Staying curious in a crisis

Over the past ten years we have seen innovation transform many visible aspects of our daily lives, from ordering groceries to seeking medical care. Yet in the past three years, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic we have seen this exponential wave of innovation wave driving change in an area of human society that is often invisible to many of us: procurement and supply chain. It’s often said that necessity is the mother of innovation. The current wave of supply chain innovation is no exception – the broad willingness to experiment with novel technology applications are being driven by a cascading series of painful and expensive supply disruptions. A recent study by The Economist indicates that 64% of companies reported “significant supply chain disruptions impacting their business”, which equates to as much as ~$4 trillion in lost revenue.