizations are starting
to prioritize and pursue
supply chain visibility
through a number of
different (yet oen
connected) avenues."
◀
"The future of the logistics
industry is automation
working in tandem with
straight-through processing."
Pervinder Johar
