How to optimise supply chain visibility

Achieving 100% visibility over your entire supply chain will be difficult, that’s a fact. With suppliers potentially spread across the world and challenges with visibility over risks associated with manufacturing, sourcing, and procurement, understanding every unique link of the chain and the human rights and environmental risks associated with each can seem near to impossible. However, there are ways to optimise your supply chain visibility and quite frankly, it is imperative that businesses?do so. ? ?

There is not only a shift in how governing bodies are mandating improved supply chain visibility (with increasing laws like the European Union’s Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) that require businesses to have better risk oversight), but there is also less tolerance from consumers and media for companies associated with human rights and environmental violations that come from a lack of this visibility. ?

While expanding this knowledge and gaining a deeper understanding into your supply chain’s distinctive risks may take time, there are effective ways to get started and begin improving your responsible sourcing approach.?

Start with mapping your supply chain?

Supply chain mapping is the process of creating a comprehensive overview of companies and organisations involved at every tier of the supply chain, providing visibility into where their products and services, including components, will likely come from and an overview of potential actors within each tier. This understanding is crucial as supply chain relationships can change frequently, with suppliers changing their own suppliers, potentially altering the risk profile of the supply chain. Mapping allows a company to see the high-priority and likely risk areas and get a specific indication of what needs to be done to address that risk. ?

Supply chain mapping is not about tracing every movement of every component part. It's about gaining visibility into where products and services are likely to come from, understanding the associated risks, and engaging with your supply chain to drive meaningful change.?

To effectively build on your supply chain mapping and improve visibility, businesses should prioritise:?

Embracing data management and support: Leveraging a well-structured data tool is crucial for collecting and managing supplier information efficiently. Centralising your data will support improved oversight and allow for more effective mapping and segmenting suppliers by risk exposure and insights. Solutions like EiQ allow for data centralisation and improved supplier visibility. ?

Prioritise problem areas: Supply chains are vast. Focus on areas where you can make headway first and use that experience to tackle more complex areas. Additionally, businesses should question the root causes of opacity. If an area of the supply chain is resistant to visibility, consider whether there are industry barriers that can be influenced or alternatives that can be explored. ?

Engage with suppliers and stakeholders: Contractual requirements for data visibility should become a standard practice, communicated consistently across all business functions. Suppliers may resist disclosing information. Engagement is key here. Understand the most critical parts of your supply chain and engage with them. Where you can't get direct visibility, look for opportunities to collaborate with industry peers or join industry initiatives.?

Make supplier monitoring an ongoing habit: Once a year audits won’t cut it. Leveraging predictive analytics and data solutions to monitor risk trends and understand future risk exposure will support with proactive risk strategies. Beyond audit tools like supplier media scans can support with understanding risks on a more ongoing basis.?

See how EiQ helps businesses monitor and manage their supply chain ESG risks and increase supply chain visibility with?a free demo of the platform. ?

In regulatory news, the EUDR deadline is approaching: are your suppliers prepared??

Aligning suppliers with expectations, targets, and regulatory compliance will support your supply chain risk management and remediation. Our digital learning service empowers suppliers to implement business best practice and offers training courses in local languages on various supply chain ESG topics.?

As the deadline for complying with the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) approaches, our new eLearning course?Understanding the EUDR?teaches suppliers outside of the EU how to comply with the law and assist EU customers in sourcing deforestation-free products. This course highlights the importance of preventing deforestation and covers the requirements of the EUDR.

Access this course for free by clicking here and entering the branch code ‘insights.’ ?

We're excited to bring you this newsletter here on LinkedIn. Please subscribe to make sure you don't miss the next edition of EiQ Insights. For queries about our newsletter, contact us at [email protected]?