News

On January 19-20, we hosted the annual WION conference. This year fully online. Through this event we bring together Purchasing and Supply Chain Management academics that are working for Dutch Universities and/or Universities of Applied Sciences (HBO). In total this group is more than 100 people (!!), and about 40 of them participated in our 2-day event this year. The typical agenda of WION consists of two guest-lectures, workshops and research paper discussions. This year we had Dr Marcell Vollmer (Partner BCG) on Digital transformation of Procurement and Prof Dominik Mahr (UM) on methodologies for studying emergent technologies in Procurement. Both presenters made it very clear that digital is here to stay and that it is a great opportunity for our profession to become a value generating function.

Paul Bocuse, was a French master chef based in Lyon and known for the high quality of his restaurants and his innovative approaches to cuisine. It made him one of the most influential chefs of the second half of the 20th century and a great advocate of the Nouvelle Cuisine.

It is often said that The Netherlands is a country of merchants and vicars, of people with a trade instinct, but also with a moralistic side. However, while we as Procurement professionals are busy preaching about sustainable sourcing, green supply chains and socially responsible procurement, the COVID-19 crisis showed that we overtake our morals easily. It seems that little has changed in this since the 17th century: while we raise the finger on one side, we are not averse to “cut corners” or “close our eyes” to make a good deal. However, it is not only a Dutch issue, we are in good company. According to EY’s Global Integrity Report 2020, 18 percent of those surveyed claimed 'It is justified to pay bribes to survive,' compared to 4 percent in 2010!

The COVID-19 crisis has made it very clear that professional buyers and supply chain managers (SCM) are important for our economy. Leaders such as Merkel (Germany) and Rutte (The Netherlands) spoke openly about the importance of well-coordinated professional purchasing for obtaining the necessary personal protection equipment (PPE) such as face masks for health care workers. Various CEOs indicated that their companies have only made it through the COVID-19 crisis thanks to the decisive action of their Procurement and SCM departments. In short, the spotlight is on Procurement and SCM. COVID-19 has been a wake-up call for many companies. How do we actually deal with risks in our supply chains? Have we not become too dependent on suppliers in China? Is large-scale outsourcing and working with global supply chains still sustainable?

Earlier this month, Procurious (a global business network for supply chain management professionals) published their first Supply Chain Confidence Index. The study reveals that nearly all (97%) of the 600+ SCM professionals surveyed experienced a supply chain disruption related to COVID-19. The main impact areas reported were: decreased customer demand (31%), lack of available supply due to shutdowns (26%) and logistics and transportation slowdowns and delays (21%). In response, the majority of the organizations are now planning major shifts in supply chain and procurement strategy post-pandemic, including supply base expansion (38%), reductions in supply chain globalization (34%) and increases to inventory levels (21%).

We were very excited to be able to host colleagues from Arvato SCS, Boston Scientific, Philips and BISCI at our first physical Healthcare Hub workshop. As a team we defined projects, the overall program structure, time lines and the way forward to go from functional requirements to pilots with the chosen hospitals and the thought process to mature from release I, to II, to III, etc. whilst building the digital connectivity platforms needed in the healthcare sector.

 

At the end of August several companies, amongst them vidaXL, Moonen Packaging, Seacon Logistics, Arvato Supply Chain Solutions and Brightlands Institute for Supply Chain Innovation (BISCI), joined together to create Supply Chain Valley (SCV). The SCV is a collaboration that seeks to work with government, companies and academia to deliver joint goals that result in great outcomes for all involved and the wider environment, society and economy. They release their joint mission statement as follows:

“We, organisations work together on joint projects to achieve tangible results in the areas of; sustainability, end to end digital supply chain, shared economy, workforce of the future and warehouse of the future”

Sustainability, food safety and data science. These all come together at BISCI, the Brightlands Institute for Supply Chain Innovation. Barely a year and a half after its launch, the Venlo Institute was awarded a Knowledge Axis grant of 1.5 million Euros by the Province of Limburg.

After eighteen months of preparation, the Brightlands Institute for Supply Chain Innovation (BISCI) in Venlo can continue with the implementation of logistics projects. With BISCI, the logistics region North Limburg has a knowledge center in which knowledge institutions, companies and government participate. By collaborating in BISCI, smart and sustainable supply chain innovations can be researched, developed and subsequently applied quickly. With the grant of 1.5 million euros by the province of Limburg for the period 2021 to 2024, the institute can continue to expand its existing project portfolio.

Happy New Year from the BISCI team! We still live in challenging and uncertain times, but vaccination has started throughout Europe, hopefully marking the beginning of the end of this Covid-19 pandemic. For BISCI, 2021 will be a year full of opportunities to contribute to making supply chains more sustainable and digital. Our team is ready to take up these challenges together with our partners from business, academia and government. Take care, stay healthy!

Working from home has become the norm for many of us these days. Some love it while some would prefer to go back to their old routine. And yet, there are many reasons to believe that working from home, or at least a more flexible way of working, is the new normal.