Choreographing Global Commerce through Integrated Digital Business Networks

In her memoir, the renowned ballerina Misty Copeland emphasizes the importance of “put[ting] on a performance that hid[es] all the strings, leaving only stardust for the audience to see.” That’s the beauty of ballet! Pure magic arises out of the complex interplay of light and shadow, melody and rhythm, and – most importantly – dancers in elaborate, coordinated motion.

Growing up in a professional dance family, my passion for ballet runs deep. So I appreciate the hard work and relentless practice that go into an elegantly crafted recital, where the performers make sophisticated routines look effortless. Yet as a technology executive, I view ballet as a metaphor for choreography on an altogether different stage: that of global enterprise commerce. Every day, cloud-based digital networks lift the curtain on millions of transactions among buyers and suppliers, logistics providers, finance and payment partners, equipment managers, and managed service providers of contingent labor. In business as in ballet, “hid[ing] all the strings” underlying complex processes shines the spotlight on the motions that matter most.

But in a world where COVID-19 has laid bare the stark limitations of fragmented supply chains, many of the “strings” connecting trading partners remain visibly frayed. What if, in their quest to mend them, businesses turned for inspiration to the resilience and agility of a dancer? The late choreographer George Balanchine may have pointed the way when he observed, “Dance is music made visible.” Though it’s unlikely he had supply chains in mind, Balanchine nevertheless understood the central importance of visibility whenever multiple, interdependent participants take center stage to collaborate toward something greater than their sum taken together.

Through cloud-based platforms, digital business networks devoted to discrete operational processes are increasingly converging — and, with them, the immense troves of data they carry. These networks, not unlike dancers in a roundelay, contribute to the circularity of data that instills resilience in buyers, suppliers, shippers, carriers and other partners, thereby enhancing the visibility available to all collectively as well as to each individually.

Just as dancers synchronize their motion on a stage set to music, trading partners do likewise through integrated business networks set to the flow of supply and demand. As the COVID-19 pandemic recedes in many parts of the world and the tempo of global commerce regains momentum, business leaders would be wise to take their cue from the classical stage, where gifted dancers set the “barre” for the flexibility, nimbleness and grace required to achieve success in these uncertain times. Through the digital alignment of procurement, logistics, equipment management, enterprise resource planning and other core operational processes, businesses are regaining their footing, leaping to new heights, and taking a bow before the well-earned applause of their customers.

Originally published on Forbes SAP BrandVoice.