Shifting Global Variables and Their Impact on the Supply Chain

The Coronavirus has been reported on as a major news headline since the outbreak reached the global scale in January 2020. With the virus spreading to various countries, hitting US soil and more than 88,000 cases reported and at least 3,000 deaths worldwide, we’re feeling the strain of the outbreak now more than ever. This FreightWaves article written by Brian Aoaeh asks the question, “If we assume that the future is most likely to resemble the recent past, what does this mean for global supply chains?”

In the beginning of this article, Aoaeh refers to an acronym he coined in his 2019 commentary, VUCA. “VUCA is an acronym for a state of the world that is simultaneously and increasingly volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous.” The Coronavirus certainly factors into this state of the world. In fact, Aoaeh lists the major VUCA factors the world has seen in 2020 so far:

The rest of the article looks at how we can “define the problem” and from there react as an industry. This includes looking at the variables in our control versus those out of our control and how centralized a problem is to the core of the industry. He mentions, “we are learning as COVID-19 has unfolded is just how central China has become to the supply chains of many large, global industries.” The industry is now reacting and taking steps to change the current supply chain and operations organizational structure to ensure they’re more resilient in the future.

There is no doubt that global disasters shake the supply chain and rattle the global economy, but regardless of the “volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous” factors that impact the industry, there is always bounceback. Kingsgate has experienced and weathered the oft-turbulent times of the industry and is ready to handle any roadblocks that stand in the way – the Coronavirus and other VUCA’s are no different.

We’re continuously ready to react and adjust to the demands of the industry!

For more on the Coronavirus and its impact on the supply chain, click here.

All the Best,

Jeff Beckham