Tackling supply chain crises

Exploring how digital innovation blockchain and AI can help cut through crises in supply chain was the topic of discussion at a recent Breakfast Briefing event.

Dr Yingli Wang, Professor in Logistics and Operations Management, and John Barker, Associate Director of Strategic Partnerships at Simply Do, discussed the many supply chain crises that are currently taking place and the impact it is having around the world, such as stock delays in supermarkets.

Together, they explored how the integrated use of blockchain and artificial intelligence have the possibility to help organisations to build a more diversified supply chain base, and how Cardiff Business School has been working with Simply Do to test these changes.

Opening the session, Dr Wang discussed the increased volatility caused by the pandemic, along with other factors including natural disasters and supply chain shortage, and the vulnerabilities they cause.

On the question of how organisations would mitigate those vulnerabilities, she explored the strategies that organisations could employ, including the increasing use of digital tools, including demand forecasting, artificial intelligence and machine learning.

“In terms of the wider portfolio of digital initiatives, we are starting to see a lot of investment in effort in building supply chain visibility. When the products are leaving the warehouse or supplier side then you have a real-time visibility into where they are, what happens to them; therefore you can develop a much more proactive response approach when disruptions occur.”

During the session, John Barker explored the ways in which Simply Do, an innovation management platform, has brought together businesses with organisations including Cardiff University to create a new product to drive innovation.

“At Simply Do, we’re an innovation management platform, taking large strategic challenges and passing them out to solution providers. We work with employees within an organisation to develop and improve products, process and services.”

John shared some successful examples of these collaborations, including a partnership between NHS Wales and the life science hub to improve the procurement of PPE and other COVID-19 product lines.

Watch the full recording of the event.

Cardiff Business School's Breakfast Briefing Series is a network of events, which enables business contacts to find out more about the latest research and key developments from industrial partners.