2Sustain

In yesterday’s thought-provoking post, “Is Going Green Still Going Strong?” over at Supply Chain Management Review, Dawn Evans reports that greening the supply chain is now a growing priority for many companies, despite the downturn in the economy. In a survey conducted by SCMR back in September 2008, green sourcing was not considered a priority, even though sustainability programs were expected to become critical in the next two years. However, when SCMR re-surveyed supply chain executives this past April, the percent of companies that considered green sourcing demands as important to their supply chain jumped from 20% to 31%, Evans says.

Recent (Q2, 2009) research from E2Open and the Business Performance Management (BPM) Forum tells a similar story. According to their new study, “Acceleration of ECO-Operation: Achieving Success & Sustainability in the Supply Chain,” a whopping 90% of supply chain directors say that senior management sees the benefits and inevitability of sustainable supply chains.

But, then, here’s the truly relevant question: Are these business executives “walking the talk?”

Based on these latest results (added to other analyses and countless personal observations) I’d have to say, “Not yet.” Consider this:

• Nearly two-thirds of respondents in th3 E2Open/BPM Forum study reported marginal or no visibility across all tiers and levels of their value chain.

• 78%  rated the level of synergy and accountability in their global trading network as suboptimal.

• 42% of companies in the survey have yet to consider carbon footprint or GHG emissions across their entire extended supply chain.

• 76% said their customers have not requested information on carbon and emissions containment. Two-thirds expect customers to demand this in the next year.

• More than half of respondents say that their competitors use sustainability or ECO-Operation practices for competitive advantage.

• On the bright side, a healthy 85% of those polled say they are actively involved in new programs that drive operational efficiency, corporate social responsibility (CSR) and cost-savings across supply and demand chains.

“Today’s economic, social and regulatory dynamics are putting real pressures on global companies to be both lean and green in their product sourcing, logistics, distribution and operational practices,” says Donovan Neale-May, executive director of the BPM Forum. “Unifying and controlling complex, globally-distributed value networks in turbulent, unpredictable times requires real-time operational insights down to the product level, accurate sourcing and sell-through intelligence, and relentless dedication to eliminating waste in all areas of the go-to-market process.”

For more information and to download the new ECO-Operation report, visit http://www.eco-opscenter.com/reports.php