Mitigating Supply Chain Risks Takes Board Knowledge to a New Frontier

The COVID-19 pandemic has put an unprecedented spotlight on global supply chain disruption. Over the last two years, companies have had to take a hard look at how they source, produce and distribute products and services under conditions they never had to imagine.

But even without the global pandemic, the risk factors in today’s connected world pose myriad threats to supply chains. Geopolitical shifts, cyber intrusions, environmental disasters – any of these can have a profound effect on doing business. Companies can prepare themselves by assessing their current risks, uncovering root causes and developing road maps to improve their risk profiles. A robust risk identification methodology should review the entire end-to-end supply chain, including workflow and processes; regulatory compliance; export controls, sanctions, and trade issues; cybersecurity; environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues; track and trace or material identification; blockchain and technology solutions; procurement and sourcing strategies; due diligence on third-party vendors; fraud and counterfeiting; factory and labor conditions; and strategic communications.

In this article, originally published by the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) in their Nov/Dec 2021 issue of Directorship Magazine, FTI Consulting experts Bill Post, Fredrik de Maré and Eric Rudolph offer a high-level approach to a balanced and holistic risk management approach to protecting any company’s supply chain.

The views expressed herein and in the article are those of the author(s) and not necessarily the views of FTI Consulting, Inc., its management, its subsidiaries, its affiliates, or its other professionals.