The Importance of Supply Chain Resilience: A Consulting Firm Viewpoint

Background

Case Scenario You are a consultant employed in the strategy and operations division of a large consulting firm. The firm provides a broad range of consulting solutions to clients and works across all major industries and sectors and is constantly promoting thinking about key trends in business in the various sectors it serves. Because of your reputation for producing interesting but intellectually rigorous work which is valued by clients, you have been asked to join a team charged with developing “viewpoints” for the firm. These viewpoints have a variety of potential uses:

• The basis of discussions with clients
• Presentation material for business meetings and conferences
• For publication as thought-pieces on the firm’s website

Your leaders have recognised the increasing interest in the subject of Supply Chain Resilience, it was already an area of interest but has received increased focus in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. “And now, more than ever, the supply chain is critical. Companies need to supply goods and services quickly, safely and securely…….. companies need to develop a rapid response to address current disruptions and to repurpose and reshape supply chains for the future by increasing both resilience and responsibility.”

Available at: https://www.accenture.com/gb-en/about/company/coronavirus-business-economicimpact?

Your task is to develop a viewpoint to promote to clients titled “The importance of Supply Chain Resilience”. (Refer to Appendix 1 for more information on Viewpoints in your firm). 

The firm believes this viewpoint can lead to client discussions on an issue that should be of significant interest to grocery retailers across the globe. Significant interest from these possible clients would provide the potential for ongoing follow-on consulting work, and the opportunity to build a continuing relationship in many cases. Your leaders would like you, therefore, to articulate the concept of Supply Chain Resilience in such a way as to generate interest from grocery retailers. What you prepare needs to meet two objectives.

To explain the concept of supply chain resilience - to provide compelling reasons for an organisation to invest in such an approach. The intent is that starting the discussions on the importance of supply chain resilience will lead to future work for your firm. Senior colleagues have noted that a viewpoint should be authoritative, by referring to key opinion formers (academic, business and social-political) and drawing on key data and support, as appropriate. You are required to submit two deliverables for review, as detailed below. Note that this means you are required to develop, but not deliver, a presentation. 

1) A “pyramid” storyboard diagram clearly laying out the firm’s viewpoint of the opportunities for customers of investing in Supply Chain Resilience.

2) A pyramid-based PowerPoint slide pack supporting the viewpoint, that can be used by members of the firm in discussions and presentations with clients and at conferences. This pack must be limited to no more than 24 slides (to include all slides to be presented, such as title slides, agendas, etc. – but excluding appendix slides). You should include supporting notes pages within your presentation.

• Apply tools of research, analysis, decision-making and evaluation to a wide range of scenarios and use them to devise, substantiate and sustain credible arguments leading to possible viable solutions
• Examine and appraise management and business concepts and frameworks through the analysis of complex, multifaceted problems encountered by managers in international organisations 
• Actively debate contemporary and potential future business and management issues, and how these relate to transformational change within organisations
• Research and synthesize a complex and disparate array of information 
• Analyse and critically evaluate business and management information
• Prepare and deliver high-impact presentations that are clear, persuasive and appropriate to their purpose • Engage with potential consulting clients in a professional manners