Prological’s white paper – Supply chain network decentralisation: A practical guide to making it work discusses decentralisation as one of several emerging trends, with key learnings from Apple, Amazon and Volkswagen. The paper offers three clear opportunities for businesses to consider as they create more flexible, agile and resilient supply chains.
By discussing the differing landscapes between ANZ and the EMEA markets, the white paper highlights the complexities of selecting and operating a centralised or decentralised network – as well as offers practical advice on the key personnel requirements to support the chosen direction.
Utilising Prological’s first-hand industry experience and citing research from Thomson Reuters Institute and J.P. Morgan, this latest white paper from the leading supply chain and logistics consultancy offers commentary on effective strategy shifts and the steps required to thrive in the industry’s ‘new normal’.
The white paper discusses three opportunities for creating a resilient supply chain:
1. Decentralised networks: do the numbers work in Australia?
Australian organisations have viewed decentralised networks as cost-prohibitive, largely due to US or European business cases being used to benchmark an Australian operation. However, when examining the Australian landscape, the white paper reveals this is no longer the case.
2. The insourcing opportunity: people, processes and profits
Much like decentralisation, the decision to out-source or in-source delivery partners has different ramifications in the Australian market, relative to the EU, UK or USA. With less choice of delivery partners in Australia causing pressure on Tier One carriers, there is an increasing desire for retailers to ‘own’ the delivery component, rather than outsource.
3. Digitisation: reshaping supply chain and logistics with SaaS
Once reserved for Tier One firms, major software upgrades required significant upfront capital and took years to embed. However, with the plethora of cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) and pay-as-you-go services, companies of all sizes can now use technology to support their supply chain operations.
