It's time to transform procurement and sourcing

DURING her recent visit to Singapore, US vice-president Kamala Harris' itinerary included a meeting with key senior managers involved in managing supply chains in Asia. The topic of discussion - resilience and sustainability of supply chains.

It's interesting that this topic keeps cropping in business vocabulary in the context of three strategic global trends that are top-of-mind for international business and political leaders today. These are:

• impact of the pandemic,
• impact of the geopolitical rivalry playing out between China and the United States,
• increasing impact of climate change and push for sustainability and better all-round governance enshrined in the environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) philosophy.

All three trends have hit businesses in many ways and their continued impact in the longer run will push businesses to take a harder look at the issues to manage the resulting real risks.