Abstract
The research objective was to uncover some of the key considerations that might facilitate how a company could objectively and meaningfully decide on the level of financial resources to allocate for a flexible supply chain risk management strategy. This was qualitatively and quantitatively achieved in partnership with one of the leading companies operating in the global B2B durable equipment manufacturing and services industry. The qualitative element sought to first identify a near-term improvement opportunity in the design of the company’s value stream that addresses some of the existing challenges in its supply chain operations. The quantitative element next sought to understand the potential financial value or impact of improving end-to-end SKU (stock keeping unit) demand and supply visibility resulting in a supply chain that is more responsive to customer demand. Last but not least, the potential value of mitigating supply disruption risk was an additional insight yielded from an innovative quantitative model involving the concept of time to recovery (TTR) that has been proposed in literature. The study then concludes with a brief examination of the importance of collaborative supply partnerships that enable an integrated supply chain response to end-customer demand, facilitated by widely accessible implementations of Information Technology.