Supply Chain Planning Key for Business: Survey

OTTAWA –Kinaxis Inc. (TSX:KXS), .announced the findings of a research study sponsored by Kinaxis and conducted by International Data Corp. (IDC). The global research study explored current and future pressures on supply chain planning and how digital technologies can drive supply chain transformation initiatives.  

Findings show that supply chain planning drives better performance in the modern enterprise, ringing especially true in today’s uncertain and disrupted business climate. Global supply chains continue to undergo almost unparalleled levels of change. With planning at the core, companies are now poised to realize the benefits of digital supply chain transformation.  

Supply chain resiliency and agility are top priorities for all companies 

• Despite 65 percent of companies rating themselves highly in terms of resiliency, it remains the largest priority over the next 12 months and the next three years 
• The ability to adopt new business models or enter new markets was cited as most important when considering future supply chain capabilities

Supply chain planning as competitive advantage 

• 65 percent of companies believe that their supply chain planning capabilities are a source of competitive differentiation today 
• This number falls to 35 percent by 2023, suggesting that companies either do not view their supply chains as adaptable or they are unconvinced that the resources they have in place today will service them well into the future

Companies with mature supply chains using some form of AI 

• 76 percent of the most mature companies are using a form of AI today versus just 1 percent of the least mature  
• 63 percent of survey respondent companies are still below the transformation maturity midpoint, with lack of supply chain visibility (~16 percent) and data availability and quality (~15 percent) as the biggest impediments to improving supply chain planning efforts overall
• Over half of the companies in the survey are still using spreadsheets to facilitate their supply chain planning efforts, speaking to the opportunity to improve planning through a digital transformation that introduces a single version of truth

“After a long history of being relegated to support status, supply chains are now being perceived as a strategic tool for business performance and growth,” said Simon Ellis, program vice president at IDC, lead researcher and author of the IDC whitepaper Supply Chain Planning Drives Better Business Performance.“Supply chain planning is at the heart of the modern supply chain and is central to overall transformation. If companies don’t get supply chain planning right, they don’t get the supply chain right; if they don’t get the supply chain right, they risk sales and profits.”

Kinaxis helps companies ensure their supply chains are always in sync by connecting data, processes and people on a single Kinaxis RapidResponse platform, leveraging the unique concurrent planning technique. With end-to-end visibility and collaboration tools, teams can shorten planning cycles, cut manufacturing lead times, reduce inventory and improve on-time deliveries. These improvements not only increase the company’s supply chain maturity, but also its resiliency.  

“In an unpredictable world, it is imperative for companies to prepare their supply chains now, and lean into digital transformation to improve all business operations, including integrated business and supply chain planning,” said John Sicard, CEO of Kinaxis. “The impact of technology on the supply chain, and its implications for planning transformation specifically, leads to supply chain resiliency and agility allowing companies to be better prepared to respond to and navigate business disruptions. We are proud to have earned the trust of the top manufacturers worldwide to help them drive better business performance and increase their competitive advantage.”   

Research Survey Methodology  

This IDC whitepaper, sponsored by Kinaxis, explores the results from a research study about current and future pressures on supply chain planning and how modern digital technologies are driving supply chain transformation initiatives. For the full findings, download IDC White Paper, sponsored by Kinaxis, the Supply Chain Planning Drives Better Business Performance. 

The survey was conducted in the third quarter of 2019 and included 1,839 respondents across three regions and six different sub-industries within manufacturing. Key demographics include: 

• Respondents were evenly distributed across Aerospace & Defense, Automotive, CPG, High Tech, Industrial and Life Sciences.
• Respondents were evenly distributed across North America, EMEA and APAC.
• Of the companies surveyed, 16 percent were large enterprise companies above $5 billion in annual revenue, 70 percent were medium-sized between $1 and 5 billion and 14% were smaller companies between $500 million and $1 billion.
• All respondents either work in or have significant influence over their supply chain and self-identify as either supply chain planners (people doing the actual supply chain planning) or supply chain planning leadership personas.