Business Guide

Strategic supply chain management is the foundation of a smooth flow of goods and thus the basis for economic efficiency and customer satisfaction. In this context, supply chains are becoming increasingly digital, as the use of innovative technologies and solutions enables the exchange and analysis of data, the automation of processes and tracking in real time. In our latest blog post, we discuss how the application of artificial intelligence (AI) as a disruptive technology supports logistics processes and can make a decisive contribution to optimizing and strengthening supply chains.

Resources are finite and unequally distributed on a global scale. Thus, a shortage of or difficult access to raw materials can result in economic risks such as production bottlenecks and rising prices. In order to minimize procurement risks, conserve resources and meet increasing sustainability requirements, the reuse and remanufacturing of products and materials in a Circular Economy is becoming increasingly important. In our most recent blog post on Circular Economy, we discuss the infrastructure that is needed in order to transform a linear supply chain into a sustainable supply cycle and how logistics can support this process.

Compliance is a key aspect in the logistics environment: It serves to prevent risks and thus to protect companies and their employees. As the topics of sustainability and due diligence are gaining momentum, companies in the B2B and B2C sectors should prepare for increasing transparency requirements along the entire supply chain. We highlight the challenges and benefits of compliance management and explain the technologies that support it.

The challenges of recent years have prompted organizations to put their supply chains to the test and strive to minimize dependencies on established production sites. For example, many companies are currently using a China+1 strategy to expand their supplier network and relocate production or branches to new locations with attractive conditions. We discuss which countries are becoming promising alternatives in the context of diversification efforts, as well as the factors that play a role in the China+1 strategy and the tasks that go hand in hand with it.

Cyber attacks, the COVID-19-pandemic and geopolitical tensions – the challenges of the past few years have shown how quickly supply chain processes can come to a standstill worldwide. This makes it all the more important for companies to implement strategic risk management. In our latest blog article, we discuss the current risks that supply chain managers should keep an eye on, and explain how they can create well-founded forecasts, take measures at an early stage and increase the resilience of their supply chain.

Companies are increasingly responsible for ensuring that ethical and sustainable standards are complied with along the entire supply chain. The new EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) clearly regulates who is obliged to submit a sustainability report and what content must be published in accordance with binding standards. While our first blog post on the new EU Sustainability Reporting Directive dealt with the companies affected, deadlines and changes, in Part 2 we delve into the challenges companies face and explain why they definitely benefit from a sustainability report despite the significant effort that is involved in this context.

The new EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) obliges significantly more companies to publish a report on their sustainability efforts. In order to standardize the content and make it comparable, the reports are to be prepared according to binding standards in the future. But who is affected by the new CSR directive and what type of information is required? Our latest article on the blog provides an overview of when the CSRD does apply, what the changes are, and which companies must publish a report.

The consistent availability of goods, perfectly tailored to the needs of consumers, is essential for smoothly functioning supply chains and entrepreneurial efficiency. In order to be able to plan which goods can be delivered when and to what extent, a thorough and transparent warehouse management becomes essential. In our latest blog article, we discuss the specific advantages of systems that are individually tailored to a company’s intralogistics as well as the question, which technologies support warehouse solutions. Further, we explain why optimized warehouse logistics can strengthen the supply chain in the long term.

Especially in times when markets are changing rapidly, reliable suppliers are of crucial importance: The productivity and efficiency of many companies depends on whether agreed delivery commitments and quality are met – or not. However, strategically optimizing supplier development requires time, knowledge and resources. In our latest article on the blog, we explain the advantages that working with suppliers in a spirit of trust provides. Further, we discuss the challenges that companies face is this context and the strategies that they can apply in order to increase their competitiveness through viable relationships with their suppliers in the long term.

Disruptions in global supply chains affect the world economy. With quite severe consequences, as those disruptions can quickly lead to delays or even failure in the delivery of goods or services. To ensure that the complex logistics processes function as smoothly as possible even in times of crisis, effective collaboration between all supply chain partners and the intensive exchange of all relevant information have become indispensable. In our latest blog post, we explain the key benefits that collaborative work has for companies, the technologies that support them and the obstacles that those involved must face in order to successfully establish and build a transparent, resilient and efficient supply chain.