The Chief Supply Chain Officer Report 2011

This year’s report Chief Supply Chain Officer Report 2011 has been coauthored by Dr. Hau Lee, Chairman of SCM World and Thoma Professor of Operations, Information and Technology at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, alongside Kevin O’Marah, Faculty Member at SCM World.

Both Hau and Kevin have designed this report to draw out the critical insights that executive supply chain professionals are prioritising across four key areas: value-driving supply chain management, globalisation, sustainability and talent management. As you will discover, the findings identify a series of key developments which suggest a change in supply chain strategy from three or four years ago.

Highlights of this study include:
• Emerging markets are now fully-fledged growth markets with an overwhelming 80% of respondents selling and delivering to emerging economies
• Sustainability increasingly forms part of the DNA for high performing supply chains, with 65% of respondents characterising pressure from senior management and the board as the source of sustainability efforts
• Talent acquisition and leadership development represent key challenges across supply chain management, with 90% of respondents agreeing that it is at least “an important issue”

In sum, this year’s research findings serve to underline supply chain’s growing role as a driver for value creation and source of competitive advantage in the global context and, in turn, the changing requirements for supply chain leaders to deliver excellence. Consequently, there is no doubt that talent management will become an increasing priority as industry looks to develop future leaders that can drive overall business performance. I feel very energised by these new perspectives and hope you will find them equally inspiring in continuing your own journey toward supply chain excellence.

Yours sincerely,
Pier Luigi Sigismondi
Chief Supply Chain Officer at Unilever