JDA-KPMG survey finds high demand for greater supply chain visibility

By Brian Higgins

KPMG recently completed our second annual joint survey of supply chain executives in conjunction with JDA Software, Inc. that looks at key innovation investments across retail, manufacturing and logistics in 2019. The results are interesting as once again artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and cognitive analytics lead the list of top priorities.

Announced at this year’s Gartner Supply Chain Executive Conference in Phoenix, Ariz., the survey shows that supply chain visibility continues to be the biggest investment area for supply chain executives. To achieve this, the executives say they plan to deploy or test cognitive analytics (82%), AI/ML (62%) or digital “control tower” (55%) technology) over the next 24 months.

In fact, AI/ML taken together are viewed as the most impactful technology at 80%, given their wide applicability and promise of addressing complex business problems across the value chain.

Cognitive/predictive analytics also was highly ranked, with 75% of respondents saying they believe that this will have a disruptive impact in the year ahead. And since last year, AI has shifted into the high-impact/high-planned adoption quadrant for executives surveyed – confirming the importance of the impact this technology will have on supply chains in the years ahead.

The bottom line is that investments in the technologies outlined above, according to the survey, offer the opportunity to have the biggest impact for gleaning data insights and truly change the game for supply chain executives.

End-to-end visibility in supply chains continues to be the No. 1 priority for the second consecutive year. This means that advanced clients and customers expect transparency, low costs and high levels of service, and they are requiring today’s supply chains to operate at new levels of efficiency.

Read the full survey here.

Brian Higgins is a KPMG U.S. Advisory principal and the firm’s Operations Advisory leader. For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact Andreas Marathovouniotis.