The emergence of "as-a-service" platforms and providers adds more complexity to the supply chain outsourcing discussion. It is no longer just about logistics outsourcing. Manufacturing, planning, warehousing and more can now be obtained as a service as well. Organisations must decide what components they will outsource and what they will provide in-hous
To be future-ready, organisations should develop an outsourcing strategy for their supply chains that establishes a balance between the importance of cost, service delivery, risk mitigation and longevity of relationship.
Idle, under-utilised assets are a fixed operational burden that organisations no longer need to tolerate. The rise of digital platforms provides supply chain leaders with access to a whole new world of highly efficient and cost-effective services. These technologies provide operational leaders with both choice and convenience, allowing for the purchase of supply chain services from third-party providers on a flexible (as-a-service) basis.
In this platform-based world, the supply chain will become increasingly modular with organisations constantly buying from and switching services between multiple players. Managing such complexity calls for new capabilities:
- a flexible workforce powered by intelligent automation
- keeping control of your third-party ecosystem
- driving a vision for the future
By 2025, the World Economic Forum estimates that digital platforms could generate US$60 trillion in revenue. Platform-based direct-to-customer (D2C) sales models also help by shortening supply chains, effectively boosting margins by allowing businesses to retain value that would previously have been absorbed by partners and wholesalers.
