Another new market driver is rapidly taking the main seat. The U.N.’s latest report this year on climate change declared with 90% certainty that mankind is cooking the planet. Acting now would cost 0.12% of the annual global GDP – while in contrast, the damage of not acting now could cost as much as 20% of annual global GDP. National regulations and environmental awareness has become a market driver, powered by customers and shareholders asking for change. They are now demanding sustainable, environmentally sound, fair trade practices, while expecting no less financial gains than before, for their trade and investment. Product safety & quality, fair trade strategies and environmental protection have merged to create a synergistic demand for ‘Green’ business practices adding complexity to global trade. Global warming, food and product recalls, energy costs and consumer demand for fair trade practices are driving global importers to actively manage the sourcing of their products, req
In a world faced with the prospect of tightening supplies, higher energy costs heightened geopolitical risk, and strained transportation networks, advanced supply chain technologies will become mission-critical for many more companies. The supply chain task is not an enterprise problem; it is an end-to-end network problem involving multiple enterprises. Therefore, the solution does not lie in fixing one link in the chain but in devising a community.